Reading: Comparing Texts
Reading: Comparing Texts Revision
Reading: Comparing Texts
Comparing is when you think about what is same and what is different about things.
Make sure you are happy with the following topics before continuing:
- Reading: Why Do Writers Write?
- Reading: Text Types
- Reading: Detecting Language Techniques
- Reading: Presentational Features
- Reading: Key and Detailed Points
- Reading: Investigating Layout
- Reading: Fact or Opinion?
- Reading: Investigating Image
- Reading: Meaning
- Reading: Specialist Words
- Reading: Styles of Writing and Voice
What can we compare?
In your reading exam, you will need to be able to pick out the similarities and differences between texts.
This might be a difference of or similarity in:
- opinion,
- formality,
- or the information given.
Comparing texts is important as it allows you to gather more perspectives and information on a topic.
Considering these differences and similarities can also help you to spot bias, which is also a useful skill for daily and work life.
What can we compare?
The best way to find the similarities and differences is to read the texts in detail, and think about what the main points are for each.
You should also try to notice the opinions the writers have, and how they are similar or different.
Main points, ideas and opinions are the main things which you can compare.
However, you can also compare features such as the way the text is written.
This can be:
- persuasive language
- Â emotional language
- the rule of three
- alliteration
- or direct address to the reader
You can also compare the punctuation used, such as quotation marks or exclamation points.
What do I look out for?
There are a few different ways that you might be asked to compare texts in the exam.
- You might be asked directly to identify differences,
- similarities,
or
- quotes which demonstrate opposing opinions, ideas or facts.
However, in your exam, this request to compare may be written in a few different ways, and will not always be written clearly!
Instead, it might look like:
‘Compare Text A and Text B.‘
‘Identify two reasons the writers give for disagreeing with the policy change, one from Text A, and one from Text B.‘
‘Identify one opinion which is the same in both Text A and Text B.‘
‘Text A and Text B each discuss employment rates. Compare the details in each text to identify one similarity and one difference between them.‘
Often, the question will refer to both texts to hint that you need to include information about both, but as we can see above, this is not always crystal clear.
So, always remember to keep a sharp eye out for questions that may be asking you to compare!
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Okay, let’s try it out!
In both of these texts there are similarities and differences.
Can you spot them?
Similarities:
- Both of these texts are about a measles outbreak in ‘Redwood Day Nursery‘.
- Both of these texts say that the nursery has responded well to outbreaks in the past.
- Both of these texts are written from a personal, insider’s point of view.
- Both of these texts include emotional language.
Differences:
- Text A is a letter, whilst text B is a newspaper article.
- Text A includes direct address to the reader, whilst text B does not.
- Text B contains layout features including text in columns, an image, a heading and a subheading. Text A does not include these.
