3 Secrets for Writing an A+ Compare & Contrast Paper

The first thing to know is that there are no secrets to writing high quality A+ papers of any kind. You simply do the paper and the amount of effort you put in will turn out a paper with a high mark.

Understanding a Compare & Contrast Paper

The compare/contrast paper is just as it sounds: it points out differences and similarities between two topics or subjects and draws a conclusion based on those differences and similarities. That’s honestly all there is to know about this kind of paper. There are two approaches to take with doing the compare and contrast paper: block arrangement and point by point.

With point by point splits the differences or similarities up into distinct paragraphs and tackle the two things between compared or contrasted based on those points. A block arrangement lists the same points and tackles them in paragraphs dedicated to that particular thing being contrasted. For example:

Block Arrangement

1. Introduction of what will be compared or contrasted.
2. Subject A (let’s say Winter)
          A. Topic 1 (Holidays)
          B. Topic 2 (Activities to do outdoors)
          C. Topic 3 (The weather)
3. Subject B
          A. Topic 1 (Holidays)
          B. Topic 2 (Activities to do outdoors)
          C. Topic 3 (The weather)
4. Conclusion

Point By Point

1. Intro
2. Topic 1 (Holidays)
          A. Winter
          B. Summer
3. Topic 2 (Activities Outdoors)
          A. Winter
          B. Summer
4. Topic 3 (The Weather)
          A. Winter
          B. Summer
5. Conclusion

These are two basic kinds of flow or structure for these kinds of essays.

Research

Once you decide if you’re going to compare or contrast and what structure you’ll approach your subject with, you’ll want to get in some research on the subject and focus on your topics—in this case the weather, activities outdoors, and holidays.

Write

You’ll want to write the paper to show off that it is both properly written and researched greatly. The degree of writing and the way the facts are weaved seamlessly into your compare/contrast paper will show that you delivered a great paper. Along with research and understanding the kind of paper you will write, the actual heavy lifting—writing—will get you that A+.