Now that we’ve listed the characteristics of each bird, let’s note down the similarities and differences between the two:
If you are more of a visual learner, you can also make use of a Venn diagram. You can simply draw two circles with an overlapping portion. Note down the characteristics unique to each subject in the portion that does not overlap, and note down the similarities in the overlapping portion. Here’s an example:
A thesis statement explains the reason why two subjects need to be compared. It establishes the significance of their comparison. Although developing a meaningful thesis statement can be tricky, you can figure it out by asking yourself “So what?”.
For instance, if you’re comparing the lifestyle of the royal families in the Eastern and Western civilizations, you must have a reason to choose those particular subjects. One reason could be to study the impact of these civilizations on modern-day society. Here’s an example thesis statement based on this premise:
The contrasting lifestyles of royal families in Eastern and Western civilizations, rooted in cultural traditions and historical developments, have shaped their roles as figureheads and influencers, impacting modern-day society through ceremonial symbolism, media presence, cultural preservation, and fashion trends.
If you’re still contemplating how to start a compare and contrast essay, you can create a flow for all your ideas with the help of an essay structure. This structure or outline divides your essay into three basic sections:
Most school and college essays consist of an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, this is not a hard and fast rule. You can certainly extend the number of body paragraphs of your essay depending on the topic and complexity of your essay. However, the number of paragraphs in the introduction and conclusion remains the same.
An essay introduction consists of an opening line, relevant background information, and the thesis statement. The body paragraphs are arranged according to different topic sentences. Relevant explanations, facts, and statistics are provided to substantiate the claims made in these topic sentences. The conclusion, like the introduction, also consists of three facets. It includes an updated version of your thesis statement, a summary of the main points of your essay, and a conclusion.
The outline for your compare and contrast essay serves as a base you can build upon. You can use it as a guide while writing your essay. We will take a closer look at compare and contrast essay outlines in the next section of the article.
After constructing a well-structured outline, you can start building your essay with the help of the key points that you’ve jotted down. The comparisons that you’ve noted down earlier can provide the talking points in your essay. Each paragraph consists of three main aspects:
Since you’ve already created a rough outline, your job becomes much easier. You can elaborate on the main talking points of your essay by data collated from various reputed sources. This can include facts, statistics, experiments/studies conducted, or even expert opinions. To make your argument stronger, you can also include tables, figures, or diagrams.
Here’s an example of how you can build on your basic outline:
Topic sentence : A comparison of the Aztecs and Mayans reveals distinct differences in their social structures shedding light on the unique characteristics of these two Mesoamerican civilizations.
Explanation: The Aztecs and Mayans, two prominent Mesoamerican civilizations, displayed striking disparities in their social structures, religious beliefs, and artistic expressions. The Aztecs established a centralized empire with a powerful government headed by an emperor, wielding supreme authority. This hierarchical society comprised nobles, commoners, and slaves, offering limited social mobility. In contrast, the Mayans organized themselves into independent city-states, each with its own ruler and governing system. Their social structure encompassed rulers, nobles, priests, merchants, farmers, and artisans, allowing for some degree of social mobility.
Translation statement: Along with the social structure, the Mayans and Aztecs also had very different everyday routines.
After completing the first draft of your essay, take a break for a day or two before getting back to it. This not only helps you look at your work from an objective point of view but also makes room for new ideas.
In case you notice an abundance of errors while revising your essay, don’t fret, it’s a part of the process. You may need two or three revisions, but make sure to tweak and revise your essay until it is up to the mark. If required, you can also get help from friends, seniors, or even family members.
Once you’re satisfied with the structure and content of your essay, you can start with the editing process. The editing process involves everything from making major structural adjustments for the sake of clarity to correcting mechanical and typesetting errors for the sake of readability.
If the deadline is drawing closer and there’s not enough time, you can also consider working with an essay editing service . These services help you avoid the convoluted and time-consuming process of editing your essay.
Although the introduction and conclusion paragraphs of a compare and contrast essay format remain the same, there are three main methods by which body paragraphs can be arranged. They are:
Depending on the purpose and topic of your essay, you can make use of any of the three formats. Let’s take a closer look at the outlines of each of these compare and contrast essay formats:
In the block outline, the analysis of the characteristics of one subject is completed before moving on to the next. Although this method discusses a subject in its entirety and creates a flow, it’s often difficult to draw parallels between the two subjects.
Let’s understand this outline with the help of an example. The following comparative essay block outline example analyzes the positive effects of the color green and the drawbacks of the color red on the human mind.
The Impact of Colors on Your State of Mind
I. Introduction
A. Engaging opening statement about the impact of colors on human perception
B. The significance of colors and their effects on emotions
C. Main argument stating that green is more soothing to the eye than red and should be implemented more often
A. Discussion of Green
1. Characteristics of green and its association with nature and tranquility
2. Examples, statistics, or research findings that demonstrate the soothing effects of green on the human eye
3. Positive impact of green on mental well-being and stress reduction
B. Discussion of Red
1. Characteristics of red and its association with intensity and stimulation
2. Examples, statistics, or research findings that show the potentially overwhelming or agitating effects of red on the human eye
3. Negative impact of red on mental state and a potential increase in stress levels as a result
C. Comparison of Green and Red
1. Visual contrast between the calming effect of green and the stimulating effect of red
2. Emotional responses elicited by green and red, that emphasize the soothing nature of green and the potentially disruptive nature of red
3. Surveys or studies that indicate a higher preference for green in various settings
III. Conclusion
A. Updated main argument: Green is more soothing to the eye than red and should be implemented more often
B. Summary of the key points from the body paragraphs: The benefits of green and the drawbacks of red
C. Using green in various environments, such as interior design, healthcare facilities, and urban planning, to promote a soothing visual experience for individuals
D. Impactful ending sentence: The importance of color choices for a harmonious environment
If you want to establish a stronger connection between your different points of comparison, consider using the alternating outline. In this type of outline, the comparison between subjects is much more blatant as both of the subjects are evaluated against a particular metric. However, the alternating outline can result in two disjointed sections.
Each body paragraph consists of a single metric against which both subjects are measured. Let’s better understand the alternating essay outline with the help of the same example:
A. Captivating hook about the influence of colors on human perception
B. Overview of the significance of colors and their impact on emotions
C. Thesis statement stating that green is more soothing to the eye than red and should be implemented more often
II. Body Paragraph 1: Comparison of Green and Red
A. Visual Characteristics
1. Green: Associated with nature, calmness, and tranquility
2. Red: Associated with intensity, excitement, and stimulation
B. Emotional Impact
1. Green: Elicits feelings of relaxation, harmony, and rejuvenation
2. Red: Evokes emotions like passion, energy, and even agitation or stress
C. Effects on Eye Fatigue
1. Green: More restful for the eyes due to its position in the color spectrum
2. Red: Prolonged exposure to red can strain the eyes and potentially lead to eye fatigue
III. Body Paragraph 2: Benefits of Implementing Green
A. Psychological Well-being
1. Green: Promotes a sense of calmness, reduces stress, and improves overall mental well-being
2. Red: Excessive exposure to red can potentially increase stress levels and negatively impact psychological health
B. Environmental Impact
1. Green: Incorporating green elements in urban environments, interior design, and healthcare facilities can create a soothing atmosphere
2. Red: Potential disruptive effects of excessive red usage in certain settings and its contrasting impact on visual comfort
IV. Conclusion
A. Updated thesis statement: Green is more soothing to the eye than red and should be implemented more often
B. Summary of key points in body paragraphs: Difference between green and red, emphasizing the soothing qualities of green and the potential drawbacks of red
C. Implementation of green in various contexts, and its positive impact on well-being and creating visually comfortable environments
D. Impactful concluding statement: The significance of color choices and their influence on our daily lives
If you want the focus to be on the comparison between the two topics, it is a good idea to implement the similarities and differences outline. This format bears a resemblance to the alternating outline.
However, the metrics of comparison are the similarities and differences between the two subjects, as opposed to certain characteristics. A single paragraph lists all the similarities between the two topics, followed by a paragraph that lists all the distinctions.
Here’s an example outline for a compare and contrast essay using the similarities and differences method:
A. Intriguing statement about the impact of colors on visual perception
B. Brief overview of the significance of colors and their effects on emotions
II. Body Paragraph 1: Similarities between Green and Red
1. Green: Visual characteristics of green, such as its association with nature and tranquility
2. Red: Visual characteristics of red, such as its association with intensity and stimulation
1. Green: Both green and red can evoke emotional responses, such as calmness or excitement, albeit to different degrees
2. Red: Both green and red can elicit emotions, but red tends to evoke more intense and stimulating feelings
III. Body Paragraph 2: Differences between Green and Red
A. Soothing Qualities
1. Green: Green is inherently soothing to the eye due to its position in the color spectrum and its association with nature
2. Red: Red, on the other hand, can be visually intense and potentially overwhelming, making it less soothing
B. Psychological Effects
1. Green: Green promotes relaxation, reduces stress, and enhances mental well-being
2. Red: Prolonged exposure to red can potentially increase stress levels and negatively impact psychological health
C. Eye Fatigue
1. Green: Green is considered more restful for the eyes, as it requires less eye strain and can reduce eye fatigue
2. Red: Excessive exposure to red can strain the eyes and potentially lead to eye fatigue
IV. Body Paragraph 3: Benefits of Implementing Green
A. Environmental Impact
1. Incorporating green elements in various environments, such as interior design, urban planning, and healthcare facilities, can create a soothing atmosphere
2. Potential positive effects on mental well-being and overall quality of life
V. Conclusion
B. Summary of key points in body paragraphs: Similarities and differences between green and red, that emphasize the soothing qualities of green and the potential drawbacks of red
C. Need for the implementation of green in different settings, and its positive impact on visual comfort and well-being
D. Thought-provoking statement: Significance of color choices and their influence on our daily lives
Now that we’ve understood the three basic outlines for compare and contrast essays let’s take a look at compare and contrast essay examples for these three formats.
There are three main formats that you can use to write a compare and contrast essay. You can select one of these formats depending on what you’d like to convey to the reader. We will provide example essays for all three formats and pick a topic best suited for each essay format.
Let’s take a look:
The following compare and contrast essay example is based on the comparative analysis of two of Edgar Allan Poe’s greatest works.
A Comparative Analysis of The Raven and The Tell-Tale Heart
Edgar Allan Poe, a master of Gothic literature, created two captivating and chilling tales, The Raven and The Tell-Tale Heart . While both stories delve into the realms of madness, guilt, and obsession, they differ in their narrative structures, character portrayals, and themes. Take a closer look at and uncover the unique elements that make these literary masterpieces enduring classics in the world of dark fiction.
The Raven is a narrative poem composed of eighteen stanzas, employing a rhyming scheme of ABCBBB. It follows a straightforward linear progression, recounting the narrator’s interaction with the mysterious raven, which repeatedly utters the word “nevermore.” The narrator is a grieving man consumed by sorrow and melancholy, haunted by the loss of his beloved Lenore. The raven assumes a symbolic role, representing an otherworldly and ominous presence that fuels the narrator’s descent into madness. The poem primarily explores themes of grief, loss, and the inability to escape from painful memories, while also delving into the supernatural, the macabre, and the fragility of the human mind when faced with the unknown.
On the other hand, The Tell-Tale Heart is a short story narrated in the first person by an unnamed protagonist who is determined to prove their sanity. The story follows a non-linear structure, with the narrator recounting the events leading up to and after the murder of the old man with a “vulture eye.” The protagonist is an unnamed and unreliable narrator whose intense obsession with the old man’s eye leads to murder. The old man, with his “vulture eye,” becomes a symbol of the narrator’s guilt and paranoia, fueling the story’s suspense. The Tell-Tale Heart explores themes of guilt, paranoia, and the dark recesses of the human mind. It delves into the thin line between sanity and insanity, highlighting the overwhelming power of a guilty conscience.
The Raven and The Tell-Tale Heart , both masterpieces by Edgar Allan Poe, showcase his profound understanding of the human psyche. While The Raven takes the form of a narrative poem and focuses on grief, loss, and the supernatural, The Tell-Tale Heart is a short story with an unreliable narrator, delving into guilt, paranoia, and the blurred boundaries of sanity. Despite their structural and thematic differences, both works captivate readers with their exploration of the darkest aspects of the human soul. Through their masterful storytelling, Poe leaves an indelible mark on literature, inviting readers to confront their own fears and delve into the depths of the human psyche.
The following compare and contrast essay example highlights the stark contrast between life during the 1800s and the present day.
Contrasting Life During the 1800s and Life Today
Society during the 1800s and present-day society are characterized by stark differences in technological advancements, societal norms, and overall quality of life. There have been significant developments areas of communication, transportation, healthcare, and social dynamics between the two eras. By examining the contrasting aspects of life during the 1800s and present-day life, we can gain a deeper insight into how society has evolved.
In the 1800s people relied primarily on written letters, which often took weeks or even months to reach their destination. The introduction of the telegraph provided a faster means of long-distance communication but remained limited in accessibility. Today, communication is instant and global, thanks to the widespread use of smartphones, social media platforms, and the internet. People can connect through video calls, messaging apps, and social networking sites, bridging distances and facilitating real-time conversations.
People in the 1800s primarily relied on horse-drawn carriages, ships, and railways as modes of transportation. Long-distance travel was slow and arduous, often taking weeks or even months to complete, while local transportation was limited to walking or horseback riding. In contrast, modern transportation is characterized by the advent of automobiles, airplanes, and high-speed trains. These advancements enable swift and efficient travel across the globe. Air travel has become commonplace, allowing people to reach distant locations in a matter of hours, while cars provide individual mobility and flexibility.
Healthcare in the 1800s was marked by rudimentary medical knowledge and practices. There was often a lack of scientific understanding and proper sanitation measures, resulting in limited and ineffective medical treatments. This led to high mortality rates for common illnesses and diseases. In recent times, advances in medical science, technology, and research have revolutionized healthcare. Cutting-edge treatments, vaccines, and surgical procedures have significantly increased life expectancy and improved overall well-being.
The 1800s were characterized by strict social hierarchies, class divisions, and limited opportunities for social mobility. Gender roles were rigidly defined, with limited rights and opportunities for women. However, contemporary society has made significant strides toward equality and inclusivity. Movements advocating for gender, racial, and LGBTQ+ rights have pushed for social progress. Social mobility and opportunities for personal and professional growth have expanded, promoting a more diverse and inclusive society.
In conclusion, life during the 1800s and life today differ significantly in terms of communication, transportation, healthcare, and social dynamics. Technological advancements, scientific progress, and societal changes have transformed the way we live and interact with the world. While the 1800s were marked by limitations and hardships, the modern era offers unprecedented convenience, connectivity, and opportunities for personal growth. By examining these contrasting aspects, we gain a deeper appreciation for the advancements that have shaped our lives today and a better understanding of the progress humanity has made over time.
The following example of a compare and contrast essay studies the similarities and differences between amphibians and reptiles.
Exploring the Fascinating Worlds of Amphibians and Reptiles
Amphibians and reptiles are two distinct groups of animals that belong to the larger classification of vertebrates. While they share some similarities, they also exhibit significant differences in their physical characteristics, life cycles, habitats, and reproductive strategies. Let’s take a closer look at both these species by highlighting their unique features and adaptations to their respective environments.
Although different species, amphibians, and reptiles share several similarities. Both groups are cold-blooded, or ectothermic, which means their body temperatures are regulated by the environment. This characteristic influences their behavior and activity levels, as they rely on external heat sources to warm their bodies. Both species also lay eggs for reproduction. The eggs of both groups are covered by protective membranes, which provide a suitable environment for development outside the parent’s body. Additionally, amphibians and reptiles have a similar general body plan, characterized by a backbone, four limbs (or remnants of limbs), and a well-developed skull.
Despite these similarities, there are notable differences between the two species. Amphibians have a dual life cycle, which involves an aquatic larval stage and a terrestrial adult stage. They typically lay their eggs in water and undergo metamorphosis from aquatic larvae, into terrestrial adults with lungs. A frog is one classic example of an amphibian. In contrast, reptiles have a direct life cycle, with offspring hatching from eggs that are laid on land. They bypass the aquatic larval stage and are born as miniature versions of the adults, equipped for a terrestrial existence. Alligators and crocodiles are the most commonly known reptiles.
Another significant difference lies in their respective habitats. Amphibians are often associated with moist environments, such as swamps, rivers, and ponds, as they require
water for breeding and maintaining skin moisture. They are highly adapted to live in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Reptiles, on the other hand, have evolved to inhabit a wider range of environments. They can be found in various habitats, including deserts, forests, grasslands, and even oceans. Reptiles have developed strategies to conserve water, such as the ability to excrete uric acid instead of urea, allowing them to thrive in arid conditions.
Physiologically, amphibians and reptiles differ in their skin structure and respiration. Amphibians have moist and permeable skin that serves multiple functions, including gas exchange and water absorption. This unique characteristic allows them to respire through their skin, particularly during their larval stage. In contrast, reptiles have dry and scaly skin that acts as a protective barrier against water loss. They rely on lungs for respiration and have more efficient respiratory systems compared to amphibians.
In conclusion, while amphibians and reptiles share some similarities, such as being ectothermic and laying eggs, they have distinct differences in their life cycles, habitats, and physiological characteristics. Amphibians undergo metamorphosis and have a dual life cycle, adapting to both aquatic and terrestrial environments. Reptiles, on the other hand, have a direct life cycle and are adapted to a wide range of habitats. Understanding these similarities and differences helps us appreciate the diverse adaptations that have allowed these fascinating creatures to thrive in different ecosystems across the world.
We hope that these examples of compare and contrast essays guide you in acing your essay assignment! As editing and proofreading experts, we realize the importance of submitting error-free essays.
To help you minimize errors, we have created detailed resources about several important aspects of essay writing. Go through the following resources to enhance your essay-writing skills!
How to write an introduction paragraph for a compare and contrast essay, how to write a conclusion paragraph for a compare and contrast essay, how to title a compare and contrast essay, what is a good title for a compare and contrast essay, what is a good topic sentence for a compare and contrast essay.
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Before you begin to draft a compare and contrast essay, you should brainstorm by creating a Venn diagram or a chart to list the pros and cons of each subject you are comparing to another.
The first paragraph of your compare and contrast essay should contain references to both sides of your comparison. This paragraph should end with a thesis sentence that sums up your overall purpose or results, like this:
While city life brings many social opportunities, country life can provide the best of both worlds.
Comparison essays can be constructed in two ways. You can focus on one side of your comparison at a time, describing the pros and cons of one topic first and then moving on to the next topic, like the example here:
You could instead alternate your focus, covering one after the other in a back-and-forth pattern.
Make sure that each paragraph contains a smooth transition statement , and end your essay with a sound conclusion.
Country Life or City Life?
theaters, clubs | festivals, bonfires, etc. | |
museums | historic places | |
restaurants | produce |
Some ideas for your compare and contrast essay might make your work easier. Think about the following topics and see if one feels right for you.
If the list above doesn't appeal to you, it may spark an original idea that fits your situation. This type of essay can be a lot of fun!
Master the art of crafting a stellar comparing and contrasting essay like a pro.
When tasked with writing a comparing and contrasting essay, it’s essential to have a clear understanding of the key elements that make this type of essay unique. Comparing and contrasting essays require a deep analysis of two or more subjects, highlighting similarities and differences between them.
One of the fundamental aspects of a successful comparing and contrasting essay is the structure. It’s crucial to organize your essay in a coherent manner, either using a block or point-by-point structure to effectively convey your ideas and arguments.
Additionally, selecting appropriate criteria for comparison and contrast is vital. It’s essential to choose relevant and meaningful points of comparison that will help illuminate the similarities and differences between the subjects being examined.
Before you start writing your comparing and contrasting essay, it is crucial to thoroughly understand the assignment. Take the time to carefully read the prompt or guidelines provided by your instructor. Pay close attention to the specific requirements, such as the topics or subjects to compare and contrast, the purpose of the essay, the length, and any formatting guidelines.
By gaining a clear understanding of the assignment, you can ensure that your essay meets all the necessary criteria and effectively addresses the key points. If you have any questions or uncertainties about the assignment, don’t hesitate to seek clarification from your instructor. Clarity on the assignment will set a strong foundation for your essay writing process.
When selecting a topic for your comparing and contrasting essay, it is important to choose subjects that have enough similarities and differences to make a meaningful comparison. Consider selecting topics that interest you personally, as this will make the writing process more enjoyable and engaging.
It is also helpful to choose topics that are relevant and timely, as this will make your essay more compelling to readers. Additionally, try to select topics that have enough material available for research, so you can support your points with credible sources.
Consider brainstorming a list of potential topics and then narrowing down your choices based on the criteria mentioned above. Remember that a well-chosen topic can make a significant impact on the overall quality of your essay.
One of the most crucial elements of a compare and contrast essay is a strong thesis statement. Your thesis should clearly outline the main point of your essay and the specific aspects you will be comparing or contrasting. It should be concise, specific, and arguable to engage your readers right from the start. A good thesis statement will guide the rest of your essay and help you stay focused on your main argument. Make sure to take the time to craft a meaningful thesis that sets the tone for your entire essay.
One of the keys to writing a successful comparing and contrasting essay is to have a well-organized structure. A clear and logical organization will help guide your readers through your arguments and make your essay easier to follow. Here are some tips for organizing your essay:
Start with a strong introduction that provides some background information on the topic and states your thesis statement. | |
Organize your main points in separate paragraphs. Each paragraph should focus on a specific aspect of the comparison or contrast, and include evidence and examples to support your argument. | |
Use transition words and phrases to link your ideas and help your readers move smoothly from one point to the next. | |
Summarize your main points and restate your thesis in the conclusion. Leave your readers with a strong impression of your argument. |
By organizing your essay in a clear and structured way, you will be able to effectively compare and contrast the subjects you are discussing and make a compelling argument.
When writing a comparing and contrasting essay, it is important to use appropriate language to effectively convey your ideas and arguments. Here are some tips to help you choose the right words and phrases:
1. Be Clear and Concise: Use clear and straightforward language to explain your points. Avoid using jargon or overly complex vocabulary that might confuse your readers.
2. Use Transitional Words: To link different ideas or contrast two points, use transitional words such as “however,” “on the other hand,” “similarly,” or “in contrast.”
3. Be Objective: When comparing and contrasting two things, remain impartial and provide evidence to support your claims. Avoid using biased language that may sway the reader towards one side.
4. Avoid Ambiguity: Be specific in your descriptions and avoid vague language that could be interpreted in different ways. Make sure your arguments are clear and precise.
5. Use Academic Language: Depending on the audience and purpose of your essay, use formal and academic language to strengthen your arguments and present your ideas in a scholarly manner.
By using appropriate language in your comparing and contrasting essay, you can effectively communicate your thoughts and make your writing more persuasive and engaging for your readers.
One of the keys to writing a successful comparing and contrasting essay is supporting your points with evidence. It’s not enough to simply state your opinions; you need to back them up with facts, examples, and research. Here are some tips to help you effectively support your points:
By supporting your points with evidence, you can make a more compelling and persuasive argument in your comparing and contrasting essay.
Once you have completed your comparing and contrasting essay, it’s crucial to revise and edit it thoroughly. This process helps ensure that your essay is clear, coherent, and engaging for the reader. Here are some tips for revising and editing your essay:
1. Read Aloud | Read your essay aloud to catch any awkward phrasing or unclear sentences. This can help you identify areas that need improvement. |
2. Check for Consistency | Ensure that your points are consistent throughout the essay and that your arguments flow logically. |
3. Proofread for Grammar and Spelling | Review your essay for grammatical errors, punctuation mistakes, and spelling errors. These can detract from the overall quality of your work. |
4. Seek Feedback | Ask a friend or classmate to read your essay and provide feedback. Fresh eyes can often catch mistakes or areas for improvement that you may have missed. |
5. Format and Style | Check that your essay is formatted correctly and that your writing style is appropriate for the assignment. Make any necessary adjustments for clarity and readability. |
By revising and editing your essay carefully, you can ensure that your arguments are strong, your writing is polished, and your overall message is clear. These steps are essential for producing a high-quality comparing and contrasting essay.
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A compare and contrast essay selects two or more items that are critically analyzed to demonstrate their differences and similarities. Here is a template for you that provides the general structure:
A range of example essays is presented below.
#1 jean piaget vs lev vygotsky essay.
1480 Words | 5 Pages | 10 References
(Level: University Undergraduate)
Thesis Statement: “This essay will critically examine and compare the developmental theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky, focusing on their differing views on cognitive development in children and their influence on educational psychology, through an exploration of key concepts such as the role of culture and environment, scaffolding, equilibration, and their overall implications for educational practices..”
Thesis Statement: “The thesis of this analysis is that, despite the efficiency and control offered by authoritarian regimes, democratic systems, with their emphasis on individual freedoms, participatory governance, and social welfare, present a more balanced and ethically sound approach to governance, better aligned with the ideals of a just and progressive society.”
1190 Words | 5 Pages | 0 References
(Level: 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade)
Thesis Statement: “While apples and oranges are both popular and nutritious fruits, they differ significantly in their taste profiles, nutritional benefits, cultural symbolism, and culinary applications.”
1525 Words | 5 Pages | 11 References
(Level: High School and College)
Thesis Statement: “The purpose of this essay is to examine and elucidate the complex and interconnected roles of genetic inheritance (nature) and environmental influences (nurture) in shaping human development across various domains such as physical traits, personality, behavior, intelligence, and abilities.”
1095 Words | 5 Pages | 7 Bibliographic Sources
(Level: 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade)
Thesis Statement: “This essay explores the distinctive characteristics, emotional connections, and lifestyle considerations associated with owning dogs and cats, aiming to illuminate the unique joys and benefits each pet brings to their human companions.”
I’ve recorded a full video for you on how to write a compare and contrast essay:
Get the Compare and Contrast Templates with AI Prompts Here
In the video, I outline the steps to writing your essay. Here they are explained below:
First, I recommend using my compare and contrast worksheet, which acts like a Venn Diagram, walking you through the steps of comparing the similarities and differences of the concepts or items you’re comparing.
I recommend selecting 3-5 features that can be compared, as shown in the worksheet:
Grab the Worksheet as Part of the Compare and Contrast Essay Writing Pack
Once you’ve completed the worksheet, you’re ready to start writing. Go systematically through each feature you are comparing and discuss the similarities and differences, then make an evaluative statement after showing your depth of knowledge:
Get the Rest of the Premium Compare and Contrast Essay Writing Pack (With AI Prompts) Here
Compare and contrast thesis statements can either:
To write an argumentative thesis statement for a compare and contrast essay, try this AI Prompts:
💡 AI Prompt to Generate Ideas I am writing a compare and contrast essay that compares [Concept 1] and [Concept2]. Give me 5 potential single-sentence thesis statements that pass a reasonable judgement.
Take action! Choose one of the following options to start writing your compare and contrast essay now:
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Comparison contrast essay generator.
The art of essay writing is a skill that is not only essential for students but also for professionals. It is a tool that helps in expressing thoughts, ideas, and arguments in a structured and coherent manner. Among the various types of essays, the Comparison and Contrast Essay holds a unique place. This article will guide you through 29+ Comparison and Contrast Essay Examples available in Google Docs, Word, PDF, and will also provide a step-by-step guide on how to write one.
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A Comparison and Contrast Essay is a type of writing that explores the similarities and differences between two or more subjects. It is a form of academic writing where the writer compares and contrasts two or more things based on specific criteria. This type of essay is common in high school and college coursework, and it can cover any subject matter, from simple topics like comparing apples and oranges to complex issues like comparing different theories of economics.
Before we delve into the steps, it’s important to understand that writing a Comparison and Contrast Essay requires critical thinking and a clear understanding of both the subjects being compared.
The first step in writing a Comparison and Contrast Essay is to choose two subjects that have similarities and differences. These could be two characters in a novel, two different novels, two historical periods, or even two scientific theories.
The next step is to develop a thesis. A thesis is a statement that expresses the main idea of your essay. It should clearly state what you are comparing and contrasting and why it is important.
Organizing your essay is crucial for clarity. There are two ways to structure a Comparison and Contrast Essay: the block method and the point-by-point method. The block method presents all arguments related to your first subject, followed by your second subject. The point-by-point method, on the other hand, alternates arguments about the two items you are comparing and contrasting.
Start with an engaging essay hook to grab your reader’s attention. Then, present your thesis and proceed to write the body of your essay, using metaphors and other literary devices to make your points more compelling. Finally, conclude your essay by summarizing your main points and restating your thesis.
The purpose of a Comparison and Contrast Essay is to analyze the differences and/or similarities of two distinct subjects. It helps readers understand the subjects better when they are compared to each other.
While both types of essays require critical thinking and a clear thesis, an Argument Essay presents an argument and supports it with evidence, while a Comparison and Contrast Essay explores the similarities and differences between two or more subjects.
Yes, you can. A Collage Essay is a creative way to present information, and incorporating a Comparison and Contrast Essay can add depth and complexity to your collage.
Writing a Comparison and Contrast Essay can be a challenging task, but with the right approach and understanding, it can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can create a compelling and insightful essay. Remember, practice makes perfect, so don’t hesitate to explore the 29+ Comparison and Contrast Essay Examples in Google Docs, Word, PDF, and other 10+ Comparative Analysis Essay Examples to hone your skills.
Text prompt
Write a comparison contrast essay on living in the city versus the countryside.
Compare and contrast in an essay the differences between summer and winter vacations.
Donald J. Trump and his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, campaigned in the same Atlanta arena where Kamala Harris held an event this week. She is expected to announce her running mate by Tuesday.
Neil Vigdor
Former President Donald J. Trump suggested without evidence on Saturday that Georgia’s Republican governor was hampering his efforts to win the battleground state in November, a claim that carried echoes of Mr. Trump’s attempt to overturn his defeat to President Biden there in 2020.
“In my opinion, they want us to lose,” Mr. Trump said, accusing the state’s governor, Brian Kemp, and its secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, who is also a Republican, of being disloyal and trying to make life difficult for him.
At a rally at the Georgia State University Convocation Center in Atlanta, in a speech that lasted more than 90 minutes and that was peppered with grievances about his loss four years ago, Mr. Trump falsely claimed, “I won this state twice,” referring to the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Mr. Trump lost to Mr. Biden by roughly 12,000 votes in Georgia in 2020. Last year, the former president was indicted by an Atlanta grand jury on charges related to his efforts to subvert the results of that election in that state. On Saturday, he complained that he might have avoided legal jeopardy if Mr. Kemp and Mr. Raffensperger had cooperated with his attempts to reverse the 2020 results.
Mr. Trump added that he thought Georgia had slipped under Mr. Kemp’s leadership. “The state has gone to hell,” he said.
Mr. Kemp, who indicated in June that he had not voted for Mr. Trump in the Republican primary this year, said on X that his focus is “on winning this November” and “not engaging in petty personal insults, attacking fellow Republicans, or dwelling on the past.”
“You should do the same, Mr. President, and leave my family out of it,” he said, sharing a social media message that Mr. Trump had posted earlier Saturday in which he jabbed at Mr. Kemp and Mr. Kemp’s wife.
Mr. Raffensperger shared a screenshot of the same post from Mr. Trump and said : “History has taught us this type of message doesn’t sell well here in Georgia, sir.”
Mr. Trump held his rally in Atlanta in the same arena where his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, held a rally earlier in the week. Both candidates filled the complex, which holds 8,000 people, though Mr. Trump, who has long bragged about his ability to draw overflow crowds, questioned whether Ms. Harris’s supporters had in fact come to hear the hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion, who performed at that event.
Mr. Trump recalled that Bruce Springsteen had performed at a rally for Hillary Clinton in 2016 . “I’m not a huge fan,” he said of Mr. Springsteen. “I have a bad trait. I only like people that like me.”
Mr. Trump, who was preceded onstage by his running mate, Senator JD Vance, repeatedly leveled personal attacks against Ms. Harris. He mocked the pronunciation of her first name, insulted her intelligence and communication skills, and called her a “radical left freak.”
“Kamala,” Mr. Trump said, enunciating with derision the syllables of her name. “You know there’s about 19 different ways of saying it. She only likes three.”
The Harris campaign provided a statement on Saturday night from Geoff Duncan, a Republican who was the lieutenant governor of Georgia during the 2020 election, denouncing Mr. Trump.
“Tonight, we heard a particularly unhinged, angry version of the same Donald Trump that Georgia rejected in 2020,” said Mr. Duncan, who has endorsed Ms. Harris.
Mr. Trump, who has been criticized for his past praise of dictators and authoritarian leaders, also suggested that Russia had managed to get the better end of a major prisoner swap with the Biden administration this week, which resulted in the release of the Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and the security contractor Paul Whelan.
“I’d like to congratulate Vladimir Putin for having made yet another great deal,” Mr. Trump said of the Russian president.
He added: “Boy, we make some horrible, horrible deals.”
Jonathan Weisman and Reid J. Epstein
Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with top candidates to serve as her vice president on Sunday, closing out her search for a running mate with a test of whether she and her potential new partner click.
At least three leading candidates — Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania — are scheduled to meet with Ms. Harris on Sunday at her residence at the Naval Observatory, in Washington, according to several people briefed on the plans who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private meetings.
It was unclear whether other potential candidates — including Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — were also on the schedule, or if they had already met with Ms. Harris.
The in-person meeting, described as a “chemistry test,” is a final step in the search, but one that Ms. Harris is expected to put considerable stock in. Aides and associates have said that she often prioritizes personal rapport with her staff and advisers.
Ms. Harris is also searching for a running mate who will help her win. Among the finalists are two popular state leaders from battleground states, Mr. Kelly and Mr. Shapiro, and several politicians with a record of appealing to moderates and voters in Republican areas. Ms. Harris, a California Democrat, has scant experience winning over Republicans.
The assets and liabilities of the three candidates on her schedule on Sunday vary. Mr. Kelly is a swing-state senator with an impressive résumé and moderate positions on immigration that might help neutralize a problematic issue for Democrats. Mr. Shapiro is broadly popular in Pennsylvania, arguably a must-win state. But he has faced criticism from the left, especially from pro-Palestinian activists, over his support for Israel and his handling of college protests over the war in Gaza.
Mr. Walz is a fairly new face, even to most Democrats, but he has recently become a favorite among progressives who relish his folksy takedowns of former President Donald J. Trump on cable news. Minnesota, however, is unlikely to be critical to Ms. Harris’s path to the White House.
Ms. Harris’s search has been unusually accelerated. It began in earnest just two weeks ago, shortly after President Biden withdrew from the race and endorsed her to replace him. The vetting — a deep investigation of the candidates’ personal, financial and political lives — was completed by Covington & Burling, a Washington law firm, on Thursday.
Finalists for the job were briefed by Harris campaign advisers about whatever information was found — or not found — by the firm, according to a person close to one of the finalists. They will be told either Monday night or Tuesday morning whether they were picked.
The Harris campaign has said it will announce its choice before she and her new running mate start a cross-country tour with a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
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Donald J. Trump just wrapped up his remarks at a rally in Atlanta, where he repeatedly attacked Vice President Kamala Harris over immigration, crime and inflation in a meandering speech that lasted more than 90 minutes.
At his rally in Georgia, a state he won in 2016 but lost to President Biden in 2020, former President Donald J. Trump is relitigating his defeat in the last election. “I won this state twice,” he falsely claimed. Trump also attacked Georgia’s governor, Brian Kemp, and its secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, two Republicans who defied his bid to overturn his defeat. He suggested, without evidence, that they were making life difficult for him in the 2024 election. “In my opinion, they want us to lose.”
Ken Bensinger and Jim Rutenberg
Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, said on Saturday that he had an extramarital affair during his first marriage, years before he met Ms. Harris.
The acknowledgment, which was released in a statement, came hours after a British tabloid reported that Mr. Emhoff had a previously undisclosed relationship with a teacher who worked at the elementary school his children attended in Culver City, Calif., approximately 15 years ago.
At the time, Mr. Emhoff, an entertainment lawyer, was married to Kerstin Emhoff, a film producer, with whom he had two children. The couple filed for divorce in 2009. Mr. Emhoff met Ms. Harris in 2013, and they married the following year.
“During my first marriage, Kerstin and I went through some tough times on account of my actions,” Mr. Emhoff said in the statement. “I took responsibility, and in the years since, we worked through things as a family and have come out stronger on the other side.”
The Biden campaign was aware of the affair before it decided to tap Ms. Harris as vice president in 2020, according to a person familiar with the vetting process, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In addition, this person said that Ms. Harris knew of the affair before she married Mr. Emhoff in 2014.
According to an article published by The Daily Mail on Saturday, Mr. Emhoff had the relationship with a woman who at the time worked as a teacher at The Willows Community School, a private school in west Los Angeles.
The woman, who now lives on Long Island, did not respond to messages seeking comment.
In the years since their divorce, Mr. Emhoff and his ex-wife have frequently referred to each other as friends, and they have said they have worked to raise their children with Ms. Harris , whom they call a “co-parent.”
Ms. Emhoff also has lately defended Ms. Harris. After Senator JD Vance, Republican of Ohio, was named the vice-presidential nominee, critics began resurfacing remarks he made in 2021 claiming the country was run by “childless cat ladies,” including Ms. Harris. Ms. Emhoff called the attacks “baseless” and praised the vice president’s role in her family.
The former couple’s two children, now both adults, have also defended the vice president’s role in their upbringing. Ella Emhoff, in a social media post last week, wrote “how can you be ‘childless’ when you have cutie pie kids like Cole and I,” referring to herself and her brother.
In another statement on Saturday, Ms. Emhoff also addressed her husband’s affair, but stopped short of blaming it for their divorce.
“Doug and I decided to end our marriage for a variety of reasons, many years ago,” Ms. Emhoff said. “He is a great father to our kids, continues to be a great friend to me and I am really proud of the warm and supportive blended family Doug, Kamala and I have built together.”
Mr. Emhoff, who left his law practice when Ms. Harris was elected as President Biden’s vice president, has become an integral and prominent part of Ms. Harris’s political operation. On Friday he co-hosted a fund-raiser on Fire Island for the campaign, along with Chasten Buttigieg, the husband of Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, which the Democratic National Committee said had raised $321,000.
At his rally in Atlanta, Donald J. Trump returned to a favorite preoccupation of his campaign speeches: crowd size. He argued that his Democratic opponents, from Hillary Clinton in 2016 to Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024, needed celebrity headliners to fill arenas. He harkened back to the 2016 election when Bruce Springsteen performed at a rally for Clinton. “I’m not a huge fan,” Trump said of the Boss. He added: “I only like people that like me.”
Vice President Kamala Harris held a rally in this same arena on Tuesday, when roughly 10,000 people attended. The arena is filled again tonight, but Trump has repeatedly complained that officials with the complex would not allow in all of the people who had lined up to attend.
Jonathan Weisman
Abed Ayoub, a Palestinian-rights activist in Michigan, confirmed on Saturday that he was a finalist to be the Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein’s running mate. Al Jazeera reported that Ayoub, the executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, and two other Palestinian-rights activists, were the finalists, suggesting that Stein was determined to make it that much tougher for Vice President Kamala Harris to win battleground Michigan, which has a large Arab American population.
Former President Donald J. Trump, who has been criticized for his past praise of dictators and authoritarian leaders, suggested during his Atlanta rally that Russia got the better end of a major prisoner swap with the Biden administration this week that resulted in the release of the Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and the security contractor Paul Whelan. “I’d like to congratulate Vladimir Putin for having made yet another great deal,” Trump said of the Russian president. He added: “Boy, we make some horrible, horrible deals.”
Former President Donald J. Trump is taking the stage at a campaign rally in Atlanta, where he was introduced by his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio.
Shawn McCreesh
Senator JD Vance of Ohio is speaking here at the Trump rally in Atlanta. He says that when Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democrats make fun of him for being “weird,” it’s evidence of their elitist, sneering, condescending worldview — of a piece with Hillary Clinton’s “basket of deplorables” comment in 2016 and Barack Obama’s remark in 2008 about “bitter” working-class voters who “cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them.” The crowd gave Vance a thundering reception.
Reid J. Epstein
Gov. Tim Walz, Democrat of Minnesota and a contender to be Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate, has canceled a planned trip to New Hampshire on Sunday, his spokesman, Teddy Tschann, said. “The governor’s schedule has changed,” Tschann said.
Former President Donald J. Trump will soon take the stage here at the Georgia State Convocation Center, the same arena in Atlanta where Kamala Harris held a packed rally on Tuesday. It’s totally filled for Trump, too, but the crowd is overwhelmingly white, except in one spot — the section directly behind the stage that is in full view of the broadcast cameras. Representatives Mike Collins and Marjorie Taylor Greene are here as warm-up acts. “Kamala Harris is like the Stacey Abrams of California,” Collins told the crowd, referring to the voting-rights activist who twice lost the governor's race. “Georgia didn’t want Stacey, and we don’t want Kamala.”
Ahead of his rally in Atlanta on Saturday, former President Donald J. Trump renewed his grievances with two Georgia elected officials, both Republicans, who rejected his bid to overturn his election defeat in the battleground state in 2020. In a social media post, he called on Brad Raffensperger, the secretary of state, to “do his job,” and he amplified his false claims about election fraud. Trump also attacked the governor, Brian Kemp: “His Crime Rate in Georgia is terrible, his Crime Rate in Atlanta is the worst, and his Economy is average.”
A campaign official for Vice President Kamala Harris accused Donald J. Trump on Saturday of scheming up a Sept. 4 debate on Fox News to avoid a debate scheduled for six days later on ABC News that Trump had committed to before President Biden dropped out of the race. “We’re happy to discuss further debates after the one both campaigns have already agreed to,” Michael Tyler, the Harris campaign’s communications director, said. “Mr. Anytime, Anywhere, Anyplace should have no problem with that unless he’s too scared to show up on the 10th.”
Nicholas Nehamas
As the Harris campaign brings on new top-level aides , it is also hiring staff members in battleground states. In the next two weeks, the campaign will add 150 people to its staff in the blue wall states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and “more than double our staff in Arizona and North Carolina,” according to a memo from Dan Kanninen, the campaign’s battleground states director. The memo says that the campaign currently has more than 1,400 staff members across the swing states.
Neil Vigdor Maggie Haberman and Simon J. Levien
Follow live updates on the 2024 election here.
Former President Donald J. Trump declared late on Friday that he was dropping out of an ABC News debate scheduled for Sept. 10 and presented a counterproposal to Vice President Kamala Harris, his presumptive opponent, to face off on Fox News six days earlier.
The change, which Mr. Trump announced on his social media site, Truth Social, raised objections from the Harris campaign and appeared to throw a potential showdown between the rivals into question.
A campaign official for Ms. Harris on Saturday accused Mr. Trump of scheming up the Fox News debate to distract from reneging on his commitment to the ABC debate. Mr. Trump had agreed to that debate in May, before President Biden dropped out of the race and before Mr. Biden’s calamitous performance in a CNN debate on June 27.
“Donald Trump is running scared and trying to back out of the debate he already agreed to and running straight to Fox News to bail him out,” Michael Tyler, the communications director for the Harris campaign, said in a statement. “He needs to stop playing games and show up to the debate he already committed to on Sept 10.”
Mr. Tyler said that the Harris campaign was open to discussing further debates if Mr. Trump honored his commitment to the ABC debate.
“Mr. Anytime, Anywhere, Anyplace should have no problem with that unless he’s too scared to show up on the 10th,” he said.
A spokesman for ABC News would not say whether the network would go ahead with its debate and give time only to Ms. Harris. In a post on X on Saturday, Ms. Harris said: “I’ll be there on September 10th, like he agreed to. I hope to see him there.”
A spokesman for the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Saturday. Representatives for Fox News did not respond to questions.
Mr. Trump has repeatedly railed against ABC News, which he is suing for defamation, a case that a federal judge in Florida recently allowed to move forward . He has attacked George Stephanopoulos, the host of “This Week” on ABC, who did the first television interview with Mr. Biden after his debate performance. He also turned combative toward Rachel Scott of ABC News during a question-and-answer session on Wednesday at a convention of Black journalists in Chicago.
Mr. Trump has appeared to be struggling to find his footing since Mr. Biden left the race, despite the fact that Democrats had been increasingly calling for such a change since the president’s debate performance.
He has tested out a series of nicknames against Ms. Harris and has made clear he would rather attack her personally and focus the public discussion on her race — Ms. Harris’s father was born in Jamaica and her mother in India — than attempt to tie her to the Biden administration’s record or her own record as a prosecutor in California.
Mr. Trump, who spent nearly 16 months getting nonstop attention since he was first criminally indicted in March 2023, has also struggled to try to inject himself back into the headlines at a moment when Ms. Harris is enjoying a political honeymoon. By canceling the ABC debate, Mr. Trump has put himself back in the news cycle.
According to Mr. Trump’s post on his social media site, the Fox News debate would take place on Sept. 4 at a to-be-determined location in Pennsylvania, one of the most consequential battleground states. The network’s anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum would moderate.
Mr. Trump said on social media that the Fox News debate would have a live audience; the previous debate between him and Mr. Biden was hosted by CNN in an empty venue. Though both campaigns agreed to the format of the first debate, Mr. Trump had bemoaned the lack of a crowd.
He added that the rules would be similar to the CNN debate, though he did not specify which rules. The candidates’ microphones in the June debate were muted when it was not their turn to speak to prevent interruptions.
Mr. Trump also said that he was “totally prepared to accept” Ms. Harris as the Democrats’ new candidate. Since her campaign suddenly took shape after Mr. Biden dropped out of the race about two weeks ago, Mr. Trump has characterized her ascendancy as a “coup” within the Democratic Party. In his debate announcement, the former president complained about the shake-up.
“I spent Hundreds of Millions of Dollars, Time, and Effort fighting Joe, and when I won the Debate, they threw a new Candidate into the ring,” Mr. Trump said on his social media site on Friday, adding that he hoped to tie Ms. Harris to Mr. Biden’s policies.
The Sept. 4 date is close to the start of some states’ early voting windows and long after Ms. Harris has clinched the nomination from her party. (The Democratic National Committee said on Friday that she had already won enough delegates in a virtual roll call vote to secure the party’s nomination.)
The first presidential debate between Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump had a seismic impact on the race. Mr. Biden gave a halting performance, in contrast to Mr. Trump, who spoke comparatively vigorously while repeatedly advancing falsehoods.
Mr. Biden’s garbled responses supercharged concerns among his Democratic colleagues about his age and health, as well as his ability to beat Mr. Trump in the general election. After several weeks of declining poll numbers and mounting pressure from key allies, Mr. Biden announced on July 21 that he would withdraw from the race.
Since then, Ms. Harris has challenged Mr. Trump to debate her and criticized his reluctance to commit to a date. As recently as Friday morning, in an interview with Fox Business, he was refusing to say whether he would debate Ms. Harris.
After the president dropped out, Ms. Harris said she would be willing to debate in Mr. Biden’s place, but Mr. Trump was noncommittal.
“Well Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage,” Ms. Harris said at her rally in Atlanta on Tuesday. “Because as the saying goes, ‘If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face.’”
Gov. Josh Shapiro, Democrat of Pennsylvania, wrote in his college newspaper three decades ago that Palestinians were “too battle-minded” to achieve a two-state solution in the Middle East, prompting criticism as Vice President Kamala Harris considers him to be her running mate.
Mr. Shapiro, 51, has embraced his Jewish identity and been one of the Democratic Party’s staunchest defenders of Israel at a moment when the party is splintered over the war in Gaza.
But he says his views have evolved since publishing an opinion essay as a college student at the University of Rochester in New York, when he wrote that Palestinians were incapable of establishing their own homeland and making it successful, even with help from Israel and the United States.
“They are too battle-minded to be able to establish a peaceful homeland of their own,” he wrote in the essay, published in the Sept. 23, 1993, edition of The Campus Times , the student newspaper. “They will grow tired of fighting amongst themselves and will turn outside against Israel.”
Mr. Shapiro, who was 20 at the time, noted in his essay that he had spent five months studying in Israel and had volunteered in the Israeli Army.
“The only way the ‘peace plan’ will be successful is if the Palestinians do not ruin it,” Mr. Shapiro wrote, adding, “Palestinians will not coexist peacefully.”
During a news conference on Friday at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, the nation’s first historically Black college or university, Mr. Shapiro tried to distance himself from those remarks, which were first reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer .
“Something I wrote when I was 20, is that what you’re talking about?” Mr. Shapiro told a reporter who asked him about it. “I was 20.”
Mr. Shapiro said he had been in favor of a two-state solution, with “Israelis and Palestinians living peacefully side by side” long before the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that started the war in Gaza.
“It is my hope that we can see a day where peace will reign in the Middle East,” he said, “where there will be a two-state solution, where all leaders involved in the conversations will respect the other side and show a willingness to make the hard choices to find peace.”
Mr. Shapiro’s explanation did not satisfy the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which later on Friday called on him to apologize.
“We are deeply disturbed by the racist, anti-Palestinian views that Governor Shapiro expressed in this article,” Ahmet Tekelioglu, the group’s executive director said in a statement. “We are also concerned by his failure to clearly apologize for those hateful comments, especially given how quickly and harshly he has targeted college students protesting the Gaza genocide for their speech.”
In regards to Mr. Shapiro’s having written that he had volunteered in the Israeli army, a spokesman for Mr. Shapiro, Manuel Bonder, said in a statement: “While he was in high school, Josh Shapiro was required to do a service project, which he and several classmates completed through a program that took them to a kibbutz in Israel where he worked on a farm and at a fishery. The program also included volunteering on service projects on an Israeli army base. At no time was he engaged in any military activities.”
Mr. Shapiro has been one of the most vocal party leaders to condemn the documented rise of antisemitism since the Hamas-led attack on Israel. When he was previously asked if he considered himself a Zionist, he said that he did.
He has also not shied away from criticizing college administrators over their response to campus antisemitism, including at the University of Pennsylvania.
If Ms. Harris chooses Mr. Shapiro to be her running mate, he will become only the second Jewish vice-presidential nominee on a major-party ticket. The first was Joseph I. Lieberman, the former Connecticut senator who died in March . He ran with Al Gore in 2000.
Jon Hurdle and Katie Glueck contributed reporting.
Eduardo Medina
Reporting from Lucama, N.C.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson of North Carolina, the Republican nominee for governor, released a new ad on Friday that sought to moderate his opposition to abortion, saying that he supports the current state law, which generally bans the procedure after 12 weeks of pregnancy.
His campaign had previously said that he wanted a so-called heartbeat law, which would ban the procedure after about six weeks of pregnancy, when many women have yet to realize they are pregnant.
Mr. Robinson’s softened stance was included in an ad that focused on the story of how his wife, Yolanda Hill Robinson, had an abortion in 1989 — a decision that he said “was like this solid pain between us that we never spoke of.” The couple had previously disclosed the abortion in a Facebook video in 2022.
The ad appeared to be an attempt by Mr. Robinson’s campaign to blunt the criticism he has received for his past comments on the issue and to get ahead of future attacks. One of the first ads released by his Democratic opponent, Josh Stein, the attorney general of North Carolina, featured a compilation of clips showing Mr. Robinson discussing his restrictive views on abortion.
“An abortion in this country is not about protecting the lives of mothers,” Mr. Robinson says in one clip. “It’s about killing a child because you weren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down.”
Mr. Stein’s campaign has accused Mr. Robinson of hiding his true intentions to seek a stricter abortion ban if elected, pointing to some of his past comments, such as when he said in February: “We’ve got it down to 12 weeks. The next goal is to get it down to six, and then just keep moving from there.”
Abortion is a central issue in North Carolina’s race for governor, which is expected to be one of the most expensive and consequential elections in the country, and one that could influence the presidential race. Republicans have rarely held the governor’s mansion in Raleigh over the past century, and recent polls show that the race is tight this year. Still, a Democratic presidential candidate has not won the state since Barack Obama in 2008.
The governor’s race also has been viewed as a Rorschach test for the swing state, where the current Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, is term-limited. Will voters go with a moderate Democrat in Mr. Stein, or veer to the right with Mr. Robinson?
With less than 100 days before the election, Mr. Robinson’s ad underscored how some Republicans have taken a more cautious approach when discussing abortion since the repeal of Roe v. Wade, which energized Democrats in the 2022 midterms. Despite the anti-abortion movement’s longtime support for a national ban, Republican former President Donald J. Trump has said that abortion restrictions should be left to the states.
In North Carolina and elsewhere, Democrats have pushed to make abortion rights a focal point, with Mr. Stein repeatedly bringing up Mr. Robinson's comments in stump speeches. Republicans have sought to tie Mr. Stein to President Biden and portray him as an out-of-touch extreme liberal.
Mr. Stein has said he supports a framework for abortion based on Roe v. Wade, which generally allowed the procedure through the point of viability, or roughly between 24 and 26 weeks.
In his ad on Friday, Mr. Robinson specified that he supports the current 12-week ban, which includes exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
“When I’m governor, mothers in need will be supported,” Mr. Robinson said.
Morgan Hopkins, a spokeswoman for Mr. Stein’s campaign, said in a statement that Mr. Robinson “has resorted to running from his record and misleading voters.”
“If North Carolinians want to know where Mark Robinson really stands on abortion, they should listen to every other comment he’s made on the issue before today,” Ms. Hopkins said.
Mr. Robinson, a fiery orator who has been bolstered by the MAGA faction of his base, has drawn criticism in the past for incendiary comments perceived as antisemitic, hateful and conspiratorial.
In recent months, Mr. Robinson has attempted to moderate his tone in public speeches and focused more of his campaign on the economy, though he still discusses cultural issues, such as denouncing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and transgender women in sports.
Noam Scheiber Kate Kelly and Kenneth P. Vogel
Vice President Kamala Harris’s brother-in-law, Tony West, will go on leave as Uber’s chief legal officer later this month to take an unofficial role in her presidential campaign.
Mr. West, a Stanford-trained lawyer and former Justice Department official, has informally advised Ms. Harris throughout her political career and has been by her side frequently since President Biden announced that he would not seek re-election.
The company revealed the change in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday afternoon.
In an email to Uber employees on Friday, Mr. West wrote that while he loved his job at the company, “I have always believed family comes first. So I’ve decided to dedicate myself full-time to supporting my family and my sister-in-law on the campaign trail.” Mr. West is married to Ms. Harris’s sister, Maya.
Beginning Aug. 17, he said, he will work as a “family-member surrogate” for the vice president, sharing the perspective of someone who has long been close to her, but will not have a formal campaign position. He said he intended to return to Uber after the presidential election and stressed that Uber would continue to take no position on the election.
Mr. West was general counsel of PepsiCo before joining Uber in 2017. He served in the Justice Department in the Clinton and Obama administrations and was the department’s third-ranking official from 2012 to 2014.
Some in the labor movement have expressed concerns about Mr. West’s ties to Ms. Harris in light of his role at Uber, which in 2020 helped enact a California ballot measure that exempted its drivers from a state law that would have probably classified them as employees.
As a result of the measure, which was recently upheld by the California Supreme Court, Uber drivers and other gig workers in the state do not benefit from certain legal protections, like state rules governing the minimum wage and overtime. The measure provided some benefits , like a separate wage floor and health care subsidies.
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Learn the essential steps and tips on how to write a compelling comparison essay that effectively compares and contrasts two or more subjects to help you excel in your academic writing.
Learn how to write a compelling compare and contrast essay with our step-by-step guide, including tips for structuring and organizing your arguments effectively.
Comparing and contrasting is also used in all kinds of academic contexts where it's not explicitly prompted. For example, a literature review involves comparing and contrasting different studies on your topic, and an argumentative essay may involve weighing up the pros and cons of different arguments.
Learn how to effectively structure and write compare and contrast essays to showcase similarities and differences between two or more subjects, enhancing your analytical skills and essay-writing proficiency.
Learn how to write a compare and contrast essay with clear steps and examples. Find out how to analyze two subjects and make a strong argument.
Compare and contrast essays examine topics from multiple viewpoints. This kind of essay, often assigned in middle school and high school, teaches students about the analytical writing process and prepares them for more advanced forms of academic writing. Compare and contrast essays are relatively easy to write if you follow a simple step-by-step approach.
An academic compare and contrast essay looks at two or more subjects, ideas, people, or objects, compares their likeness, and contrasts their differences. It's an informative essay that provides insights on what is similar and different between the two items. Depending on the essay's instructions, you can focus solely on comparing or ...
Here are some important tips to keep in mind when writing your compare and contrast essay: Ensure you are comparing or contrasting the same criteria between each subject. For example, it wouldn't make sense to compare the line length of a Shakespearean sonnet with the rhyme scheme of a Petrarchan sonnet, as these are two separate categories.
How do you write a good compare and contrast essay? In this post, we offer a few tips to help you with your academic writing.
The key to a good compare-and-contrast essay is to choose two or more subjects that connect in a meaningful way. Comparison and contrast is simply telling how two things are alike or different. The compare-and-contrast essay starts with a thesis that clearly states the two subjects that are to be compared, contrasted, or both. The thesis should focus on comparing, contrasting, or both.
Compare and contrast essays are often assigned to students because they promote critical thinking, analytical reasoning and organized writing. A compare and contrast essay should look at a subject in a new way, with fresh insight, using the similarities and the differences between two topics or two perspectives on one topic.
How to Start a Compare and Contrast Essay: Brainstorm Similarities and Differences Now that you know what is compare and contrast essay and are set with your topic, the first thing you should do is grab a piece of paper and make a list with two columns: similarities and differences. Jot down key things first, the most striking ones. Then try to look at the subjects from a different angle ...
The order in which you introduce your points in your introduction is the order in which you should introduce them in your essay, so it's good to have the framework completed before beginning. Knowing how to start a compare and contrast essay is the first step to writing an interesting essay that will keep readers engaged all the way to the end.
Introduction In your career as a student, you'll encounter many different kinds of writing assignments, each with its own requirements. One of the most common is the comparison/contrast essay, in which you focus on the ways in which certain things or ideas—usually two of them—are similar to (this is the comparison) and/or different from (this is the contrast) one another. By assigning ...
A compare and contrast paper discusses the similarities and differences between two or more topics. The paper should contain an introduction with a thesis statement, a body where the comparisons and contrasts are discussed, and a conclusion.
Build your outline of compare and contrast essay: You can start to compare and contrast essay outline with your data table. Check the required length of your paper and start building a paragraph structure that will meet any bullet points and suffice the word count.
Now, it would be great if we could deal with each and every essay expectations. That would make for a rather unwieldy blog post. So, instead, here we're going to look at one of the most popular forms, which is the compare and contrast essay.
Write the perfect compare and contrast essay with the help of our guide which contains relevant topics, essay outlines, and compare and contrast essay examples.
Before you begin to draft a compare and contrast essay, you should brainstorm by creating a Venn diagram or a chart to list the pros and cons of each subject you are comparing to another. The first paragraph of your compare and contrast essay should contain references to both sides of your comparison. This paragraph should end with a thesis ...
Not sure how to start a compare and contrast essay? Learn how to shape the the hook, background, and thesis of your intro to get started on the right foot.
One of the most crucial elements of a compare and contrast essay is a strong thesis statement. Your thesis should clearly outline the main point of your essay and the specific aspects you will be comparing or contrasting.
Here they are explained below: 1. Essay Planning. First, I recommend using my compare and contrast worksheet, which acts like a Venn Diagram, walking you through the steps of comparing the similarities and differences of the concepts or items you're comparing. I recommend selecting 3-5 features that can be compared, as shown in the worksheet:
Explore the art of writing a Comparison and Contrast Essay with our step-by-step guide. Learn from 29+ examples available in Google Docs, Word, PDF, and enhance your writing skills.
Some church leaders and politicians have condemned the performance from the opening ceremony for mocking Christianity. Art historians are divided.
The Harris campaign has said it will announce its choice before she and her new running mate start a cross-country tour with a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday. ... in contrast to Mr. Trump, who ...