Two writers can agree on the facts and still stress different things. Emphasis is what a writer puts first, repeats, or describes most closely, and comparing it means explaining how that changes what the reader notices.
This lesson builds on separating claims from support. Here you look at which parts each writer chooses to bring forward.
What are the signs of emphasis?
Four features show what a writer stresses:
- Position: what comes first or last in the text.
- Space: how many sentences a point receives.
- Detail: which points get specific figures or vivid description.
- Wording: whether a point is framed with positive, negative or neutral words.
A point placed early and described in detail is stressed. A point squeezed into one subordinate clause is being played down.
How to compare emphasis, step by step
- Confirm the shared issue. Both texts must cover the same event or decision.
- List the main points in each text in the order they appear.
- Mark which points receive the most space and detail.
- Place the two lists side by side in a table.
- Write a comparison sentence that names the difference and what it does to the reader’s view.
Worked example
The issue is a reduced ferry timetable on a small island. Both extracts are original.
Text A (a council notice): “From March, the ferry will run four times a day instead of six. The change saves the council RM90,000 a year, and each remaining crossing will be fuller and more efficient. Passengers are advised to plan journeys in advance.”
Text B (a resident’s letter): “From March, islanders lose two crossings a day. My neighbour, who dialyses in the mainland hospital three mornings a week, will now have to stay overnight. Saving RM90,000 is not worth that.”
| Text A | Text B | |
|---|---|---|
| Opens with | The timetable change | The loss for islanders |
| Most detail on | Savings and efficiency | One person’s medical needs |
| Tone of wording | Neutral, managerial (“advised”, “efficient”) | Personal, emotional (“lose”, “overnight”) |
| Figure RM90,000 used as | A benefit | A cost too small to justify the harm |
Answer: “Both texts accept that the ferry will run less often and mention the saving of RM90,000. However, the council notice stresses efficiency and presents the cut as a sensible saving, with the neutral phrase ‘fuller and more efficient’. The resident stresses the human cost and gives the most space to a neighbour’s hospital visits. As a result, the same figure reads as a benefit in Text A and as a poor trade in Text B.”
The mistake to watch for
A common slip is to describe each text separately and leave the comparison to the reader.
Mistaken answer: “Text A talks about savings. Text B talks about a neighbour who needs dialysis.”
This is two summaries. It does not say how the texts differ in emphasis, or what that difference does.
The correction is to use a linking word such as “whereas” or “by contrast”, and then to state the effect: what each choice makes the reader feel or prioritise.
Check yourself
Use these two original extracts about a new cycle lane.
Text C: “The new cycle lane on Jalan Damai cost RM400,000 and is already used by about two hundred riders a day. Journey times for cyclists have dropped by a third.”
Text D: “The cycle lane on Jalan Damai has taken away a whole lane of traffic. Drivers now queue for twenty minutes at peak hour, and shop owners say customers cannot park.”
1. What does Text C stress, and what does it leave in the background?
Show answer
It stresses the benefits to cyclists: use, and shorter journey times. It leaves in the background the effect on drivers and shops, which it does not mention.
2. Write one comparison sentence about emphasis.
Show answer
“Text C stresses the gains for cyclists through figures on use and journey time, whereas Text D stresses the costs to drivers and shops, so the same lane appears as a success in one text and a problem in the other.”
3. Why is “Text C likes the lane and Text D does not” a weak answer?
Show answer
It names only the overall opinion. It does not show which points each text brings forward, nor the wording or detail that signals emphasis, so it lacks evidence and explanation.
Where this leads next
The next skill is noticing small words that change how strong an argument is. Move on to noticing a qualification that changes an argument. The writing revision compare view is a useful way to set two of your own comparison drafts side by side.
If your comparisons still read as two separate summaries, it may help to have someone listen to your reasoning. That is the kind of work we do in online one-to-one First Language English tuition.