Paper Three:
Comparison and Contrast Paper
Assignment: Compare and Contrast Two Texts
Audience:
Sources:
Journal of Twentieth American Feminism
“Address on the Rights of Women” by Elizabeth Cady Stanton
“Sexual Politics” by Kate Millett
Length:
Citation:
Grading:
Due Date:
*DO NOT USE ANY OTHER SOURCES
4-6 Pages, Double-Spaced, 1 Inch Margins, Times New Roman Font, See the syllabus for all paper requirements
MLA Style
20%
Peer Review Draft Due:
September 16, 2015 by 5:00 P.M.
Final:
September 22, 2015 (in dropbox)
Purpose
In your last paper, you conducted an analysis of an advertisement which sought to explain how the advertisers use color, model placement, font size, text, model choice, and many other factors to appeal to and manipulate the conscious and unconscious desires of consumers. In this assignment, you will continue the process of analyzing how other authors use rhetoric. However, your analysis will be comparative in nature. You will explore how two different authors handle a single theme.
Writing the Analysis
As a class, we will read Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s “Address on the Rights of Women” and Kate Millett’s “Sexual
Politics.” While Stanton’s speech was presented in 1848 and Millett’s was published in 1968, they both address the plight of women in the United States. In the one hundred and twenty year interval between both texts, many of the goals and desires of the Women’s Rights Movement shifted, while others remained the same. In this paper, you will compare and contrast how Stanton and Millet present their advocacy for Women’s Rights.
Introduction
You will introduce your two texts. You do not need to summarize the texts; you should assume that your reader has already read them. You need to lay a foundation that eases your reader into your argument. You may begin by discussing your authors, the texts, or the subject (Women’s Rights and Suffrage Movements). The introduction should end with a clear and specific thesis statement that states your comparative argument.
Body
You must determine your points of comparison. Each body section will focus on a different point of comparison.
Remember you cannot compare an apple and a sponge. Those two things do not have significant comparative elements.
However, you may be able to compare an apple and, let’s say, a pear. In this paper, comparative element may be specific themes, tone, examples, references, etc. Though comparison and contrast papers can usually take two forms, block style or issue based (point-by-point), you will use issue based form for this assignment . In block style, you would explore all of your claims about one text first before moving on to your second text. Issue based organization is more sophisticated.
In this type of organization, you alternate between specific sub claims or points of interests from the texts. Most successful papers will have between two and three body sections. At least one of the body sections in this paper must focus on a comparison and at least one must focus on a contrast.
Make sure that you discuss the significance of the comparison or contrast. Such discussion functions as your analysis.
Without analysis, you are just summarizing. When discussing the significance of a comparison or contrast between texts, your discussion should explore the impact of the difference or similarity. Critical topic sentences that state sub claims and
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transitions are essential to the clarity of this paper. The critical topic sentence that begins each body section must state the comparison or contrast that will be your focus in that body section. This means that your topic sentences will mention both texts.
You need to remember that you do not need to summarize the texts. If you are summarizing, you are probably not analyzing. You should assume that your reader has already read your text. This paper requires you to be able to adeptly move back and forth between both texts to make strong arguments. Your evidence for this paper will come from the texts.
You need to make sure that you cite your material properly. You also need to make sure that you integrate quotations into your paper properly and that you analyze any quotation that you use. You should tell your reader why your quotations are significant and what they should think about them. You should also never refer to authors by their first names only.
Conclusion
Make sure that your conclusion does more than restate your thesis and sub claims. You should also emphasize the significance of your argument in this paper. You could also discuss the significance of the texts to their historical moments or our contemporary moment. Remember that conclusions should also consider the broader implications of a topic or argument.
Peer Review
Please remember that you will have to participate in peer review with this paper. Failure to fully participate will result in point deductions from your paper. See the syllabus for peer review details.
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