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Pay No Attention to the Librarian Behind the Curtain!

If OPAC had a flag, this definitely would not be it.
These past few weeks have taught me that I had not spent ANY time prior to this experience thinking about cataloging, but that librarians spend a TON of time thinking about it, and also how to bend the Dewey Decimal System to their will.

For example, in this week's discussion, several of my classmates discussed the intricacies of where fairytales should go, and if fractured fairytales should go in the same spot.

As a future librarian, I totally get it. During my days at a publishing house, my colleagues and I would deeply discuss the use of hyphens, come to a conclusion, and then CONTINUE to DISCUSS HYPHENS at happy hour. We all knew that readers wouldn't give a darn about the hyphen, but it was important to us.

But as a library patron...? Eh. No. Perhaps I am of a minority, but I find books by looking up the title or author's name, write down the call number (because my mind is like a darn sieve) and then find the item. I didn't even QUESTION why something is in 300s or 500s or 200s.

So, I've learned a lot, but mostly I've learned that I know nothing. Plus side, I no longer get OPAC and OPEC confused, so that is a big plus. Down side, they are both still shadowy mysteries that I REALLY should learn more about.

Also, Dewey. Ewey. Again, from my limited experience, I didn't understand how a cataloging system could be racist. I figured there was a section on religions, and like, Christianity could have its part, and then others could have theirs. Or, perhaps, it could be divided in categories such as traditions, feasts/holy days, historical figures, and each religion could have books within those various classifications. But, nope.

Courtesy of one of my fellow students, here is a Snapshot of Dewey's Classifications of Religions:

Ugh. C'mon Dude. That 290 must be a biiiiiig subcategory.

The fun doesn't stop, here is the 400s, focusing on languages:



I know I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to linguistics, but... ARABIC??? CHINESE??? HEBREW???

So, yes, Dewey has some problems. And librarians must muddle through and figure it out and put their "diverse" books in spots that make sense in the scheme of the library.

But, speaking with my patron hat on...fight the good fight, then provide signage and people will come. They don't need to look behind the curtain to reap the benefits of a librarian's labor.

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