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Abstract

The purpose of this short paper is to sketch the problem of whether documentality, in the sense of the appearance of evidence, must always take the form of a type-token relationship. In contrast to a type-token epistemology common in the Library and Information Science tradition, the paper argues that there is precedence for a theory of documentality that views evidentiality as a product of the powers of particulars to make themselves present. To make this argument, it appeals to Robert Pagès theory of documents and, over a half century later, Bernd Frohmann’s proposal for a philosophy of information, “Documentality.” Such a theoretical framework as Documentality may center its analysis around the problem of the evidentiality of natural entities rather than sociocultural or bibliographic entities. The paper argues that Documentality offers a theory of evidence or information through functions, performances, and powers rather than through content representation. Such a contrast describes the epistemology of Neo-Documentation versus that of earlier Otletian Documentation and the Library and Information Science tradition that follows from it.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.35492/docam/10/2/2

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