As a student you will encounter many different types 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 that certain things or ideas are similar to and/or different from one another. By writing such essays you are being encouraged to do the following:
When reflecting on similarities and differences you can gain a better understanding of the items you are comparing–their relationship to each other and what is most important about them.
During the next five weeks you will write and revise a five-paragraph comparison-contrast essay that incorporates at least three peer-reviewed academic sources. Each week you must submit a different phase of your writing to complete the essay.
Referto pp. 203 to pp. 220 of Ch. 10 ofWordsmithfor ideas on topics you may wish to write about in your paper; however feel free to come up with your own idea.
Decideon your topic.
Experimentwith some of the prewriting methods found in Ch. 2 ofWordsmithto explore the topic you have chosen.
Writea 350- to 700-word document detailing your application of your writing process and chosen prewriting method (freewriting brainstorming listing etc.) to begin exploring and writing about your topic. In this document you should include the topic you have chosen and some examples of how you plan to compare and/or contrast.
Editandproofreadyour assignment before submitting it to your instructor.
Formatyour assignment according to appropriate course-level APA guidelines.
Submityour document to the Assignment Files tab.
Note:The termfive-paragraph essaymay or may not have exactly five paragraphs. The term refers to a form of short essay based around an introduction approximately three supporting paragraphs and a conclusion for a total of five paragraphs.
