In “Starting with What Others Are Saying,” the purpose is to explain how to interpret and respond to the writing of other writers. Before learning how to interpret and respond to the author’s work, you must first introduce an idea in their writing. Using the templates provided by the chapter can help you express your own ideas and beliefs. This allows you to state what the writer is saying. Likewise, using the template helps you avoid meaningless statements in your arguments and provides the best way to respond to an argument. The chapter suggests that the writer start their argument by “entering the conversation” by stating what the other writer is stating. This will clarify the argument you are addressing after stating what “They Say,”
