The outstanding characteristic of this essay is the specific and concrete detail. We get a good idea of what Nanny looks like from descriptive details such as her "brown eyes and white hair" which she wears in a bun as well as the fact that she does not wear any jewelry, "not even a wedding ring." The contrast with Lola is vivid since Lola has "long brick red nails" and cannot "live without her high heels."

Second, the paper has a good thesis sentence. It is in the proper position, at the end of the introduction. It also gives a preview of the main points that will be discussed: appearance, attitude and lifestyle, and the one point of similarity. This kind of sentence helps a reader to better comprehend a piece of writing because it lets them know how many parts of piece of writing will have and what each part will be about.

A third strength of this essay is that the clear organization. Each paragraph has a topic sentence that lets the reader know right away what will be covered. Notice that the paper is organized using the point by point method in which the subjects of comparison, Nanny and Lola, are discussed in reference to appearance, attitude and lifestyle, and a single point of likeness. An brief outline of the paper would look like this:

I. Appearance

      A. Nanny

      B. Lola

II. Lifestyle and Attitude

      A. Nanny

      B. Lola

III. Point of Similarity

Another possibility would have been to organize the paper using the block method. With the block method, the subjects of comparison, Nanny and Lola, would have been designated by the Roman numerals and the points of comparison would have been listed under each. The outline would look like this:

I. Nanny

      A. Appearance

      B. Lifestyle and Attitude

II. Lola

      A. Appearance

      B. Lifestyle and Attitude

III. Point of Similarity