I think this is General Reference (Too Localised, here, since most people would just look it up elsewhere on the net if they didn't know the usage). Google define stark leads to Unpleasantly or sharply clear; impossible to avoid. It actually gives the example his position on civil rights is in stark contrast to that of his liberal opponent.

stark in stark contrast merely qualifies the attribute to the level of extreme perceptibility. Two things may be different to some extent. The difference is not perceptible so long as the contrast is below a certain threshold. Beyond that, and then a little further, the difference becomes so "glaring" that it comes out prominently: 'stark ...

Those clerics, who often have views on life which are in stark contrast to the Belgian lifestyle, have been provoking identity crises in many immigrant youths, making them vulnerable for radicalization. I was wondering if the sentence above is correct. I'm …

2015年6月2日 · However, "in contrast with" does not seem to be an especially new usage: in fact, if the Google Ngram Viewer can be trusted, it was more common than "in contrast to" at one point. I don't know of any reason to consider "in contrast with" incorrect, unless we treat the mere fact that it is a minority usage as sufficient proof of its incorrectness.

2015年9月25日 · Without considering by/in contrast (i.e., when there is no preposition after by/in contrast, as suggested in the comments above), both in contrast to and in contrast with are equally valid. From Garner's Modern American Usage: in contrast with; in contrast to. These are equally good. See contrast (A). contrast. A. Prepositions with.

The fact that both these words have other meaning and connotations is beside the point. But it's worth noting that stark (which ultimately derives from strong) often simply means completely, or extremely... stark naked stark raving mad etc., etc. It can also replace adjectival forms such as complete (e.g. - "This is in stark contrast to that").

The word "contrast" conveys a stark difference in the degree to which two otherwise similar objects possess an attribute. Dark, depressing books and bonobos are too dissimilar to be in contrast, whereas the former do contrast with light hearted, trivial books.

2016年5月12日 · Update (10/20/2017) My remark above, "On the strength of the Ngram/Google Books evidence, I am baffled by the OED/Merriam-Webster view that 'contrast with' is more commonly used than 'contrast to,'" reflects my underestimation of the effect of instances of "in contrast to" versus "in contrast with" on the Ngram chart for "contrast to" versus "contrast with."

2018年8月31日 · These sentences are both grammatically correct but because they seem to be somewhat at odds with each other, they sound a little off. You can fix that by adding a word to connect the two while acknowledging the contrast: I used to hate planning and I still do. Once I'm done planning, however, everything's easier. or

2015年1月1日 · For example, when you want to emphasize the contrast of a laid-back person living in a hectic city. I figure we can say something like "His laid-back personality is a [word] against/to the bustle of the city." but I have yet to find the right word for it