Chapter 4 in They Say I Say is all about the three ways to respond. According to the book those three ways are yes, no, and okay, but. Essentially this chapter addresses how to respond to other people’s arguments. If you can correctly bring someone else’s research or analysis into your own paper then you can easily strengthen your argument. The chapter also stresses the importance of introducing facts and details of your own and comparing
them with others. For every other reputable person that agrees with your argument the more legitimate your argument becomes. Also the chapter addresses the importance of the inclusion of a counter argument, but also stresses that you should not let your counter argument overwhelm your actual argument. The templates provided in this chapter are very useful because at least for me they took me out of my comfort zone. When you are forced to argue something from both sides you have to set your
personal beliefs to the side and focus on the facts that you have gathered. Once you have those compiled it is up to you to phrase those facts in way that makes your argument seem more persuasive than your opposition’s. It is a lot like two people having the same pieces to the puzzle. It is all about how you arrange those pieces to get the big picture.
In chapter four of “They Say, I Say,” Graff and Birkenstein explain the ways to either respond to another person’s argument or create an argument themselves. They also state that there are three ways to respond to something, by agreeing, disagreeing, or being in the middle of the argument. They go on to say that the best arguments contain originality, and simply agreeing by saying “I agree” with someone else is not a good statement, but
rather, you have to build on what someone says by adding your own input that may have not been seen before. Also, they mentioned that there is a certain art to disagreeing with another person’s argument, and just stating that you disagree simply does not suffice. You must elaborate your opinions in order to create a cohesive argument that is noteworthy. Graff and Birkenstein also brought up formats that show how to structure a sentence in which you disagree with something or someone, and they
showed multiple examples which they referred to as templates. They did the same thing for agreeing and being in the middle of the two sides. They called being in the middle of an argument “agree and disagree simultaneously”. They also state throughout this entire chapter a person must rely first on their own ideas and intuitions in order to create or build on arguments. They also made interesting points about how arguments are structured and contrasted. I agree with most of the points that
Graff and Birkenstein explain, and most notably, when they described how to structure good arguments. They did not say what I am going to say specifically, but they had the same idea; for many arguments to be solid and intriguing, you many times have to see another person’s argument in a different way or angle in order to structure your own argument about the same subject. The only part that I slightly disagreed with the authors on in this chapter was when they stated to it is okay to take and
keep an undecided stance on an argument. I do not fully agree with this because in order to create the strongest argument possible, in my opinion, a side has to be taken fully to make an argument successful and extensively insightful. However, in general, i agree with almost everything that these two authors stated, and in addition, I have used a few of their templates, or some variation of it before in other arguments that I have made for academic writing. One point that they made that
intrigued me very much and made me ponder it was when they said it was when they stated that agreeing with someone in academic writing is actually more difficult than disagreeing with them. I found this to be relatively true about most subjects, although I havent really thought of it like that before. Overall, I think that they made interesting points about an “I Say” portion of their book, and they made me contemplate some of the arguments that they brought up, and I found most of them to
be valid and well written.
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"Yes/No/Okay, But": Three Ways to Respond
"Yes/No/Okay, But": Three Ways to Respond
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- 1. “YES/NO/OKAY,BUT”: THREE WAYS TO RESPOND Chapter 4
- 2. “Will a template stifle my creativity?” Arguments are complex and can be difficult to write in a couple of sentences. The more complex an argument, chances are, the more complex the communication. However, using a template to agree, disagree, or both is one way of solving these problems.
- 3. Agreeing, disagreeing, or both 1. Why is it better to use a direct, no-nonsense formula such as “I agree” when responding to a “they say”?
- 4. Answer: By using a direct, no-nonsense formula, your readers can get a strong grasp of your position and then be able to appreciate how your argument unfolds. Having a baseline for your argument will help your readers follow you better.
- 5. Disagreeing 2. Though disagreeing with an argument has been considered easier to do, what are some of its inherent difficulties?
- 6. Answer: It’s easy to state you disagree with something, but the true problems arise if you don’t state why you disagree. A strong argument that disagrees provides reasons to support this stance. Think “because” to complete your statement. Example: I disagree that ______ because ______...
- 7. Templates for Disagreeing Ex: I disagree with Geier’s view that people can drive and talk on their cell phones simultaneously because as research shows, the human brain cannot consciously process doing two activities at once. Ex: By focusing solely on education budget cuts in the Fine Arts department, Bradfield overlooks the deeper problem of a school’s fiscal responsibilities.
- 8. Agreeing 3. Why is simply agreeing a difficult move to make?
- 9. Answer: Agreeing can be difficult because it’s important to bring something new and fresh to the table. When you agree, this can be hard to do. You want to add something that makes you a valuable participant in the conversation.
- 10. Agreeing and disagreeing at the same time “Yes and no,” or “Yes, but” Agreeing and disagreeing at the same time allows writers to tailor their argument to make it more complicated and nuanced. A writer can agree with one part of an argument while disagreeing with another. Moreover, with this option a writer can subtly tip her argument by placing stress on one part and not the other.
- 11. Templates to agree and disagree simultaneously Although I agree with X up to a point, I cannot accept his overriding assumption that ____________________. Though I concede that ________, I still insist that_______. X is right that _________, but she seems on more dubious ground when she claims that________________.
- 12. Other favorites I’m of two minds about X’s claim that ______ On the one hand, I agree that _______. On the other hand, I’m not sure if________. My feelings on this issue are mixed. I do support X’s position that _________, but I find Y’s argument about _________and Z’s research on ________to be equally persuasive.
- 13. A little of each=superstar Naturally, writers lean towards one side or the other on an issue and will decide to whole-heartedly agree or disagree. But if writers can find a way to agree and disagree with an author’s argument, they are much more likely to develop a unique, nuanced argument that really separates theirs from the rest.