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They Say I Say

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They Say I Say
“They Say/I Say”: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing
In the introduction to “They Say/ I Say”: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing, Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein provide templates throughout the first six chapters in the book. The writers specifically designed these templates to make it easier on the write on how to write a professional and well written paper. It structures and expresses your own writing in words you couldn’t think to express. A unique feature is the way they present the templates, it help you enter a world of successful thinking and organization in your piece. The most important formula that was given to use is “they say…; I say…” which gives the book its title. This formula simply means that don’t only express your ideas with “I say…” but also responding to other people’s ideas with “they say…” This formula doesn’t only paraphrase our own ideas but also closely listens to what others say about the idea. You should enter a conversation with an argument so readers and listeners are more hooked on the discussion. An argument is key to a conversation.
Starting with what others are saying “they say…” the most important thing of writing is to not only specify your thesis is, but what the larger picture that the thesis is implying to. After reading chapter one “They Say” Starting with What Others Are Saying, I understood the meaning of order in a passage and how to write a well-written passage. You must engage in the audience, the writer needs to explain what they are replying to. If you become unsuccessful in doing this, you lose the readers train of thought. The readers mind will soon wonder aimlessly on something else and not in your essay. Creating an essay with an argument, keeps the reader hooked and engaged in what you are saying. I learned that you should start off by stating what others say first, then engage with your idea last. Chapter two “Her Point Is” The Art of Summarizing, talks about writing a good

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