Assignment: Comparison Essay

In this assignment, you will write an academic essay that compares/contrasts two subjects. You will need to develop your essay in three to four main points using correct structure and format.

Guidelines

• Structure and word length: Choose one of the topics below and develop a compare/contrast essay of approximately 800 - 1000 words. Structure your essay appropriately for academic writing.

• Formatting: Use either APA or MLA format consistently throughout the entire essay (remember that APA and MLA format are not used only for citing sources: they are also used to properly format your essay). You are responsible for looking up the format in your handbook for either APA or MLA (depending on which one you have chosen to use) and using it consistently. In addition, please underline your thesis statement and all your topic sentences, and provide your word count at the end of the essay: e.g. (Count = 880).

• Language and style: This particular assignment is based on your own personal views; you may therefore use slightly informal English. See the information in the modules and in your handbook for guidelines on informal diction and how to develop description that is convincing.

• Research: Research is not required to do this assignment. If you use any research, make certain it is used only minimally for this assignment and of sufficient quality to be included in your essay. Remember that for this course (and most college/university courses), Wikipedia is not considered an appropriate source. You must document any paraphrases and/or quotations from secondary sources using in-text citations and either a Works Cited or References page (depending on whether you are using MLA or APA format).

Topic Choices

• Consider a city or town (or some other significant place) you know really well. Compare and contrast what that place is like today with what it was like when you first knew it. Using specific examples, show how it has changed and explain whether you think the change has been primarily positive, negative, or both. Include enough details so that your essay is credible and meaningful to your reader.

• Think about a sport in which you are able to participate during both the summer and winter. Compare and contrast the circumstances and the sport itself in these two seasons. Include some of the advantages and disadvantages of each one. Make certain you include enough details so that your essay is credible and meaningful to your reader.

• Compare and contrast either a book and its filmic version or an original movie and its re-make (alternatively, you could contrast a video game and its film adaptation). What has the adaptation or remake changed about the characters, plot, pacing, main idea, and so forth? Was the film adaptation or remake better than the original, or worse? What was lost or gained?

• Think about two people you know who work in the same field. Compare and contrast their approaches to the job. You might consider two teachers, two newscasters, two managers, two store clerks, two servers in a restaurant, and so forth. Make this topic meaningful to the reader by making a point about the success or failure of the two approaches in terms of the demands of the job position.

Strong
A+, A,
A-
80-100% Good
B+, B,
B-
70-79% Satisfactory
C+, C,
C-
60-69% Needs
Work
D+, D
50-59%

Content:

• Content shows originality, insights, thinking, depth, complexity
• Details and examples are sharp, appropriate, effective, relevant
• Writer's voice is lively, authentic, interesting
• Tone and approach are appropriate to topic/subject matter and audience
• Purpose and approach are clear; topic/approach to topic is original, fresh, of intrinsic/potential interest to readers
• Writing is honest & sincere
• Writer engages fully with topic

Structure:

• Central idea comes through clearly
• The introduction smoothly leads the reader to your thesis statement with enough information to spark an interest in the topic
• Thesis statement is clear and includes the main points of comparison; sub-points of the thesis connect to topic sentences of body paragraphs
• Thesis matches with what is written in the body of the essay
• Points/paragraphs follow each other logically and are clearly related to central idea
• Paper is cohesive, moving from one point to another clearly and smoothly
• Paragraphs themselves are focused and unified, each having a clear purpose and clear topic sentence
• The conclusion sums up the main points and thesis effectively

Sentences:

• Clear and correct sentence structure (has been proofread for such matters as comma splices, fragments, fused sentences, mixed constructions, parallelism problems, dangling modifiers, and so forth)
• Appropriate and effective sentence length, variety, and complexity

Language and usage:

• Word choice is precise, concise, vivid, appropriate
• Expressions are idiomatic and appropriate; Spelling, punctuation, and grammar are correct.