The Blair Reader encourages public discussion in the wider world by reading actively as well as critically and responding to the ideas of others.

After more than twenty-five years of teaching composition, the authors have come to see reading and writing as interrelated activities: To write effectively, one must also read actively and critically. The authors have found and strongly believe that a reader is enriched and engaged when he/she view the reading and writing they do as a way of participating. From the beginning, the goal in The Blair Reader has always been to encourage these discussions in the wider world by responding to the ideas of others.