One question across two texts

English · Reading Comprehension · ages 17-18

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Which plan makes an integrated comparison paragraph?
- A shared point, evidence from both texts, an explained link
- A summary of one text, its publication date, an unrelated quote
- A list of devices from both texts, with no explanation of links
What should guide your choice of evidence from both texts in a comparison?
- One shared question about the texts
- Separate questions with no connection between them
- The number of pages each text happens to contain
A text-by-text essay can make a comparison if it explicitly connects the texts and answers one shared question.
Circle one: True False
Your question asks which text gives better evidence of how widespread a problem is. A uses a reliable national survey; B recounts one person's experience. Which judgement fits?
- B establishes national scale because one account is detailed
- A offers broader evidence of the problem's national scale
- Both establish national scale because both discuss the problem
You compare a novel and a play on how they present betrayal. Which plan keeps the analysis focused on that shared question?
- Compare the novel's betrayal scene with the play's plot, without examining betrayal in the play
- Compare how each text presents the breaking of a character's trust
- Count broken promises in both texts and treat equal totals as identical presentations of betrayal
A difference that is accurate but unrelated to the comparison's question is enough to support its argument.
Circle one: True False
A ends with a character alone by choice; B ends with a character excluded by others. An essay treats the endings as identical because both characters are alone. What would repair its comparison of isolation?
- Treat both endings as the same presentation because the characters' final situations match
- Explain how chosen solitude differs from imposed exclusion, using the wider texts
- Treat the endings as opposite themes without checking how either develops earlier in its text
For a specified audience, A offers stronger evidence while B has a more engaging tone. You must judge which persuades more effectively. What should you do?
- Award A the verdict without considering the audience or tone
- Declare an automatic tie because each text has one strength
- Weigh both strengths for that audience and explain the result

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

One question across two texts W1-mt_lUatQWgP2g-s1

A shared point, evidence from both texts, an explained link · An integrated paragraph connects evidence from both texts around one point and explains the relationship.
One shared question about the texts · A shared question gives you a reason to connect evidence from both texts.
True · Comparison depends on explained relationships, not on requiring one paragraph structure.
A offers broader evidence of the problem's national scale · The question concerns scale. A reliable national survey offers broader evidence than one person's account.
Compare how each text presents the breaking of a character's trust · Comparing the presentation of broken trust addresses betrayal in both texts. Plot summary or equal counts do not explain that relationship.
False · A supporting difference needs to be both accurate and relevant to the question.
Explain how chosen solitude differs from imposed exclusion, using the wider texts · Being alone is shared, but choice and exclusion may give isolation different meanings. Check those readings against each whole text.
Weigh both strengths for that audience and explain the result · Different strengths need weighing against the audience and question. They are not automatically equal.