Classification Reference
From Greek synoptikos, "seeing the whole together"
Governing Principles
Principle 1: History & Theory Integration
The 900-908 block houses theoretical and comparative work that transcends specific places and times. This material provides the analytical lenses used to interpret historical events. Theory and history are not separate disciplines-they belong together.
Material migrates INTO this block from:
- 303 (social processes, social change)
- 320 (political science, when theoretical)
- 327 (international relations, when theoretical)
- 330 (economics, when theoretical)
- 355 (military science, when theoretical)
Principle 2: Regional Consolidation
Everything about a specific place and time-political, military, diplomatic, economic-belongs in that place's regional section (910-999). Dewey's disciplinary silos retain only genuinely abstract, placeless material.
This means:
- A book on Jacksonian democracy -> 973 (not 320)
- A book on Soviet military doctrine -> 947 (not 355)
- A book on British mercantilist policy -> 941 (not 330)
- Tocqueville's Democracy in America -> 973 (not 320)
- Clausewitz's On War -> 903 (theory, not tied to a campaign)
- A history of the Napoleonic Wars -> 940.27 (not 355)
The 900-908 Schema: History & Theory
| Number | Category | Description | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| 900 | Historiography & Philosophy of History | How to think about history; metahistorical frameworks | Spengler, Toynbee, Collingwood, Carr's What Is History? |
| 901 | Structural Theories & Cliodynamics | Models of historical change, cycles, collapse, institutional dynamics | |
| 901.0 | General structural theory | Broad synthetic works on how societies/civilizations work | Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel |
| 901.1 | Cliodynamics & cycles | Quantitative models, cyclical theories of history | Turchin, Goldstone |
| 901.2 | Collapse & decline | Theoretical frameworks for civilizational failure | Tainter, Diamond's Collapse, Orlov |
| 901.3 | Institutional analysis | How institutions shape historical outcomes | Olson, North, Acemoglu, Scott's Seeing Like a State |
| 901.4 | Political economy of power | Economics and state power; fiscal-military states | Kennedy's Rise and Fall, Smil's Energy and Civilization |
| 901.5 | Demographic models | Population dynamics as drivers of historical change | Malthus, Clark's Farewell to Alms |
| 902 | Reserved | Available for future use | |
| 903 | War Theory & Grand Strategy | Military theory, strategic thought, philosophy of war | Clausewitz, Sun Tzu, Luttwak, Boyd, Freedman |
| 904 | Geopolitics & International Systems | Theories of international order, geopolitical frameworks | Mackinder, Mahan, Mearsheimer, Zeihan, Brzezinski |
| 905 | Reserved | Available for future use | |
| 906 | State Formation & Institutions | How states form, regime theory, institutional development | Hobbes, Locke, Fukuyama, Huntington, Tilly |
| 907 | Empire & Hegemony | Theories of imperial expansion, hegemonic competition | Schumpeter, Ferguson, Doyle, Darwin |
| 908 | Comparative & Bilateral Systems | Works comparing multiple civilizations/states | Gaddis's The Cold War, Westad, Nye |
The 909-999 Schema: Regional & Chronological
Standard Dewey regional assignments are retained, with the understanding that ALL aspects of a region's history (political, military, diplomatic, economic) consolidate here.
| Range | Region |
|---|---|
| 909 | World history (surveys, global) |
| 910-919 | Geography & travel |
| 920-929 | Biography |
| 930-939 | Ancient world |
| 940-949 | Europe |
| 950-959 | Asia |
| 960-969 | Africa |
| 970-979 | North America |
| 980-989 | South America |
| 990-999 | Oceania & other |
Chronological Subdivisions
Where useful, apply chronological subdivisions after the regional number:
| Decimal | Era |
|---|---|
| .01-.09 | Historiography, theory, surveys of this region |
| .1 | Ancient / early |
| .2 | Medieval |
| .3 | Early modern (c. 1500-1789) |
| .4 | Long 19th century (1789-1914) |
| .5 | Early 20th century (1914-1945) |
| .6 | Cold War era (1945-1991) |
| .7 | Post-Cold War (1991-present) |
Letter Suffixes for Thematic Content
Standard Dewey uses numeric subdivisions for chronological/presidential periods (e.g., 973.922 for Kennedy). To avoid collision, use letter suffixes for thematic/commentary material that isn't narrative history.
Three-Tier Structure for Regional Histories
XXXR- Reference, textbooks, timeless institutional analysis (letter suffix R)XXX.YY- Narrative history of that era (standard Dewey, no suffix)XXX.YY[letter]- Thematic subdivisions within that era (letter suffix)
| Suffix | Content Type |
|---|---|
| R | Reference, textbooks, institutional analysis |
| V | Surveys, spanning works (surVey) |
| H | Historiography |
| P | Political commentary/analysis |
| E | Economic policy & debates |
| T | Trade & industrial policy |
| S | Social policy & domestic debates |
| F | Foreign policy & national security |
| C | Cultural & intellectual history |
Letter suffix = thematic material (analysis, commentary, policy debates)
United States (973)
Pre-chronological (timeless material)
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 973R | Reference, textbooks, institutional analysis | O'Connor/Sabato's American Government, Bryce's American Commonwealth |
| 973V | Surveys, spanning works | Gordon's Rise and Fall of American Growth |
| 973H | Historiography |
Chronological Subdivisions
| Number | Era |
|---|---|
| 973.1-.2 | Colonial period |
| 973.3 | Revolution & Founding (1775-1789) |
| 973.4 | Early Republic (1789-1809) |
| 973.5 | 1809-1845 |
| 973.6 | 1845-1861 |
| 973.7 | Civil War (1861-1865) |
| 973.8 | Reconstruction & Gilded Age (1865-1901) |
| 973.91 | Early 20th century (1901-1953) |
| 973.921 | Truman/Eisenhower |
| 973.922 | Kennedy |
| 973.923 | Johnson |
| 973.924 | Nixon/Ford |
| 973.925 | Ford |
| 973.926 | Reagan |
| 973.927 | Bush I |
| 973.928 | Clinton |
| 973.931 | Bush II |
| 973.932 | Obama |
| 973.933 | Trump |
| 973.934 | Biden |
Example Classifications with Letter Suffixes
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 973.922 | Kennedy era, narrative | Schlesinger's A Thousand Days |
| 973.923 | LBJ era, narrative | Caro's Master of the Senate |
| 973.924 | Nixon era, narrative | Perlstein's Nixonland |
| 973.924E | Nixon era, economic policy | Garten's Three Days at Camp David |
| 973.926 | Reagan era, narrative | Perlstein's Reaganland |
| 973.926S | Reagan era, social policy | Edsall's Chain Reaction |
| 973.926C | Reagan era, cultural | Doherty's Radicals for Capitalism |
| 973.932E | Obama era, economic policy | Sorkin's Too Big to Fail |
| 973.933T | Trump era, trade policy | Lighthizer's No Trade Is Free |
China (951)
Pre-chronological
| Number | Content |
|---|---|
| 951R | Reference, textbooks |
| 951V | Surveys, spanning works |
| 951H | Historiography |
Chronological Subdivisions
| Number | Era |
|---|---|
| 951.01-.03 | Ancient & Imperial (to 1644) |
| 951.04 | Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) |
| 951.05 | Republic & Warlord era (1912-1949) |
| 951.06 | Mao era (1949-1976) |
| 951.07 | Reform era (1976-2012) |
| 951.08 | Xi era (2012-present) |
Example Classifications
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 951.07E | Reform era, economic policy | Walter's Red Capitalism |
| 951.08P | Xi era, political | McGregor's Xi Jinping: The Backlash |
| 951.08E | Xi era, economic policy | Orlik's China: The Bubble That Never Pops |
Russia/Soviet Union (947)
Pre-chronological
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 947R | Reference, textbooks | |
| 947V | Surveys, spanning works | Courtois's Black Book of Communism |
| 947H | Historiography |
Chronological Subdivisions
| Number | Era |
|---|---|
| 947.01-.03 | Medieval Russia |
| 947.04 | Early modern / Romanov (to 1801) |
| 947.05-.07 | 19th century Imperial |
| 947.08 | Late Imperial & Revolution (1894-1922) |
| 947.084 | Stalin era (1924-1953) |
| 947.085 | Post-Stalin Soviet (1953-1991) |
| 947.086 | Post-Soviet Russia (1991-present) |
Example Classifications
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 947.085 | Post-Stalin Soviet, narrative | Kotkin |
| 947.085E | Post-Stalin Soviet, economic | Shelton's Coming Soviet Crash |
| 947.085F | Post-Stalin Soviet, foreign/security | Luttwak's Grand Strategy of the Soviet Union |
| 947.086 | Post-Soviet, narrative | Kotkin's Armageddon Averted |
| 947.086P | Post-Soviet, political | Sakwa's Russian Politics and Society |
Japan (952)
Chronological Subdivisions
| Number | Era |
|---|---|
| 952.01-.02 | Ancient & Medieval |
| 952.03 | Tokugawa (1603-1868) |
| 952.04 | Meiji to WWII (1868-1945) |
| 952.05 | Postwar (1945-present) |
Example Classifications
| Number | Content | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 952.05E | Postwar, economic policy | Tabb's Postwar Japanese System, Wood's Bubble Economy |
Contemporary World History (909.8x)
Contemporary global phenomena that transcend regional boundaries belong here. This is where the post-WWII world order, demographic transition, globalization, and related developments live.
| Number | Category | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 909.80 | Contemporary world history - general surveys | |
| 909.81 | Post-WWII order (1945-1971) - Bretton Woods, early Cold War | |
| 909.82 | Late Cold War (1971-1991) - Stagflation, neoliberal turn | |
| 909.83 | Post-Cold War (1991-2008) - Unipolar moment, globalization | |
| 909.84 | Crisis era (2008-present) - Financial crisis, populism | |
| 909.85 | Demographic decline & aging | Goodhart's Great Demographic Reversal, Morland's Human Tide |
| 909.86 | Globalization & deglobalization | Zeihan's End of the World Is Just the Beginning |
| 909.87 | Energy & resource transitions | Smil's How the World Really Works |
| 909.89 | Futurism & projections | Friedman's Next 100 Years |
Evolutionary Psychology & Human Biology (576.8x)
Evolutionary approaches to human behavior belong with biology (576, evolution), not scattered across sociology (301), psychology (150), or "social processes" (303). This block consolidates material on human nature, cognition, and behavior as products of evolution.
| Number | Category | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 576.80 | Human evolution, general | |
| 576.81 | Intelligence & psychometrics | |
| 576.82 | Human biodiversity | Plomin's Blueprint, Pinker's The Blank Slate |
| 576.83 | Evolutionary psychology, general | Wright's Moral Animal |
| 576.84 | Sociality, cooperation, kinship | Ridley's Origins of Virtue |
| 576.85 | Sex, mating, pair-bonding | Fisher's Why We Love |
| 576.86 | Aggression, dominance, politics | Wade's Origin of Politics |
Migration Rules
When reclassifying from standard Dewey to SCS, material moves as follows:
From 153 (Mental Processes & Intelligence)
- Intelligence, IQ, psychometrics ->
576.81 - Cognitive ability, g-factor ->
576.81 - Non-evolutionary cognitive science -> remains 153
From 303 (Social Processes)
- Civilizational dynamics, social change theory ->
901.0or901.1 - Collapse/decline theory ->
901.2 - Institutional analysis ->
901.3 - Specific to a place/time -> appropriate 910-999 section
From 304.5 (Human Ecology / Sociobiology)
- Evolutionary psychology ->
576.83 - Sociobiology, kin selection ->
576.84 - Human biodiversity ->
576.82 - Demographic material ->
909.85
From 320 (Political Science)
- Political philosophy as analytical lens ->
900or906 - Regime theory, state formation ->
906 - Ideology as historical force ->
907 - Political history of a specific place -> appropriate 910-999 section
- Normative political philosophy (Rawls, etc.) -> remains 320
From 327 (International Relations)
- IR theory, systemic analysis ->
904 - Bilateral relationships ->
908if comparative; otherwise to dominant region - Diplomatic history of a specific place/time -> appropriate 910-999 section
From 330 (Economics)
- Political economy of power, fiscal-military states ->
901.4 - Economic models of growth/decline ->
901.3or901.4 - Economic history of a specific place -> appropriate 910-999 section
- Pure economics -> remains 330
From 355 (Military Science)
- Military theory, strategic thought ->
903 - Military history of a specific place/time -> appropriate 910-999 section
- Technical/doctrinal manuals -> remains 355
Edge Cases & Decision Rules
Spanning Works
Books covering a region across all eras (e.g., a full history of Russia) use the .01-.09 subdivision for that region, or simply the base number without chronological subdivision.
Example: A complete history of Russia -> 947.01 or just 947
Bilateral/Multilateral Works
If a book is genuinely about the relationship between powers rather than either power individually, it goes to 908 (Comparative & Bilateral Systems).
Example: Gaddis's The Cold War -> 908.6 (bilateral, Cold War era)
If the book has a clear "home" perspective, it goes to that region.
Example: Zubok's A Failed Empire (Soviet perspective on Cold War) -> 947.6
Theory vs. Application
When in doubt: if you'd use the book to interpret other books, it's theory (900-908). If it's a case study you'd interpret using theory, it's regional (910-999).
Author's Intent vs. Your Use
Classify by how you use the book, not by the author's disciplinary affiliation or the publisher's categorization.
Notation Format
Standard format: [Class].[Subdivision][Letter] [Cutter]
The letter suffix is optional-omit for narrative history, include for thematic material.
Examples
| Notation | Book |
|---|---|
| 576.83 WRI | Wright, Moral Animal |
| 901.2 TAI | Tainter, Collapse of Complex Societies |
| 903 CLA | Clausewitz, On War |
| 904 ZEI | Zeihan, Accidental Superpower |
| 937 LUT | Luttwak, Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire |
| 947.085F LUT | Luttwak, Grand Strategy of the Soviet Union |
| 973R BRY | Bryce, American Commonwealth |
| 973.5 TOC | Tocqueville, Democracy in America |
| 973.926S EDS | Edsall, Chain Reaction |