No matter what your major is, you’ll definitely reach a point where you will have to write a comparison essay. If analysis never was your strong suit, then this article will be of great use to you. Let us take a closer look at how to write a comparison essay effortlessly with top-quality educational assistance from the experienced team of our essay writing service.
What is a Comparison Constrast Essay?
By definition, it is an essay that is commonly written by students in almost any field of study. Its main purpose is to compare and deeply analyze a topic.
There are three types:
- contrast (where you point out only differences between subjects);
- compare (this one centers around similarities only);
- compare & contrast essay, which combines both.
Read also: How to Write a Compare and Contrast Essay?
Creating Your Structure
Everyone knows about basic essay structure, but considering the specifics of a comparison paper, it may be hard to think of a way to organize your thoughts and ideas properly. To do this, it is highly recommended that you use either a point-by-point or subject-by-subject pattern.
Point-by-Point Pattern
As the name suggests, by using this pattern, you’ll be comparing each point one at a time. This will work exceptionally well if you have little to say about each subject because, basically, each paragraph will be describing how a certain point corresponds to both subjects. Following this pattern, your structure may look as follows:
Subject-by-Subject Pattern
This one will divide the main body of your paper into two blocks. After your introduction, state all points about your first subject, and then the second part will be a list of points about the other subjects you are comparing. The approximate outline of your paper will look like this.
Subject-by-subject comparison is a good method to use if one needs to use “lens” comparison. It is usually used when one subject is your main topic, but the other subject is used only as a tool for better understanding of the main topic.
Read also: Reflective Paper: Definition, Outline, Examples
How to Write a Comparison Essay
Before writing the actual paper, you have to carefully think about your subjects. One method that has proven itself to be effective is taking a piece of paper and dividing it into two columns. Name one of them “Similarities,” and the other one can be called “Differences.” As the name says, in the form of a list, note down each and every point you can think of into an appropriate column.
After your lists are ready, look through all the points. Leave only significant ones that can be backed up with solid arguments and then sort everything out. Weak arguments should come first, and should then be followed by stronger ones, leaving the most persuasive argument for the final part of your essay. Once you have a general idea and rough outline of your future paper, you can start writing.
Introduction
The introduction of a compare and contrast essay serves the same purpose as any other paper; its job is to grab the reader’s attention. Think of a good hook sentence and then state your thesis.
Main Body
Here is where you state your points and elaborate on your arguments. Each point of comparison should be made into a clear statement provided with supporting details. Do not forget to use the right transition words.
Conclusion
Here is the final part of your paper where you state your main thesis again and briefly, but clearly, show the result of your analysis. There is no need to give any new details here. Depending on your topic, you may either offer your solution in this section or name a list of new questions for further research that arose while you were writing.
Read also: How to Compose a Compare and Contrast Essay Outline?
Comparison Essay Topics
It’s essential to choose the right topic, because it often decides the success of your comparative analysis paper. If you have chosen a topic, then you’re halfway through, but if you are struggling to choose a topic, we’ll share few ideas to inspire you:
- Dogs and Cats.
- Ancient Greek Medical Practices vs Modern Medicine.
- Men vs Women.
- Headsets vs Headphones.
- Pop vs Rock.
- Driving a Car vs Taking the Subway.
- Fashion in 40’s and 90’s.
- Winter Weather vs Summer Weather.
Don’t think too hard about it. Just start with something simple, and then develop your ideas from there. You may also read an example of one of our comparative essays below:
Transition Words
For readers to understand your intentions, it is essential that you use the appropriate transition words. They identify similarities or differences. Below are some examples of common words you may use in your paper:
Compare
In the same way…
Also…
Likewise…
Compared to...
Just like (noun)...
In a like manner…
Both… and...
Contrast
However…
On the contrary…
But…
And yet....
Otherwise…
Unlike…
Even though…
Example:
Both men and women in the US have equal voting rights.
Just like a lemon, a lime is sour.
Example:
Even though Portuguese and Spanish are sister languages, they bear a lot of differences.
Unlike horses, zebras have striped coats.
Final Tips
You might not have any useful comparison essay example to follow. You can, of course, search for some ready-made essays online, but this will not guarantee your success. You can also get accused of plagiarism. The best advice we can give you - is to read online guides and work hard on your paper. But if for any reason you need a helping hand, feel free to either contact your supervisor or hit our essay writers with write my essay request. These services are very popular among students, especially international learners because they write custom papers according to their specific needs. You can use these papers as perfect examples to help you with your own paper.
