Touchstone 2: Comparison/Contrast Essay

ASSIGNMENT: Draft a 3-4 page (approximately 700-1000 words) comparison/contrast essay in the informative mode. In addition, you must answer the "Think About Your Writing" questions, described below, beneath your essay.
A. Instructions

Begin by choosing a topic for your comparison/contrast essay. You are free to select your own topic, or you may use one of the sample topics listed below. However, you should choose a topic that you have knowledge of so that you have sufficient points of comparison or contrast to discuss in your essay. You will need to compare or contrast two or three primary points about the two subjects you choose to write about, resulting in an essay with either four or six body paragraphs, an introductory paragraph, and a conclusion.

In order to foster learning and growth, all essays you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any recycled work will be sent back with a 0, and you will be given one attempt to redo the touchstone.

Sample Topic Ideas:

• Compare or contrast two cities you’ve visited or that you’ve lived in
• Compare or contrast two members of your family
• Compare or contrast two sources of news 

Requirements

• Your draft must be 3-4 page (approximately 700-1000 words)
• Guidelines must be followed or submission will not be graded 
• Double-space your draft and use one-inch margins.
• Use an easily-readable 12-point font.
• All writing must be appropriate for an academic context.
• Your draft must be original and written for this assignment. 
• Plagiarism of any kind is strictly prohibited. 
• Your submission must include your name, the name of the course, the date, and the title of your draft.
• Your submission must include your answers to the “Think About Your Writing” questions 
• Submit a single file that contains all of the assignment components.
• Acceptable file formats include .doc and .docx.