In the beginning, there was chapter one

Reading They Say/ I Say, by Gerald Gaff and Cathy Birkenstein, I found the first chapter to be especially interesting: using what "They Say" as a means to explain, support, and prove one's own thesis.


Reading the chapter, I also came across something of particular interest: speaking publicly without explaining why the individual took a particular viewpoint on a topic. For example, the authors state that while they were at a conference, the man who was giving the presentation had a tendency to ramble on about a particular viewpoint, without explaining why he was supporting it. To make a long story short, because the speaker didn't include what others said (They Say) about the particular topic, members of the audience were lost as to why he continued on with his (logically supported) opinions.

To summarize the lesson of this post, page 20 of They Say, I Say states: "...give writing the most important thing of all-namely, a point- a writer needs to indicate clearly not only what his or her thesis is, but also what larger conversation that thesis is responding to."

I was sitting in English class when all of a sudden, I was given... a book.

Hello fellow travelers! Now that I've returned from winter break, I'm going to shift away from talking about travel and focus on this nifty book that I was loaned for my English 102 class. Allow me to introduce you to They Say, I Say, by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein.

The book, They Say, I Say, stresses the ability to enter academic conversations while being able to state your point of view, as well as recognize another, even if you don't agree with it. In a nutshell, the book will train students to "challenge standard ways of thinking, and thus, stir up controversy"(Graff, 8). By giving different formats of conversation, the writer will be able to approach opposing viewpoints while still being able to stress their own, while still acting in a logical, respectful manner. For example, let's take an example of collective bargaining, while using a template from the book, as follows:

**This following format is taken from the preface of the book; I just filled in the blanks.**

"In discussions of collective bargaining, a controversial issue is whether or not it effects the state deficit. While some argue that it drains state money, others contend that it has no impact on the state budget."

This way, I not only state what I'm talking about, I also state the opposing viewpoints while remaining factual (as seen in the stated arguments) and respectful (as seen in the general tone of the example).
As the book continues, each chapter will introduce a new format on how to engage in academic conversation, one that is complete with facts, opinions, and quite possibly, controversy.