清末民初, 中国典籍分类法突破“四部”分类框架后, 逐渐形成了“新旧并行”局面, 并随着杜威十进法的引入, 转向西方近代图书分类法。由于典籍分类与知识系统之分类密切相关, 故典籍分类之演变, 不仅仅是改变典籍分类法之简单问题, 而且是中国传统知识系统向西方近代知识系统转变之重大问题, 是中国知识系统在晚清时期重建之重要体现。所以, 以杜威十进分类法替代四部分类法之过程, 既是将四部分类体系下之典籍拆散, 归并到十进分类体系的各种学科门类中之过程, 也是将“四部”知识系统整合到西方近代知识系统中的过程。正是在典籍分类法之此消彼长的演进过程中, “四部之学”逐渐被分解、消融、整合到以学科为骨干的近代新知识系统之中

In the turn of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China a new classification for those ancient Chinese books and records began gradually to run parallel to the old method after its break through the framework of four traditional divisions of a Chinese library (i.e. classics, history, philosophy, and belles-letters) . With an introduction of Dewey decimal classification, the classification of ancient Chinese books turned to the modern Western book classification. Owing to a close relation between book classification and knowledge system, changing book classification was not an easy work. It was important in the transformation of the traditional Chinese system of knowledge to the modern Western system of knowledge, and also an important embodiment of the reconstruction of the Chinese system of knowledge in the late Qing period. Accordingly, the process of the substitution of Dewey decimal classification for the four-division classification was a process in which those books classified as four divisions would come under various disciplines in the system of decimal classification, and also a process in which the system of four-division knowledge would be integrated with the modern Western system of knowledge.