Print Culture and the Modern World Notes - Class X PDF

DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL SECUNDERABAD NACHARAM/MAHENDRAHILLS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOCI...

DELHI PUBLIC SCHOOL SECUNDERABAD NACHARAM/MAHENDRAHILLS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOCIAL STUDIES (NOTES) Print Culture and the Modern World CLASS X -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. ”By 17th century, as urban culture bloomed in China ,the uses of print diversified.”Explain by giving example.  The print was no longer used just by scholar –officials  Merchants used print in their everyday life to collect trade information. Reading increasingly became a leisure activity.  The readers now preferred fictions, poetry, autobiographies and romantic plays.  Rich women began to read and many women began publishing their poetry and plays. Wives of scholar- officials published their works and courtesans wrote about their lives. 2. Why did the woodblock method become popular in Europe? or What were the drawbacks of handwritten manuscripts?  The Printing of handwritten manuscripts could not meet the ever increasing demand for books.  Copying was an expensive and laborious and time consuming.  The manuscripts were fragile, awkward to handle and could not be carried around or read easily.so their circulation remained limited,  By the early 15th century, woodblocks started being widely used in Europe to print textiles, playing cards and religious pictures with simple brief texts. 3. What were the features of the new books which were produced in Europe after the invention of Gutenberg’s press?  Printed books resembled greatly the written manuscripts in appearance and layout.  The metal letters imitated the ornamental handwritten styles.  Borders were illuminated by hand with foliage and other patterns ,and illustrations were painted.  In the books printed for the rich ,space for decoration was kept blank on the printed page.  Each purchaser could choose the design and decide on the painting school to do the illustrations. 4. ” The shift from hand printing to mechanical printing led to print revolution.” Explain.  In the hundred years between 1450 and 1550 , the printing presses were set in most of the countries of Europe.  Printers from Germany travelled to other countries seeking work and helping to start new presses, As the number pf printing presses grew , book production boomed.  The second half pf the fifteenth century saw around 20millions of printed books flooding the markets in Europe. The number went up in the sixteenth century to about 200 million copies.  It influenced popular perceptions and opened up new ways pf looking at things. 5 Print popularized the ideas of “ Enlightenment thinkers “ Explain  Collectively the writings of thinkers provided a critical commentary on tradition, superstition and despotism.  Scholars and thinkers argued for the rule of reason rather than custom, and demanded that everything be judged through the application of reason and rationality.   They attacked the sacred authority of the Church and the despotic power of the state, thus eroding the legitimacy of social order based on tradition.  The writings of Voltaire and Rousseau were read widely; and those who read books saw the world through new eyes, eyes that were questioning critical and rational. 6 Mention some of the important characteristics of print culture in Japan.  Introduced by the Buddhists missionaries: The Buddhist missionaries from China introduced the hand printing technology into Japan around AD 768-770 AD  The oldest Japanese book , printed in AD 868 , is the Buddhist Diamond Sutra , containing six sheets of teaxt and woodcut illustrations.  Playing cards, paper money and textile products were used for printing pictures.  In the medieval Japan, the works of the poets and prose writers were regularly published and books were cheap and abundant.  In the late 18th century , in the flourishing urban circles at Edo ( later known as Tokyo) , illustrated collections of paintings depicting an elegant urban culture , involving artists , courtesans and teahouse gatherings. 7 “Print not only stimulates the publication of conflicting opinions amongst communities, but it also connected communities and people in different parts of India.” Explain  Debates on religious, social and economic issues: From the early nineteenth century there serious debates on religious, social and economic issues. Reformers offered a variety of new interpretations of the beliefs of different religions. There were many who criticized the existing practices and campaigned for reforms while others countered.  Impact on debates: These debates were carried out openly in public and in print. Printed tracts and newspapers not only spread the new ideas but they also shaped the nature of the debates.  New ideas and clashes: A wider range of people could now participate in these public discussions and express their views , New ideas emerged through these clashes of opinions.  Pan – Indian identities: Newspapers conveyed news from one place to another, creating pan- Indian identities. Newspapers reported on colonial misrule and encouraged nationalist activities. 8 Explain the impact of print culture on Indian women. Or Explain any three impact of printed books on women in India in the nineteenth century. Answer  Writers started writing about the lives and feelings of women, and this increased the number of women readers. Women got interested in education, and many women schools and colleges were set up. Many journals started emphasizing the importance of women education.  In East Bengal in the early nineteenth century , Rashsundari Debi, a young married girl wrote her autobiography , Amar Jiban ( means” my life”) which was published in 1876. From the 1860’s many Bengali women writers like Kailashbashini Debi wrote books highlighting the experience of women , about how women were imprisoned at home, kept in ignorance , forced to hard domestic labor , and treated unjustly by the menfolk , they served. In the 1880’s in the present day Maharashtra, Tarabai Shinde and Pandita Ramabai wrote with passionate anger about the miserable lives of about the miserable lives of upper caste Hindu women, especially the widows. The poor status of women was expressed by Tamil writers.   IN the early 20th century the journals written by women, became very popular in which women’s education widowhood, widow remarriage, etc, were discussed. Some of them fashion lessons for women.  Ram Chaddha published Istri Dharam Vichar to teach women to be obedient wives, The Khalsa Tract Society published cheap booklets with a similar message , Many of these were in the form of dialogues about the qualities of a good woman 9 Describe the issue of caste as taken by the novelists in India. What were the effect of spread of print culture for poor people in the 19th century?  The print reached the poor in the 19th century.publishers started producing small and cheap books.Public libraries were set up from the early 20th century ,expanding access to books.  From late 19th century ,issues of caste discrimination began to be written about and printed.  Jyotiba Phule , the Maratha pioneer of low caste protest movements , wrote about the injustices of caste system in his Gulamgiri  In the twentieth century , B.R. Ambedhkar in Maharashtra and E.V Ramaswamy Naicker in Madras wrote on caste and their writings were read by people all over India.  Local protest movements and sects also created a lot of popular journals and tracts criticizing ancient scriptures and envisioning a new and just future.  Kashibaba , a Kanpur mill worker wrote Chote Aur Bade Ka Sawal in 1938 to show the links between caste and class exploitation.  The poems of Sudharshan Chakr, another Kanpur mill worker, were brought together and published in a collection called Sacchi Kavitayan.  By 1930s ,Bangalore cotton mill workers set up libraries to educate themselves. 10 Write about the different innovations in Printing technology during the 19th century?  By the mid- nineteenth century , Richard M.Hoie of New York had perfected the power-driven cylindrical press. This was capable of printing 8,000 sheets per hour. This press was particularly useful for printing newspapers.  In the late nineteenth century the offset press was developed which could print up to six colors at a time.  From the turn of twentieth century electrically operated presses accelerated printing operations. 11 Trace the history of print culture in Europe.  In the 11th century paper reached China through the silk route which made it possible the production of manuscripts written by scribes.  In1295 AD Marco Polo ,the great explorer ,brought the print technology from China.Now the Italians started publishing books with woodblocks.Soon the technology spread to other parts of Europe.  With the growing demand for books woodblock print became more and more popular.By the early 15th century woodblocks were being widely used in Europe to print textiles, playing cards.and religious pictures with simple ,brief texts.  The woodblock print could not satisfy the needs of the people. There was clearly a great need for quicker and cheaper method to reproduce texts. This could happen only with the invention of a new technology.This breakthrough happened when Johann Gutenberg developed his first known printing press in 1448. 12 How did printers manage to attract people largely illiterate towards printed books?   Before the advent of printing technology book reading was restricted to elites. Common people lived in the world of oral culture.  With printing press books could reach out to a wider section of audience. If earlier there was hearing public ,now a reading public came into being.  But the rate of literacy was very low in most European countries till the 20th century.Publishers had to keep in mind the wider reach of printed books. Even those did not read could certainly enjoy listening to books being read out.  Printers began to publish popular ballads and folklores. These books were profusely illustrated with pictures.  These were then sung in gatherings in villages and in taverns in towns.  In India Bankim Chandra would read out his novels to a gathering. 13 Why did some people fear the effect of easily available books? Choose one example from Europe and one from India.  Many religious authorities, monarchs and writers were of the opinion that printed words and wider circulation of books would have a negative impact on people’s mind.  They feared that if there was no control over what was printed and read ,then rebellious and irreligious thoughts might spread..  There was also fear in the mind of scholars that valuable literature would be destroyed.  Implication on religion. In 1517 Martin Luther ,a German monk ,priest ,professor and a Church reformer wrote ninety five Theses criticizing many of the practices and rituals of Roman Catholic Church. A printed copy of his Theses was posted on the Church door of Wittenberg which was immediately reproduced in vast numbers and read widely. This led to division within the Church and led to the beginning of the Protestant Reformation Movement.  In India many conservative Hindus believed that a literate girl would be widowed and Muslims believed that educated women could get corrupted by reading Urdu romances.There are many instances of women defying the prohibition .In East Bengal Rashsundari Debi from an orthodox household read in the secrecy of her kitchen and wrote her autobiography Amar Jiban. Such writings by many others led to social reformation of women in India.  14 Why did some people in 18th century Europe think that print culture would bring enlightenment and end despotism?  Literacy rates in Europe were as high as 60to80%in Europe in the 18th century. This led to a virtual reading mania in Europe.  The periodicals and journals printed carried information about wars and trade as well as news of development in other places.  The ideas of scientists and philosophers became more accessible to the people. Scientific text ,maps and scientific diagrams were widely published. Whan scientists like Issac Newton began to publish their discoveries ,they could influence scientifically minded readers.  The print popularized the ideas of Martin Luther ,Rousseau,  Voltaire who questioned the authority of the church and despotic rule of the monarch.   All these led to an age of dialogue debate reason and rationality. 15 How were ideas and information written before the age of print in India ? How did the printing technique begin in India? Explain.  India had a very rich and old tradition of handwritten manuscripts in Sanskrit , Arabic ,Persian as well as in various vernacular languages.  Pages were sometimes beautifully illustrated.They would be either pressed between wooden covers or sewn together to ensure preservation.  Manuscripts continued to be produced till well after the introduction of print, down to the late nineteenth century.  The printing press first came to Goa with Portuguese missionaries in the mid- sixteenth century, Jesuit priests learnt Konkani and printed several tracts. By 1674 about 50 books had been printed in the Konkani and in Kanara languages.  The Catholic priests printed the first Tamil book in 1579 at Cochin , and in 1713 , the first Malayalam book was printed by them. 16 Explain the role of print in the religious reforms in India.  From the early nineteenth century there serious debates on religious, social and economic issues. Reformers offered a variety of new interpretations of the beliefs of different religions.  Print led to intense controversies between social and religious reformers and the Hindu orthodoxy over matters like widow immolation, monotheism, Brahmanical priesthood and idol worship.  To reach a wider audience, the ideas were printed in spoken language of ordinary people.  Print carried the ideas of social reformers to common people Eg Sambad Kaumundi by Raja Ram Mohan Roy.  In north India ,the Ulama feared that the colonial rulers would encourage conversion and change the Muslim Personal Law.To counter this The Deoband Seminary founded in 1867 published thousands and thousands fatwas telling Muslim readers how to conduct themselves in every day lives and explaining the meaning of Islamic doctrines.  Among Hindus too print encouraged the reading of religious texts , especially in vernacular languages.The first printed edition of the Ramacharitmanas of Tulsidas came out in Calcutta in 1810. 17 ”By the end of the 19th century a new visual culture was taking shape”. Write any three features of this visual culture (India).  The printing press had a deep impact on the visual images also. Now visual images could be easily reproduced in multiple copies.  Printers like Raja Ravi Verma produced images for mass circulation. Cheap print and calendars could be bought even by the poor to decorate their walls.  Caricatures and cartoons which were published in journals and newspapers made fun of the educated Indian’s fascination to copy Western tastes and clothes. Some openly criticized imperial rule. 18 Explain how print culture assisted in the growth of nationalism in India?  The development of print culture not only spread the new ideas but also connected communities and people in different parts of India.  Newspapers conveyed news from one place to another ,creating pan-Indian identities.  Despite repressive measures ,nationalists news papers grew in numbers in all parts of India. They reported colonial misrule and encouraged nationalists activities. Any attempt to stop such publications by colonial rulers to militant protest. When Punjab revolutionaries were deported in 1907 Tilak wrote with great sympathy about them in his Kesari.  Many novels written by Indian novelists like Bankim’s Anandamath created nationalists feelings among he people.