What is Comparison and Contrast?

• ways of looking at objects and thinking about how they are alike and different.

• Comparison – how two or more things are similar

• Contrast - how two or more things are different.

Main Reasons UseComparison and Contrast

1. To Explain -You might compare and contrast kinds of food, for instance, to help someone understand which food need to be refrigerated and which can be stored in a cabinet or in a bowl on the counter.

2. To Evaluate -You might compare and contrast kinds of food to show why one kind of food or brand of food is better than another. For example, apples are a better snack than butter.

Compare and Contrast When you choose items to compare and contrast, make

sure that you choose items that have similarities. When you compare items, you look for their similarities

- the things that make them the same. For example: Apples and oranges are both fruit. They're both foods. Both are made into juice. Both grow on trees. When you contrast items, you look at their differences. For example: Apples are red. Oranges are orange.

The fruits have different textures. Oranges need a warmer place to grow, like Florida. Apples can grow in cooler states, like Washington.

StrategiesThere are three strategies to

organize comparison and contrast papers:

1. Whole-to-Whole, or Block2. Similarities-to-Differences3. Point-by-Point

Whole-to-Whole or Block Strategy In this structure, you say

everything about one item then everything about the other.

Similarities-to-Differences Strategy In this structure, you explain all

the similarities about the items being compared and then you explain all the differences.

Point-by-Point Strategy In this structure, you explain one

point of comparison before moving to the next point.

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