COMPARING TEXTS the varying impacts of the writers’ methods on their audiences and how
Comparing texts involves looking at two different texts and analysing their
similarities and differences.
COMPARING TEXTS BY PURPOSE AND FORM
When comparing texts, it’s important to think about the purpose of each
text, what the author is trying to achieve, and the form that it is written in.
There are many forms of writing, including writing in:
An article A blog A letter A diary
A newspaper
When comparing texts and looking at the form of each text, it is also
important to think about the audience of each form. For example, a blog or
an article is usually written for anyone to see. They may have a specific
audience that they try to obtain, but anyone can read the article or blog.
Whereas, a letter or a diary are usually private and are only meant to be
seen by one person or a few at most.
Thinking about the audience is a great way to start your
comparison, as it helps you to think about the text from the author’s point
of view. For example, the author may be more honest in a diary, as it is
usually only written to be read by the author. Whereas, someone writing a
letter may be quite honest, but they may also miss a few things out that
they want to keep to themselves.
Another point to consider is the purpose of each text. Why is the
author writing this text? An author may write a text for many reasons,
including:
To entertain To inform To advise To persuade To argue
The text will alter in meaning depending on what the purpose of the text is.
For example, a text that is written to entertain people typically will be light-
hearted and pleasant to read. Whereas, a text that is written to inform
people of something is typically written in a formal way with a lot of facts.
Sometimes, however, the author may have more than one purpose, so
make sure you read the text carefully to figure out the whole purpose of it.
When comparing texts, you should consider what both texts have in
common with each other and what differences they have too. You may find
that a letter and an article are quite similar because the authors both use
persuasive techniques, even if they are using them for completely different
purposes.
Another example would be two different posters advertising for the same
event, but written for different ages. You can look at the two and see how
they are similar and how they are different. Do they use simpler language in
one? Do they both use persuasive techniques? Do they both contain the
same information but written in a different style?
Comparing texts by the writers' methods
A writer will use different methods to achieve the purpose of their text. The
form of the text also plays a huge part in the writer’s methods. When
comparing two texts, students should focus on how the writer’s methods
are different/similar and why this might be, referring back to the form and
purpose of the texts. For example, you might write about the tone of each
piece, whether the text is formal, informal, humorous, or serious.
You may also talk about the use of language within each text. You might
talk about the different word choices, or literary techniques such as
rhetorical questions and similes and metaphors.
Another key point to consider is the structure of both texts.
Are the sentences short and snappy, or are they long and informative? You
may also take note of how long the piece is compared to the other text.
One text may need to be longer to get the point across, whereas the other
may be able to do it in a short amount of sentences.
The different methods that writers use will have a certain impact on their
audiences. However, opinions may vary. This is a great time to talk about
they compare to each other.
A comparison of two texts should focus on HOW the writer’s methods are
similar and/or different. For example, you could focus on a writer’s use of:
PERSPECTIVE: first person, third person, use of personal pronouns
TONE, eg humorous, serious, satirical
LANGUAGE, eg word choice, literary techniques, rhetorical devices
STRUCTURE, eg order of ideas, repetition, sentence structure
LANGUAGE, eg formal, informal, colloquial, friendly
The method used will have an effect on the reader’s response: it’s
important to think about the impact on the reader when comparing texts.
This is also where you can share your opinion about a text. You are the
reader, so think about how the text is making you feel and respond.
Example
Read these two extracts that both focus on describing a dramatic event. One
is from a 21st century magazine article about a paramotoring accident and
the other is 19th century newspaper account of a ballooning accident.
Extract 1
Experience: I fell out of the Sky
I pulled the brake lines to increase the angle of the wing for extra life. But I
forgot that I had tightened them before take-off and made them far more
sensitive. I pulled too hard. That, combined with the eddies swirling from
the trees and building ahead, caused a break in the airflow under the
canopy. Instantly, it began to deflate.
I had just enough time to look up and see the thin material of my wing
falling towards me like an enormous bunch of useless laundry. I was
dropping like a stone.
Tumbling through the air with no way to stop is a sensation of utter
helplessness: a truly stomach churning moment where you know you’re not
going forwards or upwards; you’re just falling. There is no time to think.
One second became two, two became three. I closed my eyes. Wallop.
Magazine article,The Guardian Weekend, 2014
Extract 2
The injured aeronauts at Buxton
It was now the critical moment - two or three severe bumps were
inevitable, the wind blowing in angry gusts, and the car dashed through one
wall of about eighteen inches in thickness, making a clear breach, and
hurling the stones forward as if they had been pounded by the largest
Armstrong missile at present in use. Mr. Coxwell was full strain on the
upper valve, which is thirty inches in diameter, but still the mass bore
onwards, and a second clean breach was repeated in the next wall.
Away again with renewed vigour, and down for the third time, and once
again through another wall, and now the cry was raised by astounded
lookers-on, that two fields further lay the Deep Dale or gorge which would
surely prove fatal.
Buxton Newspaper article, 1861
Analysis
Here are some similarities and differences between the
two texts. In an exam you wouldn’t have to cover all of
these points.
Similarities
 Purpose - both are informing and entertaining the reader. They
are both about a similar topic, an airborne accident.
  Both use dramatic, emotive language to excite the reader. The
Buxton report uses the dramatic verbs “dashed” and “hurling”
whilst The Guardian article uses phrases like “utter helplessness”
and “stomach churning.”
 Both structure the last paragraph in the extract with a dramatic
phrase. In the news report “..surely prove fatal” and in the article
‘Wallop’.
 Both texts use similes to make the accidents more vivid for the
reader. The Buxton report uses “…as if they had been pounded by
the largest Armstrong missile…” and the paramotoring article uses
“…I was dropping like a stone…”
Differences
 Different form - extract 1 is a magazine article and extract 2 is a
news report.
 Headline in the Buxton report is informative rather than emotive –
the reader knows the men survived. The headline of the modern
article is intriguing for the reader – this underlines the astonishing
nature of the story.
 The Buxton report is written from the perspective of someone
observing the accident, so the reader is presented with the
emotions of the onlookers.The paramotoring article is written
from the perspective of the man involved in the accident, so the
reader is presented with his emotions.
 Lots of multi-clause sentences in the Buxton report to build a sense
of anticipation. In the paramotoring article, lots of single clause,
short sentences build the tension.
 In the Buxton report, the use of some present tense makes it seem
as if the incident is happening now. This makes it more dramatic
for the reader. The use of past tense in the modern article informs
the reader that the writer is recounting a memory – headline and
main text infer that he survived the accident.
 The informality of the word “Wallop” in the paramotoring article
is shocking and also perhaps creates an amusing tone for the
reader. The humour is also suggested by the simile, “like an
enormous bunch of useless laundry…” The contrast of this humour
with the serious subject matter makes the text very effective. The
tone in the Buxton report is more grave. The writer personifies the
wind, “..in angry gusts…”, to suggest the danger of the situation.
ASSIGNMENT
Extract A
Here is an extract from a cookery book published in 1855,
Soyer’s Shilling Cookery for the People. The writer, Alexis Soyer
describes a visit to a house in St Giles, a poor area of London.
Having but little confidence in what they would provide, I bought a
quarter of a pound of ground coffee, intending giving them a lesson in
how to make coffee. On my arrival, I was received like a princess in a
fairy land. The little parlour was not only clean, but ornamented, at a
cost of a few pence, with wall flowers from the neighbouring garden
(the best in the world, Covent Garden), generously dispensing their
perfume over pyramids of muffins and crumpets. Having cordially
shaken hands with my host, I set cheerfully to work, and got hold of
an old pitcher, but clean; in it I put the coffee and placed it close
before the fire, begging the old lady to keep turning it round, and
stirring it til the powder was hot. I then poured three quarts of boiling
water, allowed it to stand for ten minutes, and then poured it out into
the cups, with the best milk that could be got, and sugar.
Soyer’s Shilling Cookery for the People, Alexis Soyer
Extract B
Here is an extract from a restaurant review written in 2016.
I reserved our table three months ago. This might seem extreme. But
if you’re going to eat at a restaurant where the food is hand-picked
from its very own walled-garden, I’ve discovered that a window seat is
essential. I like to see precisely where my food has come from. And
I’m convinced it makes the flavours more intense.
Besides, (restaurant name) has developed such a reputation for
quality that if you don’t get your booking in quick, you won’t get a
table at all.
It’s the first time my dining companion has been here. She is suitably
wowed by the winding lanes we walk down to reach the restaurant. (It
seems too ironic to drive to an establishment where the food miles
are practically zero.) And she’s impressed by the view of the Mendips
that greets us at the gate.
Before we go indoors, we wander through the walled-garden,
admiring rows of velvety Cavolo Nero, feathered plumes of carrots,
earthy globes of beets. This really is food at its freshest.
At the door we are welcomed by the most cheerful waiter I’ve ever
met. His broad smile and enthusiastic discussion of the menu suggest
that this is someone entirely suited to his work. I trust him
immediately. In fact he makes me want to throw caution to the wind
and I find myself forgoing choice completely and entrusting him to
recommend a starter and a main.
‘Are you feeling OK?’ asks my companion.
‘Don’t worry,’ I say. ‘I’ll choose my own dessert.’
Restaurant review, 2016
Question
Compare how the two writers convey their attitudes towards food and
the people they are visiting.
In your answer you should:
 compare their different attitudes
 compare the methods they use to convey their attitudes
 support your ideas with references to both texts
Sample answer (note: this answer is flawed. Write a better one)
Both of the texts are about food. The first one is from a cookery book
written in 1855. It is by Alexis Soyer and is in first person and it uses
quite old-fashioned language. He is describing how he goes to St
Giles and teaches an old lady to make coffee. The food in the extract
includes muffins and crumpets which are piled up in a pyramid. He
seems to be happy about the food and wants to have the best things.
He describes in detail how he makes the coffee. It seems like a list of
instructions.
In contrast, the second piece is a modern review of a restaurant. It is
in first person and it uses some more detailed language that lets the
reader know what it is like to be there. The writer is with her friend
and they go for a walk around the garden before they have dinner.
The writer thinks that food tastes better if you can see where it is
growing. She seems happy to be in the restaurant and trusts the
waiter. She lets the waiter choose what she should eat, which shows
she is comfortable with the waiter.
Feedback - basic
This answer is limited because:
 it has no direct quotations from the text to support it
 it focuses first on one text and then the other without making
specific comparisons
 it summarises bits of the texts and begins to discuss the
writers’ attitudes but doesn’t analyse the writers’ methods
However, it does:
 Use the phrases ‘both’ and ‘in contrast’ to show simple
similarities and differences between the texts.
 Refer directly to the extracts and selects some details from
each. However, these are paraphrased rather than directly
quoted.
 Begins to examine the writers’ attitudes to food and people.