Help With Writing a Compare And Contrast Essay Text

Jonathan Friesen - Writing Coach

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if you are a maintainer of this web content, please refer to the site documentation regarding web services for further assistance. This option may be re enabled by the project by placing a file with the name .htaccess with this line: this handout will help you first to determine whether a particular assignment is asking for comparison/contrast and then to generate a list of similarities and differences, decide which similarities and differences to focus on, and organize your paper so that it will be clear and effective.

It will also explain how you can and why you should develop a thesis that goes beyond thing a and thing b are similar in many ways but different in others. In your career as a student, you’ll encounter many different kinds of writing assignments, each with its own requirements. One of the most common is the comparison/contrast essay, in which you focus on the ways in which certain things or ideas usually two of them are similar to this is the comparison and/or different from this is the contrast one another.

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By assigning such essays, your instructors are encouraging you to make connections between texts or ideas, engage in critical thinking, and go beyond mere description or summary to generate interesting analysis: when you reflect on similarities and differences, you gain a deeper understanding of the items you are comparing, their relationship to each other, and what is most important about them. Some assignments use words like compare, contrast, similarities, and differences that make it easy for you to see that they are asking you to compare and/or contrast. Here are a few hypothetical examples: compare and contrast frye’s and bartky’s accounts of oppression.

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Compare wwi to wwii, identifying similarities in the causes, development, and outcomes of the wars. Contrast wordsworth and coleridge what are the major differences in their poetry? notice that some topics ask only for comparison, others only for contrast, and others for both. But it’s not always so easy to tell whether an assignment is asking you to include comparison/contrast.

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And in some cases, comparison/contrast is only part of the essay you begin by comparing and/or contrasting two or more things and then use what you’ve learned to construct an argument or evaluation. Consider these examples, noticing the language that is used to ask for the comparison/contrast and whether the comparison/contrast is only one part of a larger assignment: choose a particular idea or theme, such as romantic love, death, or nature, and consider how it is treated in two romantic poems. How do the different authors we have studied so far define and describe oppression? compare frye’s and bartky’s accounts of oppression. What does each imply about women’s collusion in their own oppression? which is more accurate? in the texts we’ve studied, soldiers who served in different wars offer differing accounts of their experiences and feelings both during and after the fighting. What commonalities are there in these accounts? what factors do you think are responsible for their differences? you may want to check out our handout on understanding assignments for additional tips. Sometimes you may want to use comparison/contrast techniques in your own pre writing work to get ideas that you can later use for an argument, even if comparison/contrast isn’t an official requirement for the paper you’re writing.

For example, if you wanted to argue that frye’s account of oppression is better than both de beauvoir’s and bartky’s, comparing and contrasting the main arguments of those three authors might help you construct your evaluation even though the topic may not have asked for comparison/contrast and the lists of similarities and differences you generate may not appear anywhere in the final draft of your paper. Making a venn diagram or a chart can help you quickly and efficiently compare and contrast two or more things or ideas. To make a venn diagram, simply draw some overlapping circles, one circle for each item you’re considering. In the central area where they overlap, list the traits the two items have in common. Assign each one of the areas that doesn’t overlap in those areas, you can list the traits that make the things different. Here’s a very simple example, using two pizza places: to make a chart, figure out what criteria you want to focus on in comparing the items.

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You should then have a box per item for each criterion you can fill the boxes in and then survey what you’ve discovered. Here’s an example, this time using three pizza places: a compare and contrast essay is a form of academic writing that is built around an examination of at least two items. There are two kinds of compare and contrast essays – one where you focus more on the similarities of the chosen items, and one that contrasts their differences. Depending on your emphasis, the paper can be more of a comparison essay, or more of a contrast essay. Make sure they have similar and dissimilar qualities, so that there is enough material to focus on. Decide which organizational structure you will choose for your compare and contrast essay.

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You can either focus on the similarities first and then go to the differences can be in reverse order – this is called point by point arrangement or you can first focus on the qualities of one item in a paragraph or two , and then move onto analyzing the other item normally comparing the same set of qualities – this is called a block arrangement of ideas. Make sure to finish it with a clear thesis sentence where you give the main reason for choosing whichever items you chose. Write the main body paragraphs in accordance with the structure you chose when making an outline – either block or point by point arrangement. Make sure to go back to your initial thesis sentence and rephrase it, finalizing the result of your comparison or contrast writing and answering the main question you initially had in mind. It can be anything related to natural phenomena, food, lifestyle, sports, gender issues, hobbies, literary forms and so on – basically, anything that people can have viewpoints on. The only concept you have to consider when choosing the subjects for your compare and contrast essay is that what you compare or contrast needs to be of the same kind, type, or category, which means they need to have some basics in common.

For instance, you cannot compare a tornado to being a vegetarian, or a movie to the choice of a profession. Classical art: aesthetics and meaning halloween or christmas: which holiday is more fun? acting and lying: are they really the same thing? what is the difference between prejudice and discrimination? choosing a pet: dog vs. Cat why public schools are better for children than private schools? playing video games vs. Outdoor activities with friends dieting and anorexia: are they really that far apart? city life or country life? forward or defender: which soccer position contributes more to a win? which is a better place to go on vacation: the beach or mountains?

    the main rule when writing compare and contrast essays is paying attention to details. The items you compare might be what we do or watch or talk about every day, but do not think about in terms of their similarities and differences.

    You have to take your time, brainstorm for ideas and take a fresh look at the subject you plan to discuss or come up with a different perspective from the one you normally have. The key to a successful compare and contrast essay is following the selected organizational structure either block or point by point precisely, since this is normally one of the main criteria that your instructor will check when grading the paper. Sketch the list of major qualities or peculiarities of this audience and make sure that you address the subject that is important to your readers, noting what your audience normally values and is interested in. When making an outline for the items you chose to compare or contrast, ask yourself this question: will the result of your comparison have any significant practical value or meaning for you or your readers? if the answer is negative, then it is better to change your topic at this point.

do start your essay from a clear definition of each of the items you plan to compare or contrast in your essay. Do try to follow a particular structure for each paragraph, depending on the arrangement type that you initially chose for your essay. Start each paragraph with the general idea usually, a certain criterion that you would like to apply when analyzing your items , then introduce supporting details and finish with a general conclusion.

But you also have to make sure that your paragraphs are linked together and flow in a logical manner. Don’t try to combine two organizational structures – select one of the two and stick to it throughout your essay. In compare and contrast essays, they not only smooth out the flow of your writing, but also serve an additional important role of indicating to the readers that you are switching from one item to the other one. Even if you have a clear preference for one of the subjects you are contrasting or comparing, it is important to remain objective and base your conclusions on factual data rather than your personal emotions. Don’t ignore general academic writing requirements while trying to follow specific rules for writing compare and contrast essays. Make sure your paper is written in a formal style, avoiding slang and conversational language ensure that your essay has no spelling, grammatical or punctuation mistakes.

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You need to decide whether you will focus on proving the similarities or the differences of the items you compare, and only then can you move onto creating an outline and starting your draft. It is difficult to create an original and plagiarism free essay when you select a topic that has already been discussed a million times. If you yourself cannot answer your thesis question which item is a better choice? , then you will fail to produce a successful compare and contrast essay. Despite the fact that it might be easier to list similar or discrepant qualities by organizing them into some sort of graphic structure, this is not an appropriate idea when you are writing an essay. You can still create a chart or a table for your own purposes to help you organize your thoughts and prepare a outline. Now that you have acquainted yourself with the basic compare and contrast essay writing tips and rules, you can check out our compare and contrast essay samples to link theory with practice.