Born in Paris in 1894, Suzanne Briet was active nationally and internationally in the development of what was then known as Documentation but would now be called Information Management or Information Science. In 1931, she participated in founding the Union Francaise des Organismes de Documentation (UFOD), the French analogue of the American Documentation Institute now called the American Society for Information Science and Technology. She was a leader in developing professional education for this new specialty and designed a plan for what would have been the first school of Documentation / Information Science worldwide, had it been established. In 1951, when a school of information science was finally established, Briet was the founding Director of Studies. She became Vice President of the International Federation for Documentation (FID) and acquired the nickname Madame Documentation. What is Documentation? relates this fascinating story and includes the first English translation of Briet's remarkable manifesto on the nature of documentation, Qu'est-ce que la documentation? (Paris: EDIT, 1951). A pamphlet of 48 pages, Part I sought to push the boundaries of the field beyond texts to include any material form of evidence ( Is a living animal a document? she asked). Part II argued that a new and distinct profession was emerging. Part III urged the societal need for new and active documentary services. This tract remains significant due to its continuing relevance towards understanding the nature, scope, and societal impacts of documents and documentation. Briet's modernist perspective, combined with semiotics, deserves attention now because it offers a sturdy and insightful alternative to the scientific, positivist view that has so dominated information science and which is increasingly questioned.
Product Identifiers
Publisher
Scarecrow Press
ISBN-13
9780810851092
eBay Product ID (ePID)
95099961
Product Key Features
Subject Area
Information Management
Author
Suzanne Briet
Publication Name
What Is Documentation?: English Translation of the Classic French Text
Format
Paperback
Language
English
Publication Year
2006
Type
Textbook
Number of Pages
84 Pages
Dimensions
Item Height
229mm
Item Width
157mm
Item Weight
145g
Additional Product Features
Title_Author
Suzanne Briet
Country/Region of Manufacture
United States
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