WRITING ABOUT LITERATURE: COMPARISON/CONTRAST PAPER
Part II - Enthymemes Structure Ideas
OBJECTIVE:
1. SW design their own enthymeme with or without a prompt
2. SW evaluate and modify the enthymeme (thesis statement) using the four rules for
constructing an enthymeme.
GRADE LEVEL: Gr. 9-12
MATERIALS: enthymeme worksheet for comparison/contrast writing
INTRODUCTION: [Students typically ask three questions when given a writing
assignment: 1) What should I say? 2) How do I begin? 3) How much do I need to
write? This lesson on constructing the enthymeme and developing the organic outline,
should relieve students’ stress about writing because it answers all three questions.]
Explain to the students that they will use an A-1 idea from the previous brainstorming
activity (see Writing a Comparison/Contrast Paper Part I) to construct an enthymeme
that will not only direct WHAT they write, but will help them know how to begin. Using
the enthymeme, they will develop an organic outline that will determine the length of the
piece they will write as well.
PROCEDURE:
1) Project or draw on the board the following outline.
WHAT #1
+
WHAT #2
Topic + issue
verb
Topic + issue
2) Explain that in formulating the WHAT statement of the enthymeme in
comparison/contrast writing, both WHAT #1 and WHAT #2 will have two components.
WHAT #1 is the topic + the specific aspect about the topic that is being compared to
WHAT #2. WHAT #2 is the topic + the specific aspect about the topic that is being
compared to WHAT #1.
3) Ask students to identify each WHAT from the brainstormed A-1 idea(s) and write the
ideas in the corresponding boxes in the chart, adding an appropriate verb or verb phrase.
(See examples below)
WHAT #1
Topic + issue
+
verb
WHAT #2
Topic + issue
Plymouth colony + voyage
was [more difficult
than]
Virginia colony + voyage
Plymouth colony + colonists
who became ill
were better treated
[than]
Virginia colony + colonists
who became ill
3) Next add a WHY column to the chart and ask the class to discuss WHY the difference
or similarity exists between the two issues being compared. This step may require some
additional brainstorming to determine the best WHY, although when working with nonfiction, once the WHAT statement is formulated, the WHY is often obvious.
WHAT #1
+
WHAT #2
WHY
Topic + issue
verb
Topic + issue
Plymouth colony +
voyage
was [more difficult
than]
Virginia colony +
voyage
leader was more
experienced
Plymouth colony +
colonists who
became ill
were better treated
[than]
Virginia colony +
colonists who
became ill
religious beliefs
shaped attitudes and
guided behaviors
The resulting enthymemes read:
a) The voyage of the Plymouth colony was more difficult than the voyage of the
Virginia colony because the leader of the Virginia colony was more experienced than the
leader of the Plymouth colony.
b) The Plymouth colonists who became ill were better treated than the Virginia
colonists who became ill because the religious beliefs of the Plymouth colonists shaped
the attitudes and guided the behaviors of the colonists in a manner that seemed lacking
among the Virginia colonists.
4) Sometimes the use of the word “because” in the WHY statement does not seem
appropriate, in which case the wording must be “tweeked” as illustrated below.
WHAT #1
+
WHAT #2
Topic + issue
verb
Topic + issue
Onondaga people +
values
are [similar]
Modoc people +
values
WHY
reflected in their
myths of origin
The resulting enthymeme reads: The values of the Onondaga people are similar to the
values of the Modoc people as reflected in their myths of origin. Notice that the word
“because” has been replaced with “as reflected.”
5) OPTION: Older students may at times independently construct their own
enthymemes. Nevertheless, it is helpful to have them verify the integrity of the
enthymeme by completing the enthymeme worksheet with the appropriate variables from
their enthymemes (click on this link).
Here are two examples that illustrate how faulty enthymeme construction can be
identified using this process:
a) The voyage to the New World was bad because the slaves below deck were sick.
WHAT
VERB
WHAT
Topic + issue
verb
Topic + issue
Voyage + ?
was [bad]
?
WHY
slaves below
deck were sick
b) The Plymouth Plantation had a harder time going to the new land because of the rough
ride to the new land.
WHAT
VERB
WHAT
Topic + issue
verb
Topic + issue
Plymouth Plantation +
trip
had [a harder
time going]
the new land
[topic? + ?]
WHY
because of the
rough ride
[circular
reasoning]
Providing this structure for self-assessment will allow students to see the flaws in their
enthymemes. Have them restructure faulty enthymemes so that the comparison or
contrast is clearly stated and circular reasoning (see lesson on circular reasoning) is
eliminated.
CONCLUSION: The three critical questions students ask can now be answered:
1) What should I say? The enthymeme gives direction to what the student will write.
2) How do I begin? Although more advanced students may want to add a hook or lead to
their enthymeme, the enthymeme itself is adequate as a beginning.
3) How much do I need to write? The next lesson will cover how to fully develop the
organic outline; however, the student now can clearly see that each WHAT has two
components (each component will be at least one paragraph) and the WHY will have at
least one paragraph. If the enthymeme is written as a stand-alone paragraph, the student
will understand that this piece needs to be at least six paragraphs long.
ASSESSMENT: Have students construct and assess two original enthymemes for a
comparison/contrast piece using the enthymeme worksheet. Faulty enthymemes should
be revised on the worksheet.