diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index ad0e2fe..7f1355d 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "hatchling.build"
 
 [project]
 name = "pycodify"
-version = "0.2.0"
+version = "0.2.1"
 description = "Python source code as a serialization format with automatic import resolution"
 authors = [{name = "Tristan Simas", email = "tristan.simas@mail.mcgill.ca"}]
 license = {text = "MIT"}
diff --git a/src/pycodify/__init__.py b/src/pycodify/__init__.py
index b8f2947..63aceda 100644
--- a/src/pycodify/__init__.py
+++ b/src/pycodify/__init__.py
@@ -14,10 +14,11 @@
     imported_name,
     to_source,
 )
+from .documents import SourceDocument
 from .imports import resolve_imports
 from .paths import PathCollector, PathConstructor, PathFactoring
 
-__version__ = "0.2.0"
+__version__ = "0.2.1"
 
 __all__ = [
     "Assignment",
@@ -30,6 +31,7 @@
     "PathFactoring",
     "PathRendering",
     "PythonSourceLiteral",
+    "SourceDocument",
     "SourceFormatter",
     "SourceFragment",
     "generate_python_source",
diff --git a/src/pycodify/documents.py b/src/pycodify/documents.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4ad7dfc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/pycodify/documents.py
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+"""A dataclass saved as one Python module of assignments."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from collections.abc import Mapping
+from dataclasses import MISSING, Field, fields
+from typing import Any, TypeVar
+
+from .core import Assignment, BlankLine, CodeBlock, generate_python_source
+
+DocumentT = TypeVar("DocumentT", bound="SourceDocument")
+
+
+class SourceDocument:
+    """A dataclass whose constructor fields are a module's public assignments.
+
+    Each ``init=True`` field is written as one module-level assignment named
+    after the field, in declaration order, and read back by that name. The
+    field declaration is the only place the name is spelled. A field with a
+    default may be absent from a loaded module; a field without one must be
+    assigned. ``init=False`` fields are not part of the saved module.
+    """
+
+    __slots__ = ()
+
+    @classmethod
+    def assignment_fields(cls) -> tuple[Field[Any], ...]:
+        """Return the fields saved as assignments, in declaration order."""
+        return tuple(field for field in fields(cls) if field.init)  # type: ignore[arg-type]
+
+    @classmethod
+    def assignment_names(cls) -> tuple[str, ...]:
+        """Return the names this document assigns at module level."""
+        return tuple(field.name for field in cls.assignment_fields())
+
+    @classmethod
+    def from_namespace(cls: type[DocumentT], namespace: Mapping[str, object]) -> DocumentT:
+        """Build the document from the names an executed module defines."""
+        values: dict[str, object] = {}
+        for field in cls.assignment_fields():
+            if field.name in namespace:
+                values[field.name] = namespace[field.name]
+            elif field.default is MISSING and field.default_factory is MISSING:
+                raise ValueError(f"{cls.__name__} source must define {field.name!r}.")
+        return cls(**values)
+
+    @classmethod
+    def from_source(cls: type[DocumentT], source: str) -> DocumentT:
+        """Execute Python source and build the document from its assignments."""
+        namespace: dict[str, object] = {}
+        exec(compile(source, f"<{cls.__name__}>", "exec"), namespace)  # noqa: S102
+        return cls.from_namespace(namespace)
+
+    def body(self) -> CodeBlock:
+        """Return one assignment per saved field, separated by blank lines."""
+        items: list[object] = []
+        for name in self.assignment_names():
+            if items:
+                items.append(BlankLine())
+            items.append(Assignment(name, getattr(self, name)))
+        return CodeBlock.from_items(items)
+
+    def to_source(self, *, header: str = "", clean_mode: bool = False) -> str:
+        """Render the document as a complete Python module."""
+        return generate_python_source(self.body(), header=header, clean_mode=clean_mode)
diff --git a/tests/test_documents.py b/tests/test_documents.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..62b6647
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_documents.py
@@ -0,0 +1,45 @@
+"""A SourceDocument dataclass is saved as, and loaded from, its field names."""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from dataclasses import dataclass, field
+
+import pytest
+
+from pycodify import SourceDocument
+
+
+@dataclass(frozen=True)
+class Recipe(SourceDocument):
+    title: str
+    steps: list[str] = field(default_factory=list)
+    loaded_from: str | None = field(default=None, init=False, compare=False)
+
+
+def test_assignment_names_are_the_constructor_fields() -> None:
+    assert Recipe.assignment_names() == ("title", "steps")
+
+
+def test_source_assigns_each_field_once_and_loads_back_equal() -> None:
+    recipe = Recipe(title="tea", steps=["boil", "steep"])
+
+    source = recipe.to_source(header="# Recipe")
+
+    assert source.splitlines()[0] == "# Recipe"
+    namespace: dict[str, object] = {}
+    exec(source, namespace)
+    assert {name for name in namespace if not name.startswith("__")} == {"title", "steps"}
+    assert Recipe.from_source(source) == recipe
+
+
+def test_absent_field_takes_its_declared_default() -> None:
+    assert Recipe.from_namespace({"title": "tea"}) == Recipe(title="tea")
+
+
+def test_absent_required_field_is_an_error() -> None:
+    with pytest.raises(ValueError, match="Recipe source must define 'title'"):
+        Recipe.from_namespace({"steps": []})
+
+
+def test_names_outside_the_declaration_are_ignored() -> None:
+    assert Recipe.from_namespace({"title": "tea", "other": 1}) == Recipe(title="tea")