Comparison questions — which ask you to compare two texts, two extracts, or a set text with an unseen passage — are some of the most intellectually demanding questions in A-Level English Literature. Many students respond to them by writing about Text A, then writing about Text B, and adding a brief paragraph at the end that says “both texts explore themes of loss.” This is not comparison. This is two separate analyses joined with a staple.
The Core Principle: Integrate, Don’t Alternate
True comparison happens sentence by sentence and paragraph by paragraph, not text by text. Each point you make should involve both texts simultaneously. You are not writing “In Text A… In Text B…” You are writing “Both writers render loss through imagery of natural decay, though where Keats situates this in seasonal change, Woolf locates it in the unchanged domestic detail of an abandoned room.”
The difference is that the second version makes a genuinely comparative point — it names what is shared and immediately marks the distinction. The examiner can see the comparison happening, not just hear you promise it will happen later.
Use Connectives That Force Comparison
Train yourself to use at least one comparative connective in every paragraph: similarly, whereas, by contrast, both writers, unlike, on the other hand, this idea is developed/subverted/complicated in… If you find yourself writing a paragraph with no connective linking both texts, you are describing rather than comparing.
Three Structural Approaches
Point-by-point (recommended): Each paragraph makes one comparative point that covers both texts. Most sophisticated — produces genuinely integrated comparison. Best when texts have clear points of connection.
Block with embedded comparison: Write primarily about Text A with constant reference to Text B, then reverse. Works if texts are very different in nature; risks drifting into separate analysis unless you consciously sustain the cross-referencing.
Thematic: Organise by idea rather than text, both texts discussed under each theme. Very strong if done well, but requires confident advance planning.
What Genuine Comparison Produces
The strongest comparative essays do more than list similarities and differences — they use the comparison to produce insight that neither text alone would yield. If you could remove one text from your essay and it would still make sense as a response about the remaining text, you have not achieved genuine comparison. A comparison should illuminate something about both texts that becomes visible only when they are placed alongside each other.
Essay technique is taught in depth at Thorogood English’s A-Level classes. Join the waiting list for January 2027.
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