GNDR1000:

Introduction to Gender Studies (Dr. Sonja Boon)

GNDR1000: Comparative Response Paper

Due: 14 March 2018 by 11:59 pm

From the syllabus: For this assignment, you will write a short essay (5 pages in Times New Roman, 12
point font; ca. 1250 words in length) that compares and contrasts two readings from the course
textbook. The reading pairings are available on D2L.
In your comparative response paper, you will:
1. briefly summarise the two readings (1 paragraph; 250 words total for both readings combined)
2. Identify three (3) themes common to both readings (even if the authors disagree on their
interpretation or relevance or…), and compare and contrast the readings in relation to these
themes. For example: “Author A and Author B both treat themes 1, 2, and 3. However, the way in
which they treat them is different. In the following essay I explore the similarities and differences
between the two readings.”
3. Write a coherent, thoughtful, and well-supported paper that addresses the themes you have
identified, drawing directly on the readings to support your arguments. The paper will be clearly
written, with close attention to matters of grammar and style. It will also be properly referenced
in MLA style.
4. Revise, edit and proofread your paper carefully before submission.
5. Save and submit your paper in .pdf format. I will not assess papers that have been submitted in
.doc, .docx or .odt format.

Possible Outline for your paper:
1. Thoughtful title (“Comparative Response Paper” is not an evocative or thoughtful title)
2. Introduction that lays out the main arguments you’ll be making with regard to comparison
and contrast. (this paragraph will probably include a phrase similar to: In this essay, I will
compare and contrast “Article X” by author A and “Article Y” by author B. In particular, I will
focus on points 1, 2, and 3, looking specifically at the ways that…. )
3. Summary paragraph that briefly summarizes the main thesis and arguments of both articles.
(because your paper is meant to be analytical rather than descriptive, this paragraph should
remain relatively short. Writing a tight, focused summary that introduces key arguments and
rationale for the readings is an art. Take your time to revise and make sure you’re not wasting
words here. The meat and potatoes of your essay is still to come…)
4. Comparison/Contrast Argument 1 with supporting materials drawn from the readings to make
your case (Because this essay asks you to compare and contrast between two readings, your
best bet is to organize this by theme/argument rather than by reading. This way you can
integrate insights from both readings into each analysis paragraph. For example: Both Author A
and Author B treat the topic of X, and in some ways their treatment is similar. Thus, for example,
both authors suggest that….., arguing that… As Author A writes….. Author B makes similar
claims, asserting that…. OR Author A and B take up similar themes – for example, they argue in
favour of …. – but they use different evidence to support their claims. Thus Author A suggests
that…. Author B, meanwhile, makes a different point, arguing that…. )
 GNDR1000: Introduction to Gender Studies (Dr. Sonja Boon)

5. Comparison/Contrast Argument 2 with supporting materials drawn from the readings to

make your case
6. Comparison/Contrast Argument 3 with supporting materials drawn from the readings to
make your case
7. Conclusion that brings all of this together again.
8. Works Cited List

How to go about this:
1. Find the annotation template. Use this to organize your readings: what is the citation in MLA
style? What are the main arguments and how does the author support them? Which quotes
stand out for you, or do you think are particularly interesting? How does this reading link with
any other required readings we’ve one this term.
2. Look at both of your annotations, and identify points of comparison and contrast.
3. Read the articles again, identifying any quotes or material that you think will be helpful in
allowing you to make your case for the comparison/contrast.
4. Start writing, preferably with at least a week to spare. This way you can leave it to brew on its
own for a while. This also might give those of you who are on campus time to visit the writing
centre and to revise and edit based on conversations you have there.
5. After letting it brew, come back to it and reread it carefully: do your arguments make sense,
or with a few days away do you notice gaps? Have you supported them well? Do the
arguments flow logically or do you need to reorganize them to make the impact stronger?
Can you improve your transitions? Have you sorted out the intricacies of MLA style? A few
days away is often necessary to allow you to identify both the strengths and weaknesses of
what you’ve written.
6. Sleep on it at least one more night before you do a final read to catch the last lingering bits.
7. Save as .pdf and upload to D2L.
8. Have a nap, or a beer, or whatever you usually do to celebrate!

I will be looking for a.) evidence that you have learned and understood the material you have read;
b.) evidence that you can integrate and synthesize material from a variety of sources; c.) evidence
that you are able to formulate and support clearly articulated arguments; d.) clear and concise
writing; e.) evidence that you have thought about the material and that you can relate it to the
themes in your paper; f.) a well, revised, error-free manuscript with proper citations and references in
MLA style; g) an essay that meets the required length guidelines; and finally, g.) a thoughtful title.
 GNDR1000: Introduction to Gender Studies (Dr. Sonja Boon)
Comparative Response Paper Checklist

Matters of Content

• Have I included a clear thesis statement that indicates my main arguments?

• Have I effectively and efficiently summarised the main points of each of my two articles? Is my
summary concise, thorough and coherent (ie no more than one paragraph for the two together)

• Do I develop my arguments fully, drawing on specific examples from my chosen articles to make
my case?

• In making my arguments, have I drawn on the central ideas in each of the articles I am
discussing?

• Have I explored both comparison and contrast (ie: they may treat the same three themes, but
they may treat them differently… or they may treat two themes similarly and one differently…
or…)

• Have I ensured that every word I write is meaningful, or are there paragraphs that circle around
an idea, but don't really say anything at all?

• Does my conclusion effectively draw together the ideas that I have developed in the course of
my paper? Does it tie up all loose ends?


Matters of Style

• Does my paper flow logically and coherently from the introduction through the various points of
discussion and into a conclusion? Have I revised it so that the arguments make sense in relation
to one another

• Have I written effective transitions between different sections of my paper?

• Have I avoided colloquialisms and generalizations?

• Have I double checked for run on sentences and sentence fragments?

• Have I proofread my paper for spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization, etc?

• Have I referenced everything - both direct quotes and paraphrased ideas – properly in MLA style
(using parenthetical citations with specific page numbers)? Have I included a complete Works
Cited list in MLA style?

• Finally, have I prefaced my paper with a carefully-considered title that reflects the content of my
paper? (ie “Comparative Response Paper” is not an appropriate title)