What does comparing involve in analyzing two texts?

Comparing involves identifying similarities between two texts. When analyzing texts, comparing allows you to look at how both pieces address similar themes, issues, or character types, among other aspects. This identification of similarities can lead to deeper insights about the texts and their approaches.

For instance, when you examine how two authors portray friendship or conflict, you might notice how both texts use similar narrative techniques or convey parallel messages despite differing contexts. This reflection enhances your understanding of each text’s particular contribution to the themes being analyzed.

Other approaches, such as identifying main themes, evaluating character development, or summarizing both texts, provide valuable insights as well but do not focus on the act of comparison itself. Summarizing describes the content rather than exploring connections, while evaluating character development looks specifically at characters without necessarily merging that analysis with another text’s perspective. Identifying main themes could be more about extraction than comparison, as it might not directly link the texts to each other.