Comparison-contrast is a common method of development that involves focusing on similarities and differences-or more likely on one or the other-in order to make a point.When a writer is comparing, he is pointing out the similarities that exist between subjects or items (such as persons, things, or ideas). When a writer is contrasting, he is pointing out the differences between subjects or items.Note: the word“comparison”, in a broader sense, covers the meaning of both comparison and contrast.Now read the two model essays below, and identify which is a comparison essay and which is a contrast essay.
Model Essay One
Who Is Happier: the Rich or the Poor?
A famous statement in The Declaration of Independencereads, “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.”Indeed, all people are born equal；however, as they grow, they separate into categories based on their wealth.Consequently, the lifestyles between the rich and the poor differ tremendously from each other in the way they spend their time, in the way they dream, and in the way they develop relationships.
To begin with, both a poor person and a rich person may have a lot of spare time, but they spend it differently.A very poor person is usually unemployed, so he either sits around the house doing nothing, or ends up walking on the street without a purpose because a purpose, more often than not, means spending money.A very rich person, on the other hand, may not work either, but he or she has a lot of money.So the world holds out its hands to the rich；money buys trips to the Bahamas, some expensive houses in California, and invitations to other rich people's places.
While money affects the way people spend their time, money also affects people's thoughts.Poor people are great dreamers.The combination of the abundance of free time and no means to satisfy even very modest needs stimulates daydreaming.Poor people dream of becoming rich or at least being well off.They dream about all those exotic places that the rich visit and all the gorgeous clothes that the rich buy.However, rich people do not dream as much.Their thoughts do not wander around the impossibility of achieving goals because there are almost no impossible goals for them.Instead, their thoughts focus on getting what they want and getting it fast.