1. Academic writing i
April 12th 2012

2. Upcoming Important Dates
April 12th (Today): Talk about Paper 3
April 26th : Submit paper 3
May 1st: Mid-Term exam
Review day = ?

3. Today
Comparison/Contrast Essays

4. Comparison/contrast essays
What do we do in a comparison/contrast essay?

5. Comparison/contrast essays
In a comparison/contrast essay, we explain the differences and similarities between two items.
- The ‘items’ can be any number of things (transportation systems, governments, kinds of ice cream).

6. Comparison/contrast essays
In a comparison/contrast essay, we explain the differences and similarities between two items.
This is a very common type of essay in many fields.

7. Comparison/contrast essays
This is a very common type of essay in many fields.
Examples:
Compare the forms of government of Canada and the U.S.
Compare the characters of Winston and O’Brien in George Orwell’s “1984.”
Compare and contrast methods for promoting a new product.
Political Science
Literature
Business

8. Organization
A key feature of comparison/contrast essays is the organization.
Careful organization is necessary for an effective essay of this kind.
There are two ways to organize a comparison/contrast essay.

9. Organization
There are two ways to organize a comparison/contrast essay.
Point-by-point organization.
Block organization.

10. Point-by-point Organization
Similar to logical division pattern we used on Paper 2.
In a point-by-point organization, each point of comparison becomes the topic of a paragraph.
These ‘points of comparison’ become the body paragraphs of the essay.

11. Point-by-point Organization
Basic outline:
I. Introduction (opening, purpose of the essay, thesis statement).
II. Body A. Difference/similarity 1
B. Difference/similarity 2
C. Difference/similarity 3
III. Conclusion

12. Point-by-point Organization
Example: Comparing two jobs.
First, you need a list of important factors.
- Brainstorming(listing, discussion, etc.)
Organize the factors.
Outline the essay.

13. Point-by-point Organization
Example: Comparing two jobs.
I. Introduction Thesis statement: One way to decide between two job offers is to compare them on important points.
II. Body A. Salary
B. Benefits
C. Workplace atmosphere D. Opportunities for advancement.
III. Conclusion

14. Point-by-point Organization
Notice that each body paragraph (A, B , C, D) discusses only one topic/feature.

15. Block organization
The other way to organize comparison/contrast essays.
Arrange all the similarities together in a “block” and all the differences in a “block”.
The order you discuss these blocks in the essay is up to you.

16. Block Organization Basic outline:
I. Introduction (opening, purpose of the essay, thesis statement).
II. Body A. Similarities
B. Differences
III. Conclusion

17. Block organization Example: Comparing two jobs.
I. Introduction Thesis statement: One way to decide between two job offers is to compare them on important points.
II. Body A. Similarities Benefits Opportunities for advancement B. Differences Salary Workplace atmosphere III. Conclusion

18. Block organization
The number of paragraphs in each block will depend on the topic.

19. Example essay Japan and the United States: Different but Alike
What kind of organization does this use?

20. I. Intro
Thesis statement.
II. Body
A. Topic: One obvious difference is the people.
- Japan is homogenous -
B: Topic: group interaction and sense of space
- Individualism vs. groups
In spite of these differences, these two apparently opposite cultures share several important experiences.
C: Topic: both have transplanted cultures
D: Topic: developed business and commerce
E: Topic: emphasis on the importance of work and penalties paid for commitment to it
III. Conclusion

21. I. Intro
Thesis statement.
II. Body
A. Topic: One obvious difference is the people.
- Japan is homogenous
- America is a heterogeneous society
B: Topic: group interaction and sense of space
- Individualism vs. groups
- informality vs. formality.
-Rising about he crowd, admired, and rewarded versus ‘the nail that sticks up gets hammered down.”
-Difference in sense of size and scale.
In spite of these differences, these two apparently opposite cultures share several important experiences.
C: Topic: both have transplanted cultures
- China for Japan.
- Great Britain for the United States.
D: Topic: developed business and commerce
- Department stores.
- both are consumer societies
E: Topic: emphasis on the importance of work and penalties paid for commitment to it
-12-hour workdays.
- six day work weeks.
III. Conclusion