Chapter 1: “They Say”
Graff and Berkenstein discuss one of the most important aspects of writing – addressing what “they say.” In this chapter, they inform the reader that when constructing an argument (or even a general statement,) one must cite the relative context around why they are making their claim. The anecdote these two use to help explain this idea fits perfectly, as a speaker made a claim that the audience thought no one refuted. Throughout the speaker’s argument, they became puzzled because the critics’ claims against the proposed argument had not been stated. The speaker only referenced them after the fact, and only then was the audience able to make more sense of his/her argument.
What I learned:
Prior to reading this chapter, I hadn’t really thought about approaching an argument in this way. I also learned various methods of doing so through the templates given in the text.
Chapter 2: “Her Point is”
This chapter emphasizes the importance of viewing both sides of the story when writing a claim. If a writer were to forge a biased summary of their opposition, not only would they misrepresent the other side of the argument, but they would also discredit their own argument as it is clearly biased and doesn’t refute the opposition properly. By stepping in the other side’s shoes, one can properly summarize in order to provide proper information.
A challenge I see with this:
I think a roadblock in my writing may come up in doing this. Because it requires me to write both regarding the opposing side appropriately and in the context of my own claim at the same time, I see myself having a hard time adding this to my writing from now on.
Chapter 3: “As He Himself Puts it”
This chapter encourages writers to utilize quotations in the most efficient way possible. It argues that many writers will often leave out vital context to a quote, leaving readers confused on its meaning. This issue can also reveal bias, as some writers may pick out specific words from a larger statement in effort to twist the meaning of a quote to their advantage. This is an issue that must be avoided in any form of writing to maintain credibility.
My takeaway: I am still curious on where to draw the line between providing proper context and overanalyzing a quote. I know that providing context and information is beneficial, but I don’t know how to tell if I’m ever reading “too hard” between the lines or trying to see something that isn’t there.
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