Collect Persuasive Essays
Turn and talk: What is a compare and contrast essay? What does it mean to compare? To contrast? How do we do it (compare and contrast) in life? Be prepared to give examples ...
Journal: What does your morning routine look like? Start with waking up, .... Share and compare and contrast with the person next to you.
Introduce Compare and Contrast (final essay)
A compare-and-contrast essay analyzes two subjects by either comparing them, contrasting them, or both. The purpose of writing a comparison or contrast essay is not to state the obvious but rather to illuminate subtle differences or unexpected similarities between two subjects.
What's the difference? this question gets to the heart of comparison and contrast, and it is a question that can fit into any context. In day-to-day life, it implies the process behind most decisions: "What shall I wear?" "Which movie will I see?" "Should I change jobs?" All these questions involve choices that draw on comparison and contrast. Like narrative and persuasive essays, comparison and contrast forces you to observe, but here you are looking for similarities and differences.
Whether you stress differences or similarities, you need to be sure that the comparison is fair. Deciding where to go out to dinner often depends on how much you are willing to spend, so comparing a fast-food place to an elegant French restaurant doesn't have much of a point unless you want to treat the comparison humorously. If neither is worth the money, however, you've established a similarity that gives you a serious assertion to work with. How can you shape comparison and contrast for your readers?
Often you may want only to inform your reader; that gives you at least three possible theses:
x is better or worse than y.
x has a lot in common with y, though not obviously so.
x is quite different from y, though superficially similar.
Comparison can be used to persuade and to entertain your readers. A seemingly simple job such as washing the dog can be as much of a challenge as performing major surgery. As least at hospitals, you don't have to catch the patient first.
How can you use analogy? An analogy is an extended metaphor or simile in which a primary term is equated with another quite dissimilar term. An analogy can emphasize a point or illuminate an idea. https://literarydevices.net/extended-metaphor/
How can you structure your essay? Comparison and contrast essays group information so that the comparison is made by blocks or point by point or by a combination of the two. If you were to write an essay explaining the differences between an American feast, such as Thanksgiving, and a Chinese one, here is what the two major types of organization look like in outline form:
Type Structure Content
Block Paragraph 1 Introduction
Block A, paragraphs 2-4 American culture
Point 1 Preparation
Point 2 Courses/types of food
Point 3 Manners
Block B, paragraphs 5-7 Chinese culture
Point 1 Preparation
Point 2 Courses/types of food
Point 3 Manners
Paragraph 8 Conclusion
Point by
Point Paragraph 1 Introduction
Point 1, paragraph 2 Preparation
Chinese
American
Point 2, paragraph 3 Courses/types of food
Chinese
American
And so on. As you can see, sticking rigorously to one type of organization can become boring or predictable, so writers often mix the two.
* Examples of block structure and point by point
Basic Essay Structure
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P4fzbzwwAg
Pointers for Using Comparison and Contrast
Exploring the Topic
1. What are the similarities? What characteristics do your two subjects share? Are the two so similar that you have little to distinguish them? If so, try another subject; if not, pare down your list of similarities to the most important ones.2. What are the differences? In what ways are your two subjects different? Are they so different that they have little in common? If so, make sure you can handle a humorous tone or try another subject; if not, pare down your list of differences to the most important ones.
3. Should you emphasize similarities or differences? Which pattern of organization best fits your material? Block? Point by point? A combination of the two?
4. What examples work best? If your reader isn't familiar with your topic, what examples might be familiar? What examples will make clear what may be unfamiliar?
5. What metaphor does your subject suggest? Given the metaphor and your subject, what characteristics match? How can the metaphor be extended into an analogy? How can you outline the analogy as an equation? What equals what?
6. What other modes are appropriate? What modes can you draw on to help support your comparison and the organization of the essay? Do you need to define? Where can you use description? Narration? Example?
7. What is your point? Your purpose? Do you want to entertain, inform, persuade? Given your point as a tentative thesis, should you spell it out in the essay or imply it? If you are writing to inform, what information do you want to present? If you are writing to persuade, what do you want your reader to believe or do?
8. What persona do you want to create? Is it best for you to be part of the comparison and contrast or to be an observer? Do you have a strongly held conviction about your subject? Do you want it to show? Does your persona fit your audience, purpose, and material?
Discovering similarities and differences
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 is a very simple example, using two pizza places:
Make your own Venn diagram comparing or contrasting two things. https://www.thoughtco.com/creating-a-venn-diagram-1857015
Homework: Read Back to the Lake Chapter 10 Comparison and Contrast, pages 335-347.
In Friday's class: Be prepared to complete an Active Reading Outline (ARO) for Chapter 10. We will read the essay, "Singing Like Yma Sumac." I will provide handouts of this essay in class. I will also distribute the compare and contrast essay assignment.
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