APPROCHE HISTORIQUE ET CRITIQUE DE L’ORGANISATION DES CONNAISSANCES: DU SIÈCLE DES LUMIÈRES À L’ÈRE DU NUMÉRIQUE

this chapter deals with historiographical and critical approaches to knowledge
organization systems, in particular to the classification of knowledge. Thus, our aim is
threefold: to retrace the history of the so-called “universal” documentary classifications
and to highlight the specific contribution of French authors to the field of knowledge
organization, in particular that of the Encyclopaedists of the Age of Enlightenment. This
historiographical approach is followed by a critical examination of classifications and
their place in the digital age, and addressing the ethical issues of KOS.