Comparison/Contrast Essay

A. Instructions

Begin by choosing a topic for your comparison/contrast essay. You are free to select your own topic, or you may use one of the sample topics listed below. However, you should choose a topic that you have knowledge of so that you have sufficient points of comparison or contrast to discuss in your essay. You will need to compare or contrast two or three primary points about the two subjects you choose to write about, resulting in an essay with either four or six body paragraphs, an introductory paragraph, and a conclusion.

In order to foster learning and growth, all essays you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any recycled work will be sent back with a 0, and you will be given one attempt to redo the touchstone.

Sample Topic Ideas:

• Compare or contrast two cities you’ve visited or that you’ve lived in


• Compare or contrast two members of your family


• Compare or contrast two sources of news 


• Compare or contrast two singers in different music genres


• Compare or contrast two historical figures


• Compare or contrast two artists (for example, Vincent van Gogh and Pablo Picasso or Keith Haring and Andy Warhol)


• Compare or contrast two eras in time 


• Compare or contrast two television series


• Compare or contrast two types of technologies (for example, Android and Apple phones or PlayStation and Xbox)


• Compare or contrast two medical topics (for example, traditional medicine and modern medicine or doctors and midwives)

Remember that the two subjects you choose should have a meaningful connection so that you can draw comparisons or contrasts between the two. 

Your thesis should convey the main idea of the essay and clearly articulate what two topics you are comparing/contrasting. Because you are writing in the informative mode for this essay, you should use objective language. Remember that for this essay, you are not trying to persuade or convince the audience that one thing is better or worse than the other; you are instead informing the reader about the similarities or differences between the two subjects in an objective manner.

Please note that if you use information from any outside sources, you will need to cite them. Plagiarism is not acceptable in academic writing.

• Your draft must be 3-4 page (approximately 700-1000 words)


• Guidelines must be followed or submission will not be graded 


• Double-space your draft and use one-inch margins.


• Use an easily-readable 12-point font.


• All writing must be appropriate for an academic context.


• Your draft must be original and written for this assignment. 


• Plagiarism of any kind is strictly prohibited. 


• Your submission must include your name, the name of the course, the date, and the title of your draft.


• Your submission must include your answers to the “Think About Your Writing” questions 


• Submit a single file that contains all of the assignment components.


• Acceptable file formats include .doc and .docx.