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These step-by-step instructions and examples are a great starting place for many homework projects. Follow these steps to break up a big assignment into doable pieces, learn how to efficiently complete each part to get the most out of your time, and organize your work to finish everything when due.
Compare and Contrast Essay
A compare and contrast essay is a short composition that points out the similarities and differences between two things. Tackle a compare and contrast essay just like you would tackle any other essay—break it down into manageable tasks.
Make sure you understand what your teacher expects of you. Review all of the information you have about the assignment and verify that you can answer the following questions. If you don’t know, ask your teacher.
- Are you required to compare and contrast something in particular?
- When is your essay due?
- Is there a requirement for length?
1. Decide what you’re going to compare and contrast. Choose something that interests you and complies with any guidelines that your teacher provided. You might compare and contrast objects, ideas, or people. If you’re having trouble coming up with ideas, think about recent experiences, page through a magazine, watch the news, or skim a newspaper for stories about people, events, or issues that intrigue you.
Example: Your family is in the process of buying a new car. Your parents have narrowed their options down to two choices: a Ford Explorer and a Jeep Grand Cherokee. You decide to use your essay to help them make their final decision by comparing and contrasting the two cars.
2. Identify your points of comparison—that is, the key aspects that you will compare and contrast. If necessary, do some digging to get a better feel for your topic and pertinent points to compare. Do Internet searches, read a few newspaper articles, and skim encyclopedia articles related to your topic.
Example: Up until this point, you haven’t been very involved in your parents’ search for a new car. You decide to start by familiarizing yourself with the factors people consider when they’re ready to purchase a new car. You visit a few car-buying Web sites and check out a guide for new car buyers from the public library.
With your topic and points of comparison identified, it’s time to organize your ideas—that is, to outline your essay.
1. Start by listing your points of comparison—the key aspects that you will compare and contrast—on a piece of paper.
Example: You plan to compare and contrast the Ford Explorer and the Jeep Cherokee, so you decide to use the factors people consider when they’re ready to purchase a new car as your points of comparison:
- Price
- Size
- Safety
- Gas mileage
- Performance
2. Under each point of comparison, note the related similarities and differences between your items. In essays, you can draw on personal experience as well as research to support your points. If you don’t know enough about the similarities and differences for a particular point of comparison from personal experience, do a little research.
Example: You’ve picked a topic that you don’t have much personal experience with—you’ve never driven an Explorer or a Grand Cherokee. You’ll have to rely heavily on research. You decide to read several reviews on the Ford Explorer and the Jeep Grand Cherokee, and then to take an informal survey of all the people you know who own one of these cars.
Tip: If your teacher requires you to hand in a bibliography with your essay, take a few minutes now to determine what information on each source you’ll need. For example, does your teacher require you to list your source’s publisher and where it was published? Jot this information down for each source as you do your research. Knowing exactly what you need now will save you the hassle of having to go back to look it up later.
3. Read through your points and consider the order in which they appear. Does the sequence work? Could your essay be stronger if you presented your points of comparison in a different order? Would it make sense to discuss all of the similarities, then move on to the differences? If necessary, rearrange your outline.
Writing the body of your essay can be a formidable task, but it doesn’t have to be if you let the tools you’ve amassed—your topic, points of comparison, and your outline—do the heavy lifting for you.
1. With your outline as a guide, turn each of your points of comparison into a paragraph or two.
2. Once you’ve fleshed out the bones of your essay, go back and connect the paragraphs into a cohesive narrative. Be sure to use strong topic sentences as transitions between the paragraphs. Your goal is to make clear to the reader why you presented the information in the order you did.
Tip: Be sure to cite any information you borrowed from another author—that is, any fact or opinion that is not your own.
3. Read through your essay with a critical eye. Does each topic sentence clearly summarize the point of the paragraph? Does the sequence of your paragraphs work?
4. If time permits, take a break. Put your essay out of sight for a day or two and forget about it. This way your eye and your perspective will be fresh when you next review the essay.
Your essay’s introduction and conclusion reinforce the key points you make in your paper.
1. Use your introduction to state what you will compare and contrast and to identify the points of comparison. Your introduction should also grab the reader’s attention and make them want to read on. Including a surprising fact or anecdote about your topic can help grab attention.
2. Use your conclusion to summarize the key similarities and differences. Don’t restate your findings word for word—your goal is to provide a sense of closure and to leave the reader with a final perspective on your topic.
If you did any research for your compare and contrast essay, you’ll need to include a bibliography. A bibliography is a list of the sources you used in your research. It is usually included as a separate page or pages at the end of your essay and titled “Bibliography,” “References,” or “Works Cited.”
1. Gather all the source information you jotted down when you were taking notes.
2. Assemble your sources into a single list, alphabetized by author’s last name. Sources that don't have authors (encyclopedia articles, for example) should be alphabetized by title.
3. Properly format each item in your source list according to an accepted bibliographic style. One common bibliographic style is provided below, but there are many acceptable styles for bibliographies. Be sure to use the format that your teacher specified.
Common Bibliographic Style
This bibliographic style follows the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition, written by Joseph Gibaldi and published in 2003 in New York by the Modern Language Association of America.
Book
Author Last Name, Author First Name. Book Title. Publication Location: Publisher, Publication Year.
Encyclopedia article
'Article Title,' Encyclopedia Name. Edition Year ed.
Newspaper, magazine, or journal article
Author Last Name, Author First Name. 'Article Title' Publication Title Publication Date: page numbers.
Book review
Reviewer Last Name, Reviewer First Name. Rev. of Book Title by Book Author First and Last Name. Publication Location: Publisher, Publication Year.
Film, movie
Movie Title. Dir. Director First and Last Name. Studio or Distributor, Movie Release Date.
Internet source
Author Last Name, Author First Name. “Article or Page Title.” Site Name. Date assigned to the Web site (if available). Institution or organization affiliated with the site. Date of access. .
Put the final touches on your essay. Don’t be tempted to skip these steps—nothing detracts from a good essay more than grammar or spelling errors.
1. Run a spell check on your essay and fix any problems.
2. Read your essay from start to finish, the same way your teacher will. Fix any grammar mistakes or other errors you find.
3. Once you’re satisfied that your essay represents your best effort, get a second opinion. Ask a parent or other trusted person to read your essay critically and to give you feedback. Make any changes you think necessary.
4. Read the essay one last time to make sure you didn’t introduce any new errors.
5. Finally … hand in your essay. Congratulations!
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