Compare and Contrast
Essay Writing
Program Overview• Types of compare and contrast essay tasks
• Pulling apart essay topics
• Important / less important evidence
• What’s in a good introduction?
• Integrated comparison
• Practising comparative writing
• Conclusions
Compare and contrast
essay tasks
VCAA Examples
Instruction task
Compare the ways the distortions of truth have impact [sic] on the
lives of the characters in Nineteen Eighty Four and Stasiland.
Question task
How do the authors of Nineteen Eighty Four and Stasiland explore
the destruction of history and the effect this has on the characters?
Quote task
Compare Nineteen Eighty-Four and Stasiland using the following
quotations as the basis for your response:
‘Everything faded into mist. The past was erased, the erasure was
forgotten, the lie became truth.’ Nineteen Eighty-Four
‘I look at the box in her arms and know that you cannot destroy your
past, nor what it does to you.’ Stasiland
Other examples
• Basic: Both The Great Gatsby and All About Eve are
about having a dream.
• Standard:Both The Great Gatsby and All About Eve
are about having a dream and sacrificing everything
to achieve it.
• Perspective response: Although both The Great
Gatsby and All About Eve are about sacrificing to
achieve a dream, they have fundamentally different
messages about this.
True of both texts Not true
Or
Alternative interpretation
Part 1 Both The Great
Gatsby and All
About Eve are
about having a
dream
Part 2 and sacrificing
everything
Part 3 to achieve it.
True of both texts Just One Text
Part 1 ‘Nothing is forever
in the Theatre.
Whatever it is, it’s
here, it flares up,
and then it’s gone.’
All About Eve
Part 2 ‘Can’t repeat the
past?…Why of course
you can.’ The Great
Gatsby
Important / Less
Important
Important Not Important
Similarities
Eve and Gatsby come from poor
backgrounds
Both have a narrator that supports
their dreams
Both protagonists are theatrical
Both Eve and Gatsby are trying
to break up a marriage
Differences
Eve dreams of personal ambition;
Gatsby dreams of love
Eve tries to destroy others
Eve is a woman; Gatsby is not
Structuring your essay
Text 1 Text Two
Point of comparison: Setting
How does the setting affect the
lives and experiences of the
characters?
Both:
Just this text: Just this text:
Point of comparison:
Protagonists
How do major characters act or
how are they affected?
Both:
Just this text: Just this text:
Point of comparison: Supporting
Characters
How do supporting characters
act or how are they affected?
Both:
Just this text: Just this text:
Point of comparison: Techniques
How do techniques show this
idea throughout the text?
Both:
Just this text: Just this text:
Point of comparison:
Ending/Overall message
What does the ending of the text
ultimately show about this idea?
Both:
Just this text: Just this text:
Plan + Topic sentences
Topic + perspective
Both All About Eve and The Great Gatsby
are set in worlds in which people seek to
create more glamorous versions of
themselves.
The two
texts…
Both
texts…
Each…
differ…
separate…
diverge…
provide…
explore…
merge…
mirror…
connect…
fundamental/ly
important/ly
critical/ly
significant/ly
essential/ly
crucial/ly
principal/ly
necessary/ily
decided/ly
compelling/ly
extensive/ly
primary/ily
comprehensive/ly
broad/ly
conclusive/ly
definitive/ly
precise/ly
specific/ally
…in order to…
…so that…
…to create…
…to highlight…
…resulting in…
…for the…
Text Response Compare and Contrast
3-5 body paragraphs 3-4 body paragraphs
150-250 words each 250-350 words each
700-800 words 900-1200 words
Effective introductions
Topic: 1984 and Gattaca both present bleak visions of dystopian
societies.
Since science fiction texts are concerned with how humans
utilise technology, the genre generally presents us with a
picture of oppressive societies where science is used to
control individuals. In other words, science fiction explores our
fears about how we might use technology to gain power over
each other. This is certainly the case in George Orwell’s novel
Nineteen Eighty-Four and the film Gattaca, directed by
Andrew Niccol. Both texts show us a grim world where there
is limited, if non-existent, privacy and where technology is
used by powerful organisations to control citizens. But there is
an important difference in the message each text gives us in
the end about the capacity of humanity to overcome
dehumanising societies. Orwell’s text says to us at its
conclusion that humans, working as individuals, are ultimately
too weak to defeat more powerful groups who have dominant
technology. However, Niccol’s version of the science fiction
story is much more hopeful: individual’s humanity is not only
able to overcome the powerful forces that oppress him, but
provide an inspiration to others around him.
Introductory statement:
What do texts of this genre
or about this topic seek to
explore/show us?
Identification of important
connection between the
texts in terms of essay
topics
Perspective about degree
of similarities and
differences and a
contention about an
important similarity or
difference
Introductory statement
*Texts which deal with the idea of…seek to
explore/depict/represent…
*Films and plays/novels which
explore…frequently/commonly represent…
*The idea of//issue of…is commonly explored in texts
which shows us/reveal to us how…
*The idea of/theme of/issue of…is commonly
explored through stories/narratives of…
*Dealing with/confronting/coming to terms with….is
an idea which…
Identification of connection
Both texts show us/give us/depict/ portray/represent/reveal…
*…worlds of/worlds where/societies in which…
*…lives of…
*…characters who…
*…struggles against…
*…journeys to/of…
Perspective / contention Yet, However, Nevertheless
Integrated comparison
*Gattaca and Nineteen Eighty-Four are each set worlds where powerful
organisations seek to control individuals in order to create what they
believe is a better society. The product of this control is not, in fact, a
perfect place to live, but rather a grim environment of conformity and
fear where individuals have lost the thing which gives them their
humanity: individuality.
*However, as in all science fiction texts, Orwell’s novel and Niccol’s film
features protagonists who struggle against the grimness of the
oppressive society they find themselves in.
*Similar as they appear, Eugene and Winston differ significantly in the
courage and strength they ultimately display in each text.
However, the way in which power is most insidiously wielded is not through
technology, but through the means by which governments control and
manipulate the minds of its citizens. Orwell is far more explicit about this in
Nineteen Eighty-Four, writing that ‘[p]ower is in tearing human minds to
pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own
choosing’ - by manipulating the language in which its people speak, the
Party can control the ways in which they think and communicate with
each other. The control in Gattaca is not so categorical, but it is nevertheless
apparent that the characters within this world accept the premise that
genetically modified people are ‘the best’ of their parents’ DNA. In both texts,
the cultural setting is such that it prevents alternative ways of viewing the world,
the dominant paradigm is so successful that people are brainwashed into
accepting a certain viewpoint. Orwell is extremely critical of the way in
which people accept these dominant societal thought patterns, observing
that the ‘choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness’ but that
the vast majority believe ‘happiness is better’. For the reader, this is both
observation and warning - Orwell cautions that we surrender freedom at
our peril. The message that Niccol offers is both subtler and more hopeful. On
the one hand, he cautions that to accept a scientific measure of perfection is
both flawed and dangerous, but the chain of characters who allow one man to
overcome this system of discrimination demonstrates to his audience his point
that ‘there is no gene for the human spirit’. Niccol’s film suggests that each
person, from Jerome, to Dr Lamar to Irene, are each willing to buck the system
into which they have been indoctrinated, allowing Vincent to achieve his
dreams. While Orwell suggests that people lose their sense of self when their
minds are controlled, Niccol is more optimistic, allowing that individuals will
never be defeated by the strictures of society.
B
1
2
B
1
1
2
2
B
Transitions
However, the way in which power is most insidiously wielded is not through technology,
but through the means by which governments control and manipulate the minds of its
citizens. Orwell is far more explicit about this in Nineteen Eighty-Four, writing that
‘[p]ower is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new
shapes of your own choosing’ - by manipulating the language in which its people speak,
the Party can control the ways in which they think and communicate with each other. The
control in Gattaca is not so categorical, but it is nevertheless apparent that the
characters within this world accept the premise that genetically modified people are ‘the
best’ of their parents’ DNA. In both texts, the cultural setting is such that it prevents
alternative ways of viewing the world, the dominant paradigm is so successful that people
are brainwashed into accepting a certain viewpoint. Orwell is extremely critical of the way
in which people accept these dominant societal thought patterns, observing that the
‘choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness’ but that the vast majority believe
‘happiness is better’. For the reader, this is both observation and warning - Orwell cautions
that we surrender freedom at our peril. The message that Niccol offers is both subtler
and more hopeful. On the one hand, he cautions that to accept a scientific measure of
perfection is both flawed and dangerous, but the chain of characters who allow one man to
overcome this system of discrimination demonstrates to his audience his point that ‘there is
no gene for the human spirit’. Niccol’s film suggests that each person, from Jerome, to Dr
Lamar to Irene, are each willing to buck the system into which they have been
indoctrinated, allowing Vincent to achieve his dreams. While Orwell suggests that people
lose their sense of self when their minds are controlled, Niccol is more optimistic, allowing
that individuals will never be defeated by the strictures of society.
Transition words ‘is’ transitions
However
On the other hand
In contrast
Although
While
Character / Author / Text
is more
is far more
is - er
is not so
Basic transition words and phrases Advanced transition words and
phrases
Moreover
Furthermore
However
Yet
Although
While
On the one hand
On the other hand
Similarly
Likewise
Unlike
In comparison
In contrast
Conversely
Further to this
In addition to this
Providing a point of contrast…
Providing a further point of similarity is…
Mirroring…
Paralleling this…
Appearing on the surface as similar, but
in fact quite different, is…
Departing from…
Diverging from…
Starkly contrasting this…
Offering a (different/similar)…
Creating a (different/similar)…
Corresponding to this…
This…is mirrored by/through/with…
This…is paralleled b/through/with…
differs
parallels
Compare and contrast
sentence types
Lead in / main part /
extra information
Opener / Lead In Main Part Add On
Viewed alongside each other,
Also: read, considered, other -ed
words
In terms of their heroic qualities,
Throughout the struggles they
face,
Also: By, through
Unlike the settings of the two
texts
Also: Like, Similar to, In the same
way, In contrast to
the two protagonists are very
similar
echoing each other in the way
they respond to situations of
conflict.
not only in their physical
qualities but in their emotions
ones as well.
since they both rely on the help
of others to succeed.
Also: because
: each character must face their
struggle alone in order to
succeed.
and, and also, together with,
coupled with
In one sentenceUnlike Eve who thinks that “….”, Gatsby believes
“…”
Two different
sentences
Eve’s character is driven by the need to “….”
emphasising her character’s….This attitude is not
present in Gatsby who is motivated by…”…”
Two sentences / two
sentences
Mankiewicz critique of ambition is scathing and relentless; through
the character of Margo, he demonstrates that people drop things ‘on
the way up the ladder’ forgetting ‘you’ll need them again’. These
lessons that Margo learns, however, are not passed on to Eve and,
on the night she receives her prize, Eve realises too late that she has
abandoned all hope of friendship and love in order to accomplish
her ambitions.
The message that Fitzgerald offers in contrast, is both more hopeful and
more tragic. On the one hand, he demonstrates that dreams of love can
sustain us, help us to succeed and to ‘stretch out our arms further’, but on
the other hand Gatsby’s path is lonely and, ultimately, hopeless.
Like Unlike
Like…
Just as…so too…
Similar to…
Essentially, both texts/characters/scenes…
At their core, both texts/characters/scenes…
To a great degree, texts/characters/scenes
…share…
…echo each other in the way they…
…have in common…
… seek to…
…represent
Unlike…
Different to…
While…
Departing from…
Diverging from…
…differs…
…varies….
extra information words:and, but, either, or, along with, because, since, in order to, in, for, from, with, by, through, throughout,
showing, producing, illustrating, emphasising, not only…but also…
example words:*thinks…” “, believes…”…”
*[character’s name] belief in…” “, suggestion that…” “, view of…” “
*says, believes, thinks, shows that they are…when they say…”…”
*who thinks, who believes, who says
Slow writing
• Only use compare and contrast verbs
• Every sentence must start a different way
• Every sentence must be more than 30 words
• B12B1122B
Conclusions
While, at their core All About Eve and The Great
Gatsby have some similar warnings about
ambition, they diverge significantly in final
message. Each text imagines a protagonist who
must live a lonely life in order to achieve their
dreams of fulfilment. What makes The Great
Gatsby a less censorial analysis of ambition is
that it offers us hope, that even against all odds,
we can achieve moments of perfect love and
happiness, even if these are ultimately doomed.
This is perhaps because the dreams Gatsby
has are not of solely of money and career
success, but are motivated by love, even if this
love is immature. In contrast, Joseph
Mankiewicz’s All About Eve presents us with a
story without such hope, whose ‘leading lady’ is
hollow and whose victories are meaningless,
and which serves as a stark warning to readers
about what will happen if we let dreams of
professional success take precedence over
friendship and love.
Concluding phrase
Analytical verb
Perspective phrase
Three pronged sentence
Concluding word/phrase
In the final analysis
Ultimately
In the end
Fundamentally
In essence
At their core
Analytic verb
imagine, create, envisage, construct, express, articulate,
demonstrate, convey, caution, warn, advocate, point out,
highlight, underline, emphasise, provide, give the reader
Perspective phrase
Yet what…
Yet what most importantly…
underling both texts
connecting each text
throughout both texts
separating the texts
differentiating the texts
the essential point of difference
But perhaps the most important…
Thank you