Print Culture and the Modern World

Introduction

• Print materials: books, newspapers, calendars, advertisements, posters
• Print's role in reading, getting news, public discussions
• History of print shapes the modern world
• Exploration of print's origins in East Asia, spread to Europe, and India

Early Printing in East Asia

China

• Hand printing using wood blocks began in China around AD 594
• Books printed by pressing paper onto inked wood blocks
• Thin paper led to folded books (accordion books)
• Imperial government printed books for civil service exams
• By 17th century, print used for trade and leisure reading

Japan

• Printing technology brought by Buddhist missionaries around AD 768-770
• Oldest printed book: Diamond Sutra (AD 868)
• Uses: textiles, playing cards, paper money
• 18th century: illustrated books in Edo depicting urban lifestyle

Print Comes to Europe

• Chinese paper reached Europe via Silk Route in 11th century
• Marco Polo brought woodblock printing knowledge to Italy in 1295
• Gutenberg's Printing Press in the 1430s
  • Adapted olive press into a printing press
  • Printed the Bible (180 copies in 3 years)
• Rapid spread of printing presses
  • 20 million books by end of 15th century
  • 200 million by 16th century

The Print Revolution

• Created a new reading public
• Enabled widespread access to books, blending oral culture with print
• Allowed ideas, including dissenting religious views, to spread widely
• Religious debates: Martin Luther's 95th thesis
• Print and dissent: Manacchio's reinterpretation of the Bible

The Reading Mania

• Increased literacy rates in 17th and 18th centuries
• New types of popular literature and periodicals emerged
• Scientific and philosophical ideas accessible to common people

Print Culture and the French Revolution

• Print popularized Enlightenment ideas
• Created a culture of debate and discussion
• Spread literature critical of royalty, contributing to revolutionary thought

The 19th Century

Mass Literacy

• Compulsory education increased children's readership
• Women's literature increased: penny magazines, novels
• Lending libraries educated workers
• Worker writers expressed political ideas

Technological Advances

• Power-driven and cylindrical presses increased speed
• Offset press invented
• New marketing strategies: serialized novels, affordable paperbacks

Print in India

Pre-Printing Era

• Tradition of handwritten manuscripts in various languages
• Manuscripts were expensive, fragile, and difficult to read

Introduction of Print

• Printing press arrived in mid-16th century with Portuguese missionaries
• Early prints in Konkani, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam
• English printing began with Bengal Gadget in 1780

Religious Reform and Debates

• Public debates on religious reforms via prints
• Rise of vernacular and religious texts
• Creation of a shared identity through print

New Forms of Publication

• Novels and other literary forms gained popularity
• Visual culture emerged with printed images and illustrations

Women and Print

• Women's education and readership increased
• Journals and books focused on women's issues and roles

Print and the Poor

• Affordable books reached poorer populations
• Public libraries increased accessibility
• Caste discrimination and reform discussed in print

Print and Censorship

• Early censorship on English critiques of the East India Company
• Stricter controls post-1857 revolt
• Vernacular Press Act of 1878 targeted nationalist press

Conclusion

• Print culture profoundly changed information access and society
• It fostered debates, spread new ideas, and contributed to revolutions.