An encyclopedia is more than just a collection of facts; it’s a curated and structured representation of human knowledge. Let’s delve into what constitutes an encyclopedia, examining its content arrangement and how it has evolved over time.
A significant turning point in encyclopedia design came with Francis Bacon’s plan for his unfinished Instauratio Magna (1620). Bacon moved away from endless debates and proposed a three-section structure: “External Nature,” covering astronomy, meteorology, geography, and species; “Man,” addressing anatomy, physiology, and human actions; and “Man’s Action on Nature,” encompassing medicine, chemistry, the arts, and more.
Alt text: Engraved title page of Francis Bacon’s Instauratio Magna first edition, published in 1620, showcasing the philosophical approach to organizing knowledge.
Bacon’s plan provided a scientific and acceptable arrangement of encyclopedic content, offering a comprehensive outline of human knowledge. This acted as a checklist, preventing the omission of entire fields of thought. Even 130 years later, Diderot acknowledged this influence in the prospectus (1750) of the Encyclopédie, and Bacon’s guidance continues to resonate today.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge, inspired by Bacon, developed a different arrangement for the Encyclopædia Metropolitana in 1817. His classification comprised five main classes: Pure Sciences (Formal and Real), Mixed and Applied Sciences, Biographical and Historical (chronologically arranged), and Miscellaneous and Lexicographical, including a gazetteer and lexicon. The fifth class was to be an analytical index.
Although Coleridge’s classification was altered by the publisher, its influence persisted. While most encyclopedias today are arranged alphabetically, the classifications of Bacon and Coleridge still inform editors in planning their work according to an assumed hierarchy of human knowledge.
The concept of alphabetical order was known to the Greeks and Romans, but its application to encyclopedias was rare. Sextus Pompeius Festus used it in his 2nd-century De verborum significatu. The 10th- or 11th-century Suidas was the first completely alphabetical encyclopedic dictionary, but it had little influence on subsequent works.
The real breakthrough came with the encyclopedic Latin-language dictionaries of the 16th century, notably those by Charles Estienne. The last of these was Johann Heinrich Alsted’s Encyclopædia (1630). Louis Moréri’s Le Grand Dictionnaire historique (1674) solidified the public’s preference for vernacular and alphabetical encyclopedias. This was further emphasized by the success of Antoine Furetière’s posthumous Dictionnaire universel (1690).
Periodically, attempts have been made to reinstate the classified encyclopedia. Coleridge saw the encyclopedia as a vehicle for methodical thinking, presenting knowledge in harmony. However, alphabetical arrangement was too entrenched. In 1935, Anatole de Monzie founded the classified Encyclopédie française. The Dutch Eerste nederlandse systematisch ingerichte encyclopædie (1946–52) had a classification almost in reverse order of the Encyclopédie française. The Spanish Enciclopedia labor (1955–60) and the Oxford Junior Encyclopædia (1948–56) followed systems closer to the French model.
Traditionally, the trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric) and the quadrivium (geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, music) were considered essential components of any encyclopedia. Alfonso de la Torre’s Visiõ delectable (1435) followed this order, proceeding to science, philosophy, theology, law, and politics only after laying these foundations. The seven liberal arts were regarded as the mathematics of human knowledge. This idea persisted in Coleridge’s classification, where grammar and logic provide the rules of speech and reasoning, while mathematics presents truths applicable to external existence.
Louis Shores, editor in chief of Collier’s Encyclopedia in 1962, considered the encyclopedia “one of the few generalizing influences in a world of overspecialization,” echoing H.G. Wells’ view that it should be “a concentration, a clarification, and a synthesis.” Otto Neurath suggested constructing a new international encyclopedia of unified science like an onion, with the foundations of scientific unity at its “heart.”
The trivium and quadrivium have receded into history, many modern encyclopedists are concerned with restating the unity of knowledge. While accepting the reference function and alphabetical organization, they are increasingly disturbed by the fragmentation of knowledge. They seek ways of enhancing the educational function by reclaiming values of classified or topical organizations.
One result of these efforts was the 15th edition of Encyclopædia Britannica (1974), designed to enhance the role of an encyclopedia in education and understanding without detracting from its reference role. Its three parts (Propædia, Micropædia, and Macropædia) reflected the understanding that learning is a circle. Short informational articles and long articles must be planned to reflect their relation to one another and to knowledge as a whole. The Propædia was a reader’s version of this circle, organized so readers could reassemble material dispersed by alphabetization.
In conclusion, the encyclopedia has evolved from classified arrangements emphasizing the unity of knowledge to alphabetical structures prioritizing ease of access. Modern encyclopedists strive to balance these approaches, aiming to provide both comprehensive information and a cohesive understanding of the world. The ideal encyclopedia acts as a bridge connecting disparate fields, fostering a holistic view of human knowledge.
