Comparing and Contrasting
Comparing and Contrasting
What this handout is about
This handout will help you first to determine whether a particular assignment is asking for
comparison/contrast and then to generate a list of similarities and differences, decide which similarities
and differences to focus on, and organize your paper so that it will be clear and effective. It will also
explain how you can (and why you should) develop a thesis that goes beyond “Thing A and Thing B are
similar in many ways but different in others.”
Introduction
In your career as a student, you’ll encounter many different kincds of writing assignments, each with its
own requirements. One of the most common is the comparison/contrast essay, in which you focus on
the ways in which certain things or ideas—usually two of them—are similar to (this is the comparison)
and/or different from (this is the contrast) one another. By assigning such essays, your instructors are
encouraging you to make connections between texts or ideas, engage in critical thinking, and go beyond
mere description or summary to generate interesting analysis: when you reflect on similarities and
differences, you gain a deeper understanding of the items you are comparing, their relationship to each
other, and what is most important about them.
Recognizing comparison/contrast in assignments
Some assignments use words—like compare, contrast, similarities, and differences—that make it easy
for you to see that they are asking you to compare and/or contrast. Here are a few hypothetical
examples:
Compare and contrast Frye’s and Bartky’s accounts of oppression.
Compare WWI to WWII, identifying similarities in the causes, development, and outcomes of the wars.
Contrast Wordsworth and Coleridge; what are the major differences in their poetry?
Notice that some topics ask only for comparison, others only for contrast, and others for both.
But it’s not always so easy to tell whether an assignment is asking you to include comparison/contrast.
And in some cases, comparison/contrast is only part of the essay—you begin by comparing and/or
contrasting two or more things and then use what you’ve learned to construct an argument or
evaluation. Consider these examples, noticing the language that is used to ask for the
comparison/contrast and whether the comparison/contrast is only one part of a larger assignment:
Choose a particular idea or theme, such as romantic love, death, or nature, and consider how it is
treated in two Romantic poems.
How do the different authors we have studied so far define and describe oppression?
Compare Frye’s and Bartky’s accounts of oppression. What does each imply about women’s collusion in
their own oppression? Which is more accurate?
In the texts we’ve studied, soldiers who served in different wars offer differing accounts of their
experiences and feelings both during and after the fighting. What commonalities are there in these
accounts? What factors do you think are responsible for their differences?
You may want to check out our handout on understanding assignments for additional tips.
Using comparison/contrast for all kinds of writing projects
Sometimes you may want to use comparison/contrast techniques in your own pre-writing work to get
ideas that you can later use for an argument, even if comparison/contrast isn’t an official requirement
for the paper you’re writing. For example, if you wanted to argue that Frye’s account of oppression is
better than both de Beauvoir’s and Bartky’s, comparing and contrasting the main arguments of those
three authors might help you construct your evaluation—even though the topic may not have asked for
comparison/contrast and the lists of similarities and differences you generate may not appear anywhere
in the final draft of your paper.
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’s a very simple example, using two pizza places:
Compare and contrast is a rhetorical style that discusses the similarities and differences of two or more
things: ideas, concepts, items, places, etc. This rhetorical style is one that you’ll see often as a complete
essay, but you may also use it quite a lot within paragraphs of any kind of essay in which you need to
make some kind of comparison to help illustrate a point.
A compare and contrast essay does two things: It discusses the similarities and differences of at least
two different things. First, you must find a basis of comparison to be sure that the two things have
enough in common. After that, you identify their differences. You may structure the compare and
contrast essay using either the alternating method (stating one aspect of one thing and immediately
discussing the same aspect of the other item and how they are similar or different) or the block method
(discussing all of the aspects of one thing and then discussing all of the aspects of another
Comparison in writing discusses elements that are similar, while contrast in writing discusses elements
that are different. A compare-and-contrast essay, then, analyzes two subjects by comparing them,
contrasting them, or both.
The key to a good compare-and-contrast essay is to choose two or more subjects that connect in a
meaningful way. The purpose of conducting the comparison or contrast is not to state the obvious but
rather to illuminate subtle differences or unexpected similarities. For example, if you wanted to focus on
contrasting two subjects you would not pick apples and oranges; rather, you might choose to compare
and contrast two types of oranges or two types of apples to highlight subtle differences. For example,
Red Delicious apples are sweet, while Granny Smiths are tart and acidic. Drawing distinctions between
elements in a similar category will increase the audience’s understanding of that category, which is the
purpose of the compare-and-contrast essay.
Similarly, to focus on comparison, choose two subjects that seem at first to be unrelated. For a
comparison essay, you likely would not choose two apples or two oranges because they share so many
of the same properties already. Rather, you might try to compare how apples and oranges are quite
similar. The more divergent the two subjects initially seem, the more interesting a comparison essay will
be.
WComparison in writing discusses elements that are similar, while contrast in writing discusses elements
that are different. A compare-and-contrast essay, then, analyzes two subjects by comparing them,
contrasting them, or both.
The key to a good compare-and-contrast essay is to choose two or more subjects that connect in a
meaningful way. The purpose of conducting the comparison or contrast is not to state the obvious but
rather to illuminate subtle differences or unexpected similarities. For example, if you wanted to focus on
contrasting two subjects you would not pick apples and oranges; rather, you might choose to compare
and contrast two types of oranges or two types of apples to highlight subtle differences. For example,
Red Delicious apples are sweet, while Granny Smiths are tart and acidic. Drawing distinctions between
elements in a similar category will increase the audience’s understanding of that category, which is the
purpose of the compare-and-contrast essay.
Similarly, to focus on comparison, choose two subjects that seem at first to be unrelated. For a
comparison essay, you likely would not choose two apples or two oranges because they share so many
of the same properties already. Rather, you might try to compare how apples and oranges are quite
similar. The more divergent the two subjects initially seem, the more interesting a comparison essay will
be.
The Structure of a Compare/Contrast Essay
The compare-and-contrast essay starts with a thesis that clearly states the two subjects that are to be
compared, contrasted, or both and the reason for doing so. The thesis could lean more toward
comparing, contrasting, or both. Remember, the point of comparing and contrasting is to provide useful
knowledge to the reader. Take the following thesis as an example that leans more toward contrasting:
Thesis Statement: Organic vegetables may cost more than those that are conventionally grown, but
when put to the test, they are definitely worth every extra penny.
Here the thesis sets up the two subjects to be compared and contrasted (organic versus conventional
vegetables), and it makes a claim about the results that might prove useful to the reader.
You may organize compare-and-contrast essays in one of the following two ways:
According to the subjects themselves, discussing one then the other
According to individual points, discussing each subject in relation to each point
The organizational structure you choose depends on the nature of the topic, your purpose, and your
audience.
Given that compare-and-contrast essays analyze the relationship between two subjects, it is helpful to
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