As He Himself Puts It
An argument is more effective when it takes exact words from the text and responding to those with great detail rather than just summarizing and responding to the text as a whole. As Graff/Birkenstein wrote in their article As He Himself Puts It: The Art of Quoting, “One of the best ways to [launch an effective argument] is by not only summarizing what “they say”… but by quoting their exact words. Quoting someone else’s words gives a tremendous amount of credibility to your summary and helps ensure that it is fair and accurate.” Much like in debates, an argument is strengthened when it pays attention to the specifics of the arguments of the other side and this can be done through quoting. Quotes lend credibility to your argument because not only do they show that you’re arguing WITH them instead of AT them, they also show tha you’re not just twisting the ideas of their words to attack them unjustly.
