Essay

Essay 2: Compare and Contrast Essay (700 words, MLA Format)

Assignment Prompt:

In Chapter 11, you read several texts that explore similar ideas but in different ways. For this assignment, choose two readings from Chapter 11 and write a compare-and-contrast essay that examines how the two authors present their ideas.

Your essay should compare and contrast at least three of the following elements:

• Main idea or purpose: What is the author trying to say or show?
• Examples or evidence: What kinds of support does the author use (personal experience, facts, visuals, comparisons)?
• Structure or organization: How is the essay or article organized?
• Audience or message: Who is the author talking to, and what is the message they want readers to understand?
• Style or clarity: Is the language more casual or more formal? Is it easy to follow?

You can use either a point-by-point structure (alternating between both texts for each idea) or a subject-by-subject structure (discussing one text fully, then the other).

Requirements:

• 700 words
• MLA formatting (including in-text citations and a Works Cited page)
• Clearly stated thesis that explains what you learned by comparing the two texts
• At least three body paragraphs that explore your selected points of comparison

Sample Pairings You Can Choose From (feel free to use another pairing, but the pairing must come from Chapter 11. You may use other chapter texts with prior approval from the instructor):

• If You Have Something to Say, Then Say It by John McWhorter and Fake Meat vs. Real Meat by Anahad OConnor
• The student essay Brains vs. Brawn and the student essay A Comparison of Two Websites on Attention Deficit Disorder
• The visual sculptures The Kiss and First Love