The Refined Reader aims to take a look at the journey to where we are as readers today. It's part history, part commentary - providing a brief, conversational summary of various aspects of our bookish past and comparing it to how it has affected us in modern times. I love history, but I am no historian, and while I plan to do my research, if there are any errors, please let me know! This is as much a learning venture for me as I hope it is for my blog visitors!
Melvil Dewey came up with his classification while working in the library of Amherst College and was largely inspired by the structural systems of Sir Francis Bacon, and the card system of Italian publisher Natale Battezzati. After some refinement, he published his system as a pamphlet and it quickly gained popularity in the U.S. Although of late, other systems have been put into use because the Dewey system is copyrighted and can be expensive (The Library of Congress uses a classification based on one created by Charles Ammi Cutter), the Dewey system is still widely used and continues to be updated. Here's how the Dewey Decimal system breaks down 800 - Literature:
810 American literature in English
- 811 Poetry
- 812 Drama
- 813 Fiction
- 814 Essays
- 815 Speeches
- 816 Letters
- 817 Satire & humor
- 818 Miscellaneous writings
- 819 Puzzle activities
830 German & related literatures
840 French & related literatures
850 Italian, Romanian & related literatures
860 Spanish & Portuguese literatures
870 Latin & Italic literatures
880 Classical & modern Greek literatures
890 Other literatures
Obviously this can be sub-divided into many more categories. Another example I wanted to look at is a phrase I've seen around that I think is pretty cute - "I still believe in 398.2"
300 - Social Sciences
390 - Customs, etiquette and folklore
398 - Folklore
- 398.204 Folk literature by language
- 398.208 Groups of people
- 398.209 History, geographic treatment, biography
- 398.21 Tales and lore of paranatural beings of human and semihuman form
- 398.22 Tales and lore of persons without paranormal powers
- 398.23 Tales and lore of places and times
- 398.24 Tales and lore of plants and animals
- 398.25 Ghost stories
- 398.26 Tales and lore involving physical and natural phenomena
- 398.27 Tales and lore of humanity and human existence
- 398.28 Tales and lore of other topics
Uh, basically fairy tales. The Dewey Decimal System does have it's criticisms - it can be complex, it's geared towards an Anglo-American world-view, and it is copyrighted. But it enjoys a widespread popularity as a classification system in libraries, and it helped changed the way libraries are organized to make it more accessible to the patron. Although when I was younger, I never really understood how it worked! I just looked at the name of each section!
How familiar are you with the Dewey Decimal System? Did you understand it's basic structure before reading this post? (I'm wondering how widely it was understood for library patrons. Of course if you're a librarian that is different!)
Sources:
Wikipedia / Wikipedia
Nova University
Dewey Decimal Classification
How familiar are you with the Dewey Decimal System? Did you understand it's basic structure before reading this post? (I'm wondering how widely it was understood for library patrons. Of course if you're a librarian that is different!)
Sources:
Wikipedia / Wikipedia
Nova University
Dewey Decimal Classification
