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Whether you are writing an essay for a college course or making a life decision, the skill of comparing and contrasting is essential. At the heart of this skill is the ability to logically consider two subjects at once in order to make an interesting claim about their relationship or choose one over the other. Two tools can help you develop a comparison/contrast analysis: a points-of-reference chart and transition words.
One method used to compare and contrast choices is a points-of-reference chart, a simple example of which is shown in Table 1. The points-of-reference are those criteria most crucial in making a decision.
As we have seen in our other modules, planning is always key to developing a logical claim or argument, and the same is true for making a careful decision. For instance, imagine a situation in which you have to choose which college to attend. How does one make such a momentous (and expensive) decision? Comparing or contrasting the colleges is essential to thinking this choice through, but in order to do so effectively, you will have to imagine what criteria to consider to lead you to the best choice.
For many college students, three factors are primary when it comes to selecting a school: its location, its educational offerings, and its overall cost.
The section below presents these three criteria as the points-of-reference listed in the middle column of the chart. We call them points-of-reference because we will refer to each factor when we think about each one of the schools we have to consider, and they indicate the three points we think are most important when considering our decision. On either side of these points you will find columns listing our thoughts regarding going to a community college (the left-hand column) vs. going to a state university (the right-hand column). The table thus provides an easy way to group important factors and to consider how each subject relates to the other; by reading across the chart, for instance, one can easily see that how the local community college’s location stacks up against that of the state university.
Points-of-Reference Example Comparing Similarities and Differences of Two Colleges through Three Criteria: Location, Program of Study, and Cost.
Community College
Points of Reference
Location
- Close to home, 10 minute commute
- Prolongs dependence on family if living at home is an option
- Proximity means no major life changes and thus discourages adventuring
Programs of Study
- Offers Associates of Arts degree in general biology
- Offers general education courses needed to transfer junior year to 4-year university for Bachelor of Science (BS), if desired
- Faculty are well-credentialed and have excellent reputation for being student-centered
Cost
- Lowest, affordable tuition Proximity to home eliminates food and housing expenses
- Commute will incur gas and parking costs
State University
Points of Reference
Location
- Several hours from home, distance too far to commute
- Is far enough away that living on one’s own will be a challenge
- Distance from home means school becomes an opportunity for exploring a new place
Programs of Study
- Offers Bachelor of Science degree in marine biology—the program of most interest
- Attendance as a freshman and sophomore means getting to know the faculty with whom one will work during rigorous upper level courses
- Faculty are well-published in field and have international reputations
Cost
- Tuition is low, but higher than local community college
- Distance from home will incur food and housing costs
- Relocation and transfer costs
The use of transitional words can be combined with the points-of-reference chart when you transform the information on the chart into useful evidence for a paper. That is, transitional words can be used to write sentences comparing or contrasting the reference points. The following is an example of this type of sentence: The community college has the lowest tuition (cost), but it doesn’t offer marine biology as a degree (program of study). In this example, but is the transitional word used to contrast two points-of-reference—cost and program of study.
In Table 2, each transitional word is listed with its purpose–to compare or contrast.
Table:
Transitional Words Used to Compare or Contrast
| Although | Contrast |
| However | Contrast |
| But | Contrast |
| Even | Compare |
Using transitions in this way will help your reader follow your train of thought, for it will help you balance the two subjects in an easily understandable way. Keep these important words in mind as we discuss two ways you can organize your comparison/contrast essay: the point-by-point method or the block method.
This organizational strategy is much like that of a traditional example essay; each of your essay’s body “sections” will focus on one of the points-of-reference and will explain it in relation to each subject. Thus, in the example above, one body section would cover location, one would cover program of study, and one would cover cost. In each of these sections you would discuss both subjects together; like a typical example essay, each part of the essay’s body would thus make a specific point, and the specific details would be the information about each subject (in this example, the community college and the state university) relevant to that point. Take a look at the following outline as a guide for this method of organization.
Thesis: Although both schools offer exceptional educational opportunity, the state university’s program of study and prospects for personal growth outweigh the lower price and convenience of the local community college.
I. Cost
A. Community College
1. Low tuition
2. Proximity to home cuts expenses
3. Commute means gas and parking costsB. State University
1. Reasonable tuition but more expensive than comm. college
2. Housing cost will be substantial, even if dorm available
3. Relocation and transfer costs will be expensive
II. Location
A. Community College
1. Close to home
2. Proximity encourages prolonged dependence on family
3. Few chances for adventure/ personal growth outside schoolB. State University
1. Distance too far to commute
2. Distance from home will require increase in personal growth/responsibility
3. New opportunities for adventure
III. Program of Study
A. Community College
1. Offers Associate of Arts degree in general biology
2. Offers general education courses needed to 4-year university for Bachelor of Science (BS)
3. Faculty are well-credentialed and have excellent reputation for being student-centeredB. State University
1. Offers Bachelor of Science degree in marine biology (program of most interest to applicant)
2. Attendance as a freshman and sophomore means getting to know the faculty with whom one will work during rigorous upper level courses
3. Faculty are well-published in field and have international reputations
Note that the writer has reorganized the points of reference here and moves from what they consider the least important point (cost) to the most important (program of study). If a student were more concerned about price, the cost would have come last and the community college would have been the overall choice indicated in the thesis. Thus, the point-by-point method is typically combined with emphatic order (least to most important) so that the essay builds its case and ends with a bang.
Another way to organize a comparison/contrast paper is to use the block method to write about the two subjects in separate parts of the paper. In this type of essay, you discuss everything about your first subject in the first section of your essay, and then you discuss the second topic in the second “section,” making sure to refer back to the information you’ve mentioned about the first topic in order to make your points. Remember, the overall goal is to show how the two topics relate.
Here’s a block method outline for a paper on the two schools we’ve been discussing:
Thesis: Although both schools offer exceptional educational opportunity, the state university’s program of study and prospects for personal growth outweigh the lower price and convenience of the local community college.
I. Community College
A. Cost
1. Low tuition
2. Proximity to home cuts expenses
3. Commute means gas and parking costsB. Location
1. Close to home
2. Proximity encourages prolonged dependence on family
3. Few chances for adventure/ personal growth outside schoolC. Program of Study
1. Offers Associate of Arts degree in general biology
2. Offers general education courses needed to 4-year university for Bachelor of Science (BS)
3. Faculty are well-credentialed and have excellent reputation for being student-centered
II. State University
A. Cost
1. Reasonable tuition but more expensive than comm. college
2. Housing cost will be substantial, even if dorm available
3. Relocation and transfer costs will be expensiveB. Location
1. Distance too far to commute
2. Distance from home will require increase in personal growth/responsibility
3. New opportunities for adventureC. Program of Study
1. Offers Bachelor of Science degree in marine biology (program of most interest to applicant)
2. Attendance as a freshman and sophomore means getting to know the faculty with whom one will work during rigorous upper level courses
3. Faculty are well-published in field and have international reputations
Note that all of the points are presented in the same order for each subject (cost is first, followed by location and program of study). This assures an orderly progression of ideas so that it’s easy for the reader to follow along. When actually drafting a block method paper, the writer must use transitions when moving to the second subject. In the above example, for instance, you might start off talking about the state university with the transition “On the other hand, the state university is a costly option that requires fundamental life changes” in order to help the reader follow along with your shift.
When writing a contrast paper like this one, that is, choosing one subject as the best option, it is usually a good idea to end with the subject of one’s choosing; that way you are again building up to your choice, and as you discuss the second subject you can relate back to what you explained in the first part of the paper (the info you gave about the first subject) in order to emphasize the reasons the second choice wins out.
Florida State College at Jacksonville. (2022). ENC1101-OER: English Composition I.
