Chapter Six: Comparison and Contrast
The introduction to this chapter explains that comparison/contrast is so strong a
tendency in the human psyche that using it to explain complex ideas in writing is
only natural. Before you introduce the selections that follow, however, you should
point out that creating comparisons and contrasts implies choice and, as such, can
be used to persuade as well as to explain. To illustrate your point, you might
explain that comparison/contrast is often at the heart of a convincing sales pitch.
"Yes," claims the salesperson, "Driving a less expensive Wizbang is what you
need to commute to work everyday, but will it turn as many heads as the Big
Bucks Mobile?"
Indeed, exploring both the pros and cons of a question is a strategy common
to classical argument. It is a good way to show that, while advocating a particular
point of view, the writer has examined the issue thoroughly and objectively. In
short, practicing comparison/contrast will yield your students many rewards, not
the least of which is the ability to offer credible opinions on complex issues like
those suggested in Chapter Ten.
Catton's "Grant and Lee" is a model for teaching contrast and is regularly
anthologized. It is easy enough for most students to grasp and talk about. A good
essay with which to follow Catton's is Twain's "Two Views of the Mississippi."
Because it is so short, it can be used effectively to teach organizational techniques
(it uses the subject-by-subject pattern) to students who are having trouble
arranging information logically. Britt's "Neat People vs. Sloppy People" is another
classic that works well as a tool for teaching the subject-by-subject pattern. This
essay will also allow you to discuss voice, and its sarcasm provides a refreshing
change of pace.
The other pieces in this chapter show how other strategies can be combined with
comparison/contrast. Sanders' "The Men We Carry in Our Minds" uses narration,
illustration, and causal analysis. Tannen's "Talk in the Intimate Relationship"
includes a multitude of examples not only to illustrate her concept but also to
defend her position. Finally, Sarton's "The Rewards of Living a Solitary Life"
makes use of definition as well as metaphor and analogy.
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May Sarton: The Rewards of Living a Solitary Life
Questions for Discussion
The interesting thing about this essay is its brevity. At some point in the
discussion, you can ask your class whether the essay would lose its impact if it
were longer (question k); you could even have students try to make it longer, and
then compare their versions to Sarton's. The discussion questions that come into
play here are the ones about her use of metaphor (a, c, and l) and the ones about
her literary allusions (d, e, and i); you can ask students how these metaphors and
allusions help Sarton make her point in very few words.
Engaging the Text
Item a can lead to an extended definition paper on loneliness or solitude, or to a
comparison/contrast paper, with the student her/himself as subject. Item b can
lead to a narrative essay.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
The first prompt involves a great deal more than simple summary. In fact,
students are being asked to engage in evaluation and argumentation here, so you
might want to introduce this assignment in class or discuss it during office hours
with students who choose it. The second prompt is reserved for students who
have had some experience with serious introspection. Some students become
intrigued with the third assignment, and they take on the significant
research required without complaining. Many of these students find researching
the life of an ancestor quite fulfilling. They should be encouraged to search
through family diaries and to interview older members of the family who might
still have vivid memories of the essay's subject.
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Bruce Catton: Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts
Questions for Discussion
To answer question c students should be rather quick to point to paragraph three
as the thesis and to find the words in the paragraph that signal comparison/
contrast: "two strong," "oddly different," "two conflicting currents," and
"collision." Studying the structure of this essay can be quite satisfying for students
since it is such a clear example of this rhetorical strategy; however, to move away
from a superficial analysis, you can ask students to try to explain Catton's
purposes in using such a strategy. He is not only comparing the two men, he is
also making a point about what he calls "national community" (paragraph 9); have
students look carefully at paragraphs 10-12 where Catton generalizes about his
comparison of Grant and Lee.
Engaging the Text
The writing for item a can be used to initiate discussion about whether human
characteristics are universal or whether times define ideals differently. Students
can write a dialogue between the two generals for item b. This can also be done
as an in-class activity, with students working in pairs or groups.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
As a way to begin the first essay, students can write narratives about the
individuals they choose for their topic, especially narratives about any interactions
between these two people. Suggestion b works best as a narrative, although
students might want to compare themselves to Lee. If they decide to do so, remind
them to refer closely to the text of Catton's essay. Students attempting item c
should focus on three or four major issues for comparison. The best sources of
information for such a paper are the Internet and daily newspapers or news
magazines.
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Deborah Tannen: Talk in the Intimate Relationship: His and Hers
Questions for Discussion
This essay almost always provokes debate about whether there really is a
difference between the way men and women talk (and, implicitly, between the
way men and women think). If you want to take the discussion in that direction,
question e makes an especially good place to begin the discussion. Extend the
question by asking students to list and describe stereotypes of men and women
that they have themselves or have observed others as having. (This extended
question can be done as a short writing activity at the beginning of class.) Try to
get students to consider where those stereotypes came from, how they were
created, and why so many people hold them. Questions c and f can also be
brought into the discussion at this point. If you want students to pay closer
attention to Tannen's essay itself, begin with question a. Again, this question can
be made into a short writing activity, asking students to identify and define
several of the challenging but important terms, such as "solidarity" and
"deferential" in paragraph 5 or "assumptions" in paragraph 6.
Engaging the Text
The first item might be used as journal entry that, when read aloud in class, will
kick off class discussion. The second will help students build analytical skills and
can be turned into to an assignment for a fully developed essay.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
If students choose to analyze a film, novel, or short story (item a) encourage them
to view or read it multiple times. If you allow them to analyze a film, provide a
list of films from which they can choose. Such films should be readily available at
a video store or local library and should be ones with which you have some
familiarity or are willing to become familiar with. Students who choose item b
should be encouraged to brainstorm with friends or classmates so as to gather
enough appropriate information to make their essays convincing. Students who
choose the last assignment might find clear comparisons between the book and
Tannen's essay. If so, they may want to write their own comparison/contrast
essay.
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Mark Twain: Two Views of the Mississippi
Questions for Discussion
Students should be reminded that this is a very short excerpt from Life on the
Mississippi, not a complete essay. Therefore, Twain's thesis (question e), which
can be identified as the first two sentences, does not control an entire essay,
though it does control the structure of the two paragraphs that follow. Students
should be able to see fairly easily that Twain is going to explain both what he
gained and what he lost as he learned to navigate the river. In addition to
comparison, this essay is also a good example of description, and it may stimulate
students in their own descriptive writing.
Engaging the Text
After students have completed the first item, they can try the same thing to come
up with descriptive phrases for their own topics. The second item can become the
basis for an active class discussion that will help students analyze the text and
formulate their own reactions to it.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
Suggestion a usually leads to narrative essays. Make sure to caution students to
enunciate a clear thesis. The second suggestion is not intended to produce
argumentative prose, although some students might see it as such. If this is the
case, encourage them, but also remind them that argumentation must be logical,
clear, and well supported. For those students who see this assignment as a way to
improve their analytical skills, advise them to focus on only a few points or ideas
articulated in the essay they are analyzing. The third assignment allows students
to combine personal observation and family folklore with library and Internet
research. The experience often proves to be enriching.
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Scott Russell Sanders: The Men We Carry in Our Minds
Questions for Discussion
The questions under Content provide a good way to approach this essay in class.
It is a good idea to make sure that students recognize the complexity of this
seemingly simple essay. Sanders contrasts more than just his childhood and
current images of men, thereby making his essay a rich tapestry that goes beyond
the typical patterns of thought and organization we normally associate with
comparison essays. If you have time, try discussing the questions under Style
and Strategy that relate to tone and audience, as well as the two that deal with the
essay's introduction and conclusion.
Engaging the Text
Both of these prompts are designed to get students to think more deeply about
the essay and its purpose. The first can easily be turned into a longer
comparison/contrast assignment. The second prompt can be used for additional
classroom discussion.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
Both of the options in item a are quite manageable, but students should be
reminded of the need to gather enough information in the prewriting stage to
make their essays convincing. The second prompt requires the same kinds of
skills as the first. Students who choose this one will profit from brainstorming
with two or three classmates so as to gather appropriate and sufficient detail to
develop their papers. The third writing assignment requires a great deal of
research, but it is not as difficult as it might first appear. A great deal has been
published lately about unfair working conditions abroad--especially in regard to
child labor. However, students should be warned that they must focus their
papers on a particular problem, at a particular time, and in a particular place.
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Suzanne Britt: Neat People vs. Sloppy People
Questions for Discussion
The questions on content may produce some differing opinions. However,
students need to see this essay as an exercise in irony. Not that Britt may not
believe what she is saying, but her purpose is really to entertain by making
fascinating observations about human character--observations to which we can
all relate. Try spending most of your class time discussing Britt's use of language
and her approach. There is a great deal of comic relief here, and you might need
to inject a little of it into your classes after having discussed some of the more
serious pieces in the text.
Engaging the Text
Both of these prompts make for fruitful in-class writing. Students have little
trouble putting down relevant details that serve the stated purposes.
Suggestions for Sustained Writing
Many students respond to the first essay prompt with a great deal of success. It
helps to spend a few minutes of class time, however, to lay out the foundations
for such an essay. The second and third items are a little less accessible, but you
can encourage students to do some library or Internet research as a way to gather
relevant details.
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