“They say I say”
“They Say I Say” by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein is an essential book which contains guidelines on what and how to write in different situations and contexts. It has templates for making statements and how to illustrate ideas. It also has examples of ways in which the templates can be used. In the book, the authors seek to demystify academic writing by teaching students and other writers to frame their arguments in anything else said about their topic. The book is divided into three parts: part one is about “They Say” and carries chapter I, 2 and 3. Part two is on “I Say” and carries chapter 4 to chapter 8. Part 3 is entitled “TYING IT ALL TOGETHER” and consists of chapters 8, 9 and 10. This paper presents a synopsis of this book highlighting the fundamental ideas of the authors in each chapter.
The authors start by introducing the first templates for they say in the first chapter of the book. They articulate how one can write what someone else is saying effectively (pg.22). This chapter proceeds to give templates on the things you might believe in or the ideas that may be assumed or implied. Generally, this chapter provides a detailed understanding of how to make a point or share a particular belief through writing.
The second chapter (pg. 30-40) on “Her Point is” of this book; the authors give a guideline on how to make a good summary. The authors give insights into the art of summarizing, the reason why people do it and why others despise it. The authors argue that to write a summary, the author has to isolate his/her ideas and try to show the real essence of the piece of writing they are working on. The authors acknowledge that the writer has to concentrate on referring back to the original text in order to avoid personal interpretation of the text. In the next chapter, “As He Himself Puts it|”, the author teaches students how to do quotations highlighting the importance of attribution (pg.42-50). This chapter is very important to students as it can help them to avoid plagiarism in academic writing.
In chapter four (pg. 55-67), Graff and Birkenstein highlight three ways of engagement with the literature. These are agreeing, disagreeing or a combination of the two. Chapter five (pg.68-75) shows the importance of how to use dialogue properly. The authors emphasize the importance of ensuring that a reader easily distinguishes “they say” from “I say.” They explain that to avoid the conclusion, the writer must use voice markers to enable the reader to distinguish different perspectives in the essay. In chapter six, the authors highlight the importance of naysayers and critics. They argue that such using criticism from others will increase your writing skills as well give your writings more credibility. It also helps you think about what others will have to say against your arguments.
In chapter seven, (pg. 92-100), the authors help the reader to explain why the analysis presented throughout the paper may be useful. The “Who Cares” asks you to establish a group (or a person) while the “So What” seeks to know about the real-world applications and consequences of the arguments. In part 3 of the book (TYING IT ALL TOGETHER), chapter 8 introduces the proper way to connect and arrange your ideas together to make it easy to read. This chapter demonstrates how to effectively tie an argument together by combining the various parts of that argument (pg.105-117).
Chapter 9 teaches that writing should be relaxed and comfortable to follow. The authors illustrate the importance of taking into account the audience to who you are writing to and the purpose of writing. Chapter 10 is about metacommentary whereby the authors point out that this is a method of commenting on your ideas and telling the readers how and how not think about them. It is a way of guiding the readers by telling them what you mean in your text.