Compare and Contrast Assignment | Essay Help Services

MLA formats, double space and i will upload guidences and instruction from my professor . this esssay for ESL class level. dont use strong words

Compare and Contrast two arguments

In your third essay, you will use the same Compare and Contrast structure you are familiar with from your previous essay to show how two arguments are similar/different.  The goal is 5 pages of analysis from you. The only material you’ll need to use to complete this essay are the following sources which I’ve also posted as copies in Blackboard as PDF files if you prefer (these have page numbers):

Works Cited

King, Martin Luther. “Letter from Birmingham Jail.’ University of Pennsylvania Africa online archive. 1963. www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html

Landrieu, Mitch. ‘Speech.’ www.time.com/4790674/mitch-landrieu-new-orleans-confederate-monuments-speech/

Please remember: your task is to show how these two arguments are similar or different.

Common mistakes that students make with this essay are the following:

1. Some students summarize each reading but don’t write any paragraphs that compare the two arguments to show how they are similar or how they are different. A summary isn’t what you’re being asked to do, so any essay that just summarizes doesn’t meet the goal of the writing prompt.
2. Some students address the arguments that each writer makes, explaining why or why not they make good arguments. This is a mistake because these students aren’t comparing or contrasting the two argument. Instead they’re engaging with the arguments and writing responses to those arguments.  This would be a correct thing to do in ENG 102 because that class deals with making arguments, but in ENG 101 you’re writing comparisons/contrasts essays.  In our case to show how two arguments are similar or how two arguments are different.
3. Some students find a paragraph or essay online and copy it into their own paper. This is plagiarism, and automatically fails the class.  Why do some people do this? Because they don’t read the readings carefully or don’t try to understand how the two readings are structured.

Some things to do to get started on understanding how these two writers structure their essays so as to make an argument.

First, understand what an argument is.  There are different kinds of arguments, some of which you already know (Mr. Google will help you).  For example, a definition argument.   A definition argument is one which seeks to define an idea/concept.  A good example of a definition argument is one that tries to define ‘Freedom’. If you think about American history, freedom hasn’t been defined consistently through time. For example, until 1920s, women couldn’t vote, so didn’t have the same freedom as men; prior to the Civil War, some people weren’t free whereas others were.  Were they all Americans? Did they all experience /view freedom in the same way?  When we look at this very simple example, we can see that in different periods, Americans have defined /argued that Freedom means different things.  We obviously wouldn’t understand Freedom today the same way George Washington (a slave owner) did.  So, freedom isn’t a fixed idea, but instead is one that changes through time and requires us to define/redefine using evidence to support our argument.   People can and do write arguments exploring what Freedom means / doesn’t mean today.  That’s a definition argument.  Remember though – you’re not writing an argument -you showing how 2 arguments are similar or different! You don’t want to say something like ‘ ML and MLK both try to define justice’ – instead you would say “Both ML and MLK incorporate definition arguments into their essays.  For example, on page X of his letter, Martin Luther King defines a just law vs an unjust law.  He writes…..”  Similarly, ML writes,’……’

Use google to find different kinds of arguments and make yourself a short list.

Once you understand that there are different kinds of argument, you’re in a better position to understand how to begin comparing the two arguments I’ve given you.  To do that, you need a good understanding of the different rhetorical strategies or modes that writers use. If you now understand Logos, Ethos, and Pathos, you can begin to look how these rhetorical strategies are employed by Martin Luther King and Mitch Landrieu.    A good exercise is to take Logos and find examples where MLK and ML both use logos.  Then you can write a topic sentence that says something like “Both writers use Logos to persuade their audiences.”  The rest of the paragraph would provide evidence of how MLK uses logos, (quoted or paraphrase with appropriate page number), and ML uses logos.  In this way you can show that the two writers are similar because they both use logos.

One of the difficulties you will face is that the Letter from Birmingham Jail is a very complex article.  It has a lot references you might or might not recognize (look them up if you don’t).  There are references to events and processes that were happening in the 1950/1960s relating to segregation and civil rights, so if you’re not well aware of this part of American history do some research (youtube is useful).  There are references to Old Testament stories (why?) that you might not recognize or understand. When  you encounter something like that you have to pose a question: for example, ‘Why does MLK tell the story of Shadrak, Mishak, Abednego?  To answer that question, you have to understand American history, and ways of talking about slavery during slavery times.  For example, think how the Jews were carried into Slavery by the Babylons, then consider who in America was carried into slavery?  So, a song about three Jewish men carried into slavery in Babylon who refused to obey the law can be understood as a metaphor for understanding why African Americans shouldn’t obey the segregation laws of 1950s/1960.  So MLK uses a form of metaphor to help persuade his audience that his argument is correct.

When you ask yourself questions about why something appears in the text, you’ll deepen your understanding of how these two writers structured their arguments.  Why should you check these references out?  Because to understand why these writers used these kind of references in their arguments, you need to understand the cultural context.

Just as you made a list of variables to compare/contrast your 2 careers (e.g. salary, education, work environment), you need to make a list of the variables that are used in the two arguments.  Obviously, three variables both writers use are Logos, Ethos and Pathos.  What are some others?  I can imagine some such as who the audience(2) are, the different types of historical references, the use of different types of figurative language,  the inclusion of quotations and paraphrases from other writers/thinkers.  If you can think of more, you can add more.

Once you have a list of variables, start a table:

Once you have constructed a table like this, ask the question: How do the writers compare or contrast for each variable? Are they similar or different?

This guidance is designed to help you.  You should ask me any questions if you don’t understand something.  The two readings are complex and require your commitment to fully understand them. They are both masterful arguments, and employ a wide range of strategies to convince their audiences that they are correct.  When you’ve completed this essay, you’ll be in good shape for your ENG 102 class- which is entirely focused on making arguments.