Dr. William Greenway
Youngstown State University

Comparison and Contrast of Two Articles

First write a summary (approximately 1 page) to explain the article (assume that your readers haven't read it). Be thorough, accurate, fair, and objective. Then critique the article (approximately 1-2 pages). Analyze the ideas and evaluate the argument for tone, soundness of logic, quality of evidence, and persuasiveness. Your critique doesn't necessarily have to address every point in the article, and it should discuss the positive as well as negative. And your critique must have a clear thesis (your point about the article).

• You must first choose two good articles on some aspect of the same subject. Then consider certain questions about these articles. What aspect/s of the subject are the authors most concerned with?
• Are they similar in their concerns or different? Do they consider causes or effects, reasons, possible remedies?
• What are their opinions of the problems being investigated? Similar? Different? Are they pro or con?
• What is their approach? Objective and rhetorical? Subjective and emotional? Is the article intended to be persuasive? Informative?
• Is the factual information in the articles the same, different, compatible, or conflicting?

Your next step is to consider what approach you are going to take in your paper and decide on a tentative thesis statement. For example, you might decide that your two sources disagree about fundamental issues and so you come up with "Although both writers are investigating whaling, John Smith and Jane Doe come to very different conclusions. Smith believes whaling must be stopped immediately and unilaterally; Doe urges a more moderate approach, suggesting remedies for abuses but allowing for some continuation of the industry." Or, if your sources share the same view of your subject and the same approach, you might synthesize the information in both articles. A possible thesis might be "As both John Smith and Jane Doe point out, there are powerful and urgent reasons to stop whaling at once."

Next, you should devise a working outline. Your introduction should provide an overview of both articles and announce your thesis. In the body of your paper, avoid a ping-pong approach of bouncing back and forth between the articles. But also avoid simply joining two summaries of the two articles. You should actively compare the approaches or information in the two articles. Then, in your conclusion, sum up your discoveries as a result of your close readings of both articles.

You must follow the conventions for quoting and documenting described in your handbook or the MLA Handbook, and include a Works Cited list at the end of your paper

E-mail your comments and suggestions to the YSU Grant Team (cardcat@bgnet.bgsu.edu).