Patterns: Classification and Division

When you use a colon to introduce your categories, what must the colon be preceded by?

a complete sentence

What is a colon?

a punctuation mark whose point is to direct readers to look ahead for a series, list, clarification, or explanation

In countless practical situations, what can classification and division do?

bring order to chaos

Whenever you write an essay, what should you use classification and division to do?

bring order to the invention stage of the writing process

When you start with a whole and break it into its individual parts, what are you doing?

dividing

True or false: your thesis is usually stated in the body?

false; it is usually stated in the introduction

True or false: classification and division invariably occur together and are the same occasion?

false; they are two separate occasions

True or false: all categories should be at different levels?

false; they should all be at the same level

True or false: a classification-and-division essay should treat all categories differently?

false; they should all be treated similarly

What can we do by breaking a large group into smaller categories and assigning individual items to larger categories?

identify relationships between a whole and its parts and relationships among the parts themselves

When should categories be separated by comma?

in any list of three or more categories

What should orient readers by identifying your topic, the principle for classifying your material, and the individual categories you plan to discuss?

introduction

What three major sections should you plan your classification-and-division essay around?

introduction, body, and conclusion

What are always expressed in parallel terms?

items in a list or series

When do you need to identify a principle of classification?

once you decide to use a classification-and-division pattern

What should your conclusion do?

restate your thesis, summing up the points you have made and perhaps considering their implications

What should you do after you define your principle of classification and apply it to your topic?

select your categories by dividing a whole class into parts and grouping a number of different items together within each part

What is division?

the process of breaking a whole into parts

What is classification?

the process of sorting individual items into categories

What is a principle of classification?

the quality your items have in common

What can transitional words and expressions show readers?

the relationship between categories

What should all categories derive from?

the same principle

How can we make sense of seemingly random ideas?

through classification and division

When you write a classification-and-division essay, what do you use to both introduce your categories and to move readers from one category to the next?

transitional words and phrases

True or false: division is the opposite of classification?

true

True or false: every group of people, things,or ideas can be categorized in many different ways?

true

True or false: in any list or series of three or more categories, a comma should precede the "and" that separates the last two items?

true

True or false: like other kinds of essays, a classification-and-division essay should have a thesis?

true

True or false: the principle of classification you choose would depend on how you choose to approach the members of a large and diverse group?

true

True or false: you should arrange your categories in some logical order so that readers can see how the categories are related and what their relative importance is?

true

True or false: you should treat all categories that are significant and relevant to your discussion?

true

How do you introduce a list of categories you will discuss when you state the thesis of a classification-and-division essay?

use a colon

What should you discuss in the body paragraphs?

your categories one by one

What should the order you choose be consistent with?

your purpose and your essay's thesis

What should identify your subject, introduce the categories you will discuss, perhaps show readers the relationships of your categories to one another and to the subject as a whole, and tell your readers why your categories are significant or establish their relative value?

your thesis statement

When you organize an essay, the principle of classification you choose is determined by what?

your writing situation (assignment, purpose, audience, special knowledge and interests)