COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

COMPARING AND CONTRASTING Ms. FatemaKhurshid

Do I want this car … ? … or do I want that other car? Instructions for the Comparison or Contrast Essay

Do I want to visit Egypt on my next vacation … ? … or do I want to go to Las Vegas?

Do I want to eat something healthy… ? … or do I want something bad?

How to Write a Compare/Contrast Essay Compare and contrast essays are the another essay type in academic writing. These essays will follow a specific question and are fairly easy to complete. There are several ways to write this type of essay. The most important thing to remember is structure.

Introduction • Your introduction — like the five-paragraph-essay, should open generally (with a quotation, anecdote, generalization), and lead into the thesis statement.

Conclusion • The conclusion — like the introduction — should be a generalization of the thesis. This paragraph should express your certainty and absolute knowledge on the subject matter. You should reaffirm your thesis (essentially restate it in new words) and show how you've proven it.

Understand what comparison or contrast requires you to do. • Always choose two equalitems—two cars, two vacations, two sports stars—nottwo unequal items, like a car and an octopus. • Next, decide if you want to compareor contrastas your primary strategy. The essay should be 80/20 in favor of one strategy, not 50/50. • Your job is to interestthe reader. Choose points to discuss that are not immediately obvious.

Now let’s test your understanding ...

A baby is like a vacuum cleaner. WRONG!

Even though my little brother Fred is 20 years my junior, he and I have much in common. Yeah, baby!

My sister and I look alike, have common hobbies, and enjoy the same foods. Boring!

Even though Venus and Serena Williams are both professional tennis stars, they differ in their opinions about men, movies, and music. Excellent!

Make the comparison or contrast interesting. • Be sure that your essay has a purpose. Ask yourself this important question: Why would anyone want to read this comparison or contrast? • Consider giving the essay a specific audience. Imagine the essay is a letterto a specific person. Dear Mom and Dad, My current car is a death trap! Do you want me to be the reason I-4 traffic is at a standstill? For this reason, I want you to consider helping me pay for my dream car, a 2011 Honda Accord …

Pick a pattern for your essay. Introduction • Pattern A is a typical 5-paragraph essay. • The thesis statement will read like this: Because of X, Y, and Z, Subject A is similar to [or different from] Subject B. • Each body paragraph will discuss both Subject A and Subject B. All about Point X All about Point Y All about Point Z Conclusion

Pattern B will look a bit different. Introduction • Pattern B has only 4 paragraphs. • Alas, the essay must still be 500 words. • The thesis statement should not include restrictions, like this: Subject A is similar to [or different from] Subject B. • One body paragraph will discuss X, Y, and Z for Subject A; the other body paragraph will do the same for Subject B. All about Subject A All about Subject B Conclusion

If we follow the advice above … • Do we have two like things? • How are they alike? • Would it be better to compare or contrast? • What is the purpose? • What will make the essay interesting? • Would Pattern A or Pattern B work the best?

Point X Subject A Detail 1 Detail 2 Detail 3 Subject B Detail 1 Detail 2 Detail 3 Roman numerals address the X, Y, and Zfrom the thesis statement. Capital letter Ais always for the first subject; capital letter Bis always for the second subject. A detailfor Subject A must correspond to a detailfor Subject B. Format the Pattern A outline correctly.

Point X Gorillas in the Mist Aliens II. Point Y Gorillas in the Mist Aliens Thesis statement:The two Sigourney Weaver movies, Aliens and Gorillas in the Mist, have three important points of comparison [or contrast]: X, Y, and Z. III. Point Z • Gorillas in the Mist • Aliens

Subject A First Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail Second Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail Third Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail A Pattern Boutline looks a little different: Thesis Statement:Subject A is different from/similar to Subject B. II. Subject B • First Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail • Second Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail • Third Point of C/C 1. Detail 2. Detail 3. Detail

Vacation Class Date Car Friend Pet Job Computer School Scholarship Church Concert Sports event Membership Pattern B Outline Topics:Expectation vs. Reality

Decide the topic for your actual essay: • Your comparison/contrast essay will discuss the similarities/differencesbetween the Disney version of Cinderella orSnow White andthe Brothers Grimm orAnne Sexton version or the Vietnamese Cinderella. • Consider these pointsof comparison or contrast: • Characters • Animals • Costume and setting • Violence • Parents and step-parents • Lessons • Reading and viewing

Remember that you need a purpose for the comparison/contrast. So decide which fairytale version you would share with a specific child.

Create a works cited page: • Use MLA-style page numbering: your last name and the page number. • The works cited page is the last page of the essay. • Title the page: Works Cited. • The entire page is double spaced [with no extra spacingbetween entries]. • For each entry, all lines after the first are indented five spaces. • Punctuation and capitalization require your careful attention. • The list of entries is alphabetized.

Note the format: Williams 4 Works Cited The Greatest Movie Ever Made. Dir. John Bowman. Funtime Studios, 2010. DVD. Robertson, Zachary. “Wow Story.” The Greatest Website Ever Made. Web. 19 Jully. 2011.

If you are using a movie, set up the entry like this: • The Title. [in italics] • Dir. Director’s First Name and Last. [Dir. stands for Directed by.] • Studio Name, Year of Release. • Publication Medium.

The entry will look like this: Title of Film. Dir. Director’s First and Last Name. Studio Name, Year of Release.DVD.

Your two movie options: • Title:Cinderella • Directors: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske • Studio: Walt Disney Pictures • Year: 1950 • Title:Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs • Director: David Hand • Studio: Walt Disney Pictures • Year: 1937

If you are using a document within a website, set up the entry like this: • Author’s last name, first name. • “Title of Story or Poem.” [in quotation marks] • Title of Website. [in italics] • Publication Medium. • Date accessed. [Day Month Year]

The entry will look like this: Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Story or Poem.” Website Name. Web. 11 Feb. 2011.

Your two author options: • Authors: Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm • Title: “Cinderella” or “Little Snow White” • Website:National Geographic • Author: Anne Sexton • Title: “Cinderella” or “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” • Website:Miami University or Poets.org

Tam and Cam: • Author: None – so skip it! • Title: “The Story of Tam and Cam” • Website:The Homepage of Professor D. L. Ashliman, University of Pittsburgh

Note these rules about names: • If you refer to the character, treat his/her name as your own and just capitalize. • If you refer to the short storyor poem, use quotation marksand capitalizeall major words. • If you refer to the movie, use italics and capitalizeall major words.

Draft the introduction. • Remember that you are explaining which version of the story is appropriate for a specific child. • Use the introduction to give your reader background on that child. • Write 5 - 7 sentences that explain the child’s personality and/or situation. • Have these sentences lead up to your thesis statement.

Add support with direct quotations. • First, introducethe source with a speaker tag. • The Queen says, … • According to “Little Snow White,” … • Then use the exact words of the source in quotation marks. • You can make small changes with brackets like these: [ ] • You can omit chunks of text with ellipses, three periods in a row where you have removed words in the middle or at the end. • Follow with an in-text citation [aka parenthetical reference] • If you have one or more authors, use the name(s) of the author(s) in parentheses: (Grimm and Grimm) • If you do not have an author, use the abbreviated title of the work in parentheses: (“The Story”)

Format the quotations like this: According to _____ [story or poem’s title],“exact words”(In-text citation). __________ says,“exact words”(In-text citation). According to “Little Snow White,”our heroine “was as beautiful as the day, and more beautiful than the Queen herself”(Grimm and Grimm). The queen says,“[B]ring me her heart … and I will salt and eat it”(Sexton).

First Draft Directions • To earn all of the points on your prewriting sheet, do the following: • Confirm that you have a correct heading at the top left. • Give the essay a correctand interestingtitle. • Be sure that you have written 500+words. • Be sure to work in at least three quotationsthat have in-text citations. • Your homework is to type/polishthe draft for an in-class activity during the next class.

Prepare the final draftof the essay. • Be sure that you have MLA-style page numbering on every page. • The works cited page should be the last pageof the essay. • Confirm that you have three quotations—correctly integrated and cited—from your print source. • Know how many points each skill is worth on the evaluation sheet. • Visit the Writing Center [5-155] for advice. • Be sure to read and follow all of the format guidelines on your syllabus. • Send the essay as an email attachment before you arrive to class!

The End. Look, I don’t have time for this. I’m going to get to work.

COMPARING AND CONTRASTING