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Select a topic, devise a principle of classification or division, and list the categories of which it is made up or the parts into which it breaks down. Choose a topic idea, and then try one of the following suggestions to generate ideas for categories or parts.
- Start from the categories or parts: Brainstorm, freewrite, or use another idea-generating strategy to generate details describing your topic. Then categorize the details into logical groups. Look for three or four groups or parts that share a common thread.
- Start from a principle of classification or division: Think about a trait or principle (like degrees of enthusiasm for sports fans or types of horror films) and then freewrite, brainstorm with a friend or classmate, or use another strategy to come up with the specific types or parts.
In small groups, test your categories (classification) or parts (division) to make sure that
- all members of a category fit or no essential parts have been omitted.
- all categories are exclusive (each group member fits in one category only) or no parts overlap.
- categories or parts will engage your readers.
- names of categories or parts describe them accurately, emphasizing their distinguishing features.
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Consider your purpose, audience, and point of view. Ask yourself these questions
- What is my purpose, and who is my audience? How do they affect my topic, my principle of classification or division, and my categories or parts?
Example: To inform novice Skype users about the software, your parts and details must be straightforward and nontechnical.
- How might additional patterns of development help readers understand and appreciate my topic?
Example: A classification essay might also compare and contrast types of sports fans.
- What point of view best suits my purpose and audience? First person (I, we) or second person (you) may be appropriate in informal writing if your audience has personal knowledge of or experience with the topic. Third person (he, she, it, they) is appropriate in more formal writing or for topics less familiar to your audience.
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Generate supporting details. Try one of the following suggestions for generating supporting details that will engage your readers and reinforce your purpose.
- Alone or in pairs, visit a place where you can observe your topic or the people associated with it. For example, to generate details about pets, visit a pet store or an animal shelter. Make notes on what you see and hear. Record conversations, physical characteristics, behaviors, and so forth. (Concrete and creative learners may prefer observing; social learners may prefer observing in pairs.)
- Conduct research to discover facts, examples, and other details about your topic. (All learners, but especially pragmatic and independent learners, may prefer conducting research.)
- Use the patterns of development to generate details. Ask yourself how the categories or parts are similar or different (comparison-contrast), what examples you can use to illustrate the categories or parts (illustration), what stories or anecdotes would help you distinguish categories or parts (narration), or how you would describe parts or group members using language that appeals to the senses (description). (All learners may benefit from using the patterns of development.)
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Draft your thesis statement. Your thesis statement should identify your topic and reveal your principle of division or classification. It should also suggest why your classification or division is useful or important. Notice how the following weak theses are strengthened by showing both what the categories are and why they are important.
| Weak |
Revised |
| There are four types of insurance that most people can purchase. |
Understanding the four common types of insurance will help you protect yourself, your family, and your property against disaster. |
Working Together. In groups of two or three students, take turns reading your thesis aloud. As group members listen, have them
- list your categories/parts
- write down why they matter
Finally, as a group, discuss how writers could make their categories or parts more distinctive and how they could show readers why these categories or parts are useful or important. |
Choose a method of organization.
- Least-to-most and most-to-least work well in classification essays. You might arrange categories in increasing order of importance or from most to least common, difficult, or frequent.
Example: In writing about the parts of a hospital, you might describe the most important areas first (operating rooms, emergency department) and then move to less important areas (waiting rooms, cafeterias).
- Chronological order works well when one category occurs or is observable before another.
- Spatial order works well in division essays when describing a place.
Example: In describing the parts of a baseball stadium, you might move from stands to playing field. Reviewing Chapter 7 may help you understand the methods of organization. |
Draft your classification or division essay. Use the following guidelines to keep your essay on track.
- The introduction should provide any background readers will need, include your thesis statement, and suggest why the classification or division is useful or important; it might also state your principle of classification or division.
- The body paragraphs should name and elaborate on your categories or parts, explain the traits they share, and provide the details readers need to understand and accept them. Be sure you devote roughly the same amount of detail to each category or part. Headings can help identify categories or parts discussed in multiple paragraphs; a list can help identify a large number of categories or parts; a diagram or flowchart may help make your system of classification or division clearer to readers. Include transitions such as first, next, in contrast, and on the one/other hand to keep readers on track as your essay moves from one category or part to another.
- The conclusion should bring your essay to a satisfying close, returning to your thesis and elaborating on why the classification or division is useful and important or offering a new insight or perspective on the topic.
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Evaluate your draft and revise as necessary. Use Figure 17.3, “Flowchart for Revising a Classification and Division Essay,” to evaluate and revise your draft. |
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Edit and proofread your essay. Refer to Chapter 10 for help with . . .
- editing sentences to avoid wordiness, make your verb choices strong and active, and make your sentences clear, varied, and parallel, and
- editing words for tone and diction, connotation, and concrete and specific language.
Pay particular attention to the following:
- Avoid short, choppy sentences, which can make a classification or division essay sound dull and mechanical. Try combining a series of short sentences and varying sentence patterns and lengths.
- Add a comma after opening phrases or clauses longer than four words.
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