Prewriting: Comparison and Contrast
For this exam, you’ll choose one of the suggested topics and write an outline to plan and develop your information before you begin to draft your essay. If you do research or incorporate information that’s not considered common knowledge into your prewriting, you must cite it according to APA Format
Objective
For this exam, you’ll do the following:
Use prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing to write formal, college-level essays
Distinguish between different patterns of development
Apply an appropriate pattern of development to a specific purpose and audience
Develop paragraphs using topic sentences, adequate detail, supporting evidence, and transitions
Apply the conventions of standard written American English to produce correct, well-written essays
Tip for Success: Be sure to check out the resources available to you in the Learning Resource Center for videos and worksheets to help you complete this assignment.
Topic
Choose one of the following topics:
Compare and contrast two villains of favorite TV shows and/or movies.
Compare and contrast two protagonists of favorite TV shows and/or movies.
Compare and contrast a video game and its corresponding movie/TV show.
Compare and contrast online shopping and shopping at a physical location.
Prewriting Tasks
Be sure to complete the following tasks in your prewriting:
State the subject you’ve chosen in a complete sentence.
Provide one or two sentences of background information; this will go in your introduction when you write your essay.
Create a thesis statement. Remember, your thesis statement must make an argument about your topic and name the key points of contrast in the order you will discuss them.
Use the “Point-by-Point” organizer shown in the example below to demonstrate how you will logically organize your essay. Include your subject, thesis statement, supporting elements, and conclusion.
Compare and Contrast Example
Topic: Pets
Title: The Best Pet for Introverts Who Live Alone
Background Statement: Even though introverts prefer their own company to those of other humans, they may find an animal companion can provide the companionship they are looking for.
Thesis Statement: Dogs make better pets than cats for solo-living introverts because they provide emotional support, exercise, and security.
Point 1: Emotional Support
Dogs run to greet their owners with tail wags and cuddles as soon as their humans come home.
Cats may brush against their human’s legs, if a greeting is given at all.
Dogs often will stay glued to their human’s side or not be far away.
Cats are known for being aloof, and might happily spend their time atop a bookcase or in another room entirely.
Point 2: Exercise
Dogs require regular walks to go outside, ensuring that an introvert must leave their house and see the world outside.
Cats use litterboxes, which take only a few minutes to clean and can leave a foul odor in the home.
Dogs require playtime with their human. The playtime often involves running or other physical activity.
Cats may not like to play, but if they do, it often involves sitting on the couch and using a laser pointer or waving a string with a toy attached.
Point 3: Security
Dogs bark to let their owners know of intruders or other dangers.
Cats may meow to let their human know their food or water dish is empty, but might largely ignore an intruder.
Dogs can provide warm comfort being at their human’s side when they’re uneasy or maybe watched a few too many scary movies.
Cats might well be off doing their own cat things.
Conclusion: When it comes to being a best friend, a dog is unmatched. They provide companionship and cuddles, as well as safety and physical activity.
Evaluation Rubric
Your instructor will evaluate your prewriting based on the following criteria.
Prewriting: Compare and Contrast
Advanced— Score of 100% The prewriting effectively addresses the purpose of the assignment and the requirements of the prompt.
The writer chose one of the assigned topics and submitted an outline or graphic organizer.
The writer included all the required introductory information: a topic, background statement, and thesis statement.
The thesis statement makes a claim or takes a position on the topic, and the main points are outlined clearly.
The writer included at least 3 main points on the topic, with at least three supporting elements for each. The main points connect clearly to and support the thesis statement
The writer’s conclusion reinforced the thesis statement.
The writer arranged the main points in a logical order to suit the claim made in the thesis statement.
The supporting elements provided for each main point are relevant and clearly illustrate the comparison and contrast pattern of development for the chosen topic.
The paper is mostly free of errors that interfere with a reader’s ability to understand the content and uses the required font, header, line spacing, and margins.
Proficient— Score of 85% The prewriting adequately addresses the purpose of the assignment and the requirements of the prompt.
The writer chose one of the assigned topics and submitted an outline or graphic organizer.
The writer included most of the required introductory information: a topic, background statement, and thesis statement.
The thesis statement makes a claim or takes a position on the topic, but the main points are not outlined clearly.
The writer included at least 3 main points on the topic, with at least two or more supporting elements for each. The main points connect to and support the thesis statement, however much of the information is obvious.
The writer’s conclusion mostly reinforced the thesis statement.
The writer arranged the main points in an order that mostly suits the claim made in the thesis statement.
The supporting elements provided for each main point are mostly relevant and adequately illustrate the comparison and contrast pattern of development for the chosen topic.
The paper is reasonably free of errors that interfere with a reader’s ability to understand the content and uses the required font, header, line spacing, and margins.
Developing— Score of 70% The prewriting partially addresses the purpose of the assignment and the requirements of the prompt.
The writer chose one of the assigned topics and submitted an outline or graphic organizer.
The writer included some of the required introductory information: a topic, background statement, and thesis statement, however some of these elements are missing.
The thesis statement does not make a claim or take a position on the topic and/or the main points are not outlined.
The writer included less than 3 main points on the topic and/or lacks three supporting elements for each. The main points do not completely connect to and support the thesis statement, and much of the information is obvious and/or needs more development.
The writer’s conclusion is underdeveloped and/or is beginning to reinforce the thesis statement.
The writer arranged the main points in an order that is beginning to suit the claim made in the thesis statement, but the outline lacks organization.
The supporting elements provided for each main point lack focus, logical development, and are beginning to illustrate the comparison and contrast pattern of development for the chosen topic.
The paper includes errors that interfere with a reader’s ability to understand the content and/or does not use the required font, header, line spacing, and margins.
Emerging— Score of 60% The prewriting minimally addresses the purpose of the assignment and the requirements of the prompt.
The writer chose one of the assigned topics but did not submit an outline or graphic organizer.
The writer minimally included some of the required introductory information: a topic, background statement, and thesis statement, however most of these elements are missing.
The thesis statement does not make a claim or take a position on the topic, is not related to the topic, and/or the main points are not outlined.
The writer did not include 3 main points on the topic and/or lacks three supporting elements for each. The main points do not connect to and support the thesis statement, and much of the information is obvious and needs more development.
The writer’s conclusion is underdeveloped, missing, and/or does not reinforce the thesis statement.
The writer is beginning to arrange the main points in an order that is could suit the claim made in the thesis statement, but the outline lacks organization and focus.
The supporting elements provided for each main point lack are minimally defined and do not illustrate the comparison and contrast pattern of development for the chosen topic.
The paper includes some errors that make it difficult for a reader to understand the content and/or does not use the required font, header, line spacing, and margins.
Not Developed— Score of 50% The prewriting does not address the purpose of the assignment and the requirements of the prompt.
The writer did not choose one of the assigned topics and/or did not submit an outline or graphic organizer.
The writer did not include all the required introductory information: a topic, background statement, and thesis statement.
The thesis statement does not make a claim or takes a position on the topic.
The writer did not include at least 3 main points on the topic, with at least three supporting elements for each. The main points do not connect clearly to and support the thesis statement
The writer’s conclusion does not reinforce the thesis statement.
The writer did not arrange the main points in a logical order to suit the claim made in the thesis statement.
The supporting elements are not provided for each main point and/or are not relevant and adequately illustrate the comparison and contrast pattern of development for the chosen topic.
The paper includes significant errors that make it extremely difficult for a reader to understand the content and does not use the required font, header, line spacing, and margins.
