Introducing What “They Say”
* A number of ____________ have recently suggested that _______________.
* It has become common today to dismiss _____________________________.
* In their recent work, Y and Z have offered harsh critiques of _________________
for _________________________.
Introducing “Standard Views”
* Americans today tend to believe that _______________________.
* Conventional wisdom has it that __________________________.
* Common sense seems to dictate that _______________________.
* The standard way of thinking about topic X has it that __________________________.
* It is often said that _________________.
* Many people assume that ______________________________.
Making what “They Say” Something “You Say”
* I’ve always believed that ___________________________.
* When I was a child, I used to think that ___________________________.
* Although I should know better by now, I cannot help thinking that ________________.
* At the same time that I believe ____________________, I also believe __________________.
Introducing Something Implied or Assumed
* Although none of them have ever said so directly, my teachers have often given me the impression that ____________________.
* One implication of X’s treatment of _____________ is that _____________________.
* Although X does not say so directly, she apparently assumes that ________________.
* While they rarely admit as much, ___________________ often take for granted that ____________________.
Introducing an Ongoing Debate
* In discussions of X, one controversial issue has been __________________.
* On the one hand, ______________ argues ______________. On the other hand, _____
contends __________. Others even maintain __________________. My own view is ____________________.
* When it comes to the topic of _____________, most of us will readily agree that _______________. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of
______________. Whereas some are convinced that ________________, others maintain that _____________________.
Capturing Authorial Action
* X acknowledges that ________________.
* X agrees that ________________.
* X argues that _______________.
* X believes that __________________.
* X denies/does not deny that ____________________.
* X claims that _____________________.
* X complains that _____________________.
* X concedes that ________________.
* X demonstrates that ________________.
* X deplores the tendency to ______________________.
* X celebrates the fact that ____________________.
* X emphasizes that _________________.
* X insists that __________________.
* X observes that ___________________.
* X questions whether _________________.
* X refutes the claim that ___________________.
* X reminds us that ____________________.
* X reports that ___________________.
* X suggests that ________________.
* X urges us to ____________________.
Introducing Quotations
* X states, “……………”
* As the prominent philosopher X puts it, “…………..”
* According to X, “………………..”
* In her book, _____________, X maintains that “…………….”
* Writing in the journal Commentary, X complains that “………………..”
* In X’s view, “……………”
* X agrees when she writes, “………………”
* X disagrees when he writes, “………………”
* X complicates matters further when he writes, “…………………”
Explaining Quotations
* That is to say, ___________________.
* In other words, __________________.
* In making this comment, X urges us to _______________________.
* X is corroborating the age-old adage that ________________________.
* X’s point is that ___________________.
* The essence of X’s argument is that ____________________.
* That is, ________________________________________________.
* For _____________, ________________ is _________________.
* Similarly, _____________________________________________.
* This idea is _____________________________________________.
* As a result, ___________________ has been/is ____________________.
Disagreeing, with Reasons
* I think X is mistaken because she overlooks ______________________.
* X’s claim that ___________ rests upon the questionable assumption that __________.
* I disagree with X’s view that ___________ because, as recent research has shown, _________________.
* X contradicts herself/can’t have it both ways. On the one hand, she argues _________.
On the other hand, she also says, ________________.
* By focusing on ______________, X overlooks the deeper problem of _____________.
Agreeing—with a Difference
* I agree that ___________ because my experience ___________ confirms it.
* X surely is right about ________ because, as she may not be aware, recent studies have shown that ______________.
* X’s theory of ________________ is extremely useful because it sheds insight on the difficult problem of __________________.
Agreeing and Disagreeing Simultaneously
* Although I agree with X up to a point, I cannot accept his overall conclusion that _______________.
* Although I disagree with much that X says, I fully endorse his final conclusion that _________________.
Signaling Who is Saying What
* X argues ____________________.
* According to both X and Y, _______________.
* Politicians _________________, X argues, should _____________________.
* Most athletes will tell you that _______________________.
* My own view, however, is that _________________.
* I agree, as X may not realize, that _____________________.
* But ___________ are real and, arguably, the most significant factor in ____________.
* But X is wrong that ________________.
* However, it is simply not true that ___________________.
* Indeed, it is highly likely that _________________.
* X’s assertion that __________ does not fit the facts.
* X is right that ________________.
* X is wrong that _______________.
* X is both right and wrong that _________________.
* Yet a sober analysis of the matter reveals __________________.
* Anyone familiar with ________________ should agree that ___________.
Embedding Voice Markers
* X overlooks what I consider an important point about _________________.
* My own view is that what X insists is a ________________ is in fact a ___________.
Entertaining Objections
* Yet some readers may challenge the view that __________________.
* Of course, many will probably disagree with this assertion that _______________.
Naming Your Naysayers
* Here many feminists probably object that ________________.
* Although not all Christians think alike, some of them will probably dispute my claim that __________________.
Introducing Objections Informally
* But is my proposal realistic? What are the chances of its actually being adopted?
* However, does the evidence I’ve cited prove conclusively that ________________?
Making Concessions While Still Standing Your Ground
* Although I grant that _______________, I still maintain that _________________.
* Proponents of X are right to argue that ___________________. But that exaggerate when they claim that __________________.
Indicating Who Cares
* ________ used to think ___________. But recently [or within the past few decades] _______________ suggests that ____________________.
* These findings challenge the work of earlier researchers, who tended to assume that _________________.
Establishing Why Your Claims Matter
* These finding have important consequences for the broader domain of _____________.
* My discussion of X is in fact addressing the larger matter of _________________.
