Print Culture and Literacy Flashcards
(7 cards)
1
Q
The Production of Fine Manuscripts
A
- traditionally produced monasteries
- monks were part of Europe’s small section of literate population
- Vespasiano de Bisticci commissioned 45 scribes to produce 200 books in 2 years, only got 100
2
Q
Johannes Gutenberg
A
- 1398 to 1468
- did not invent the printing press as woodblock printing is known to have existed from the 14th century
- invented movable metal printer and oil based ink
3
Q
The Spread of Printing
A
- by 1480, more than 110 towns had printing presses, by 1500, 236 had one
- between 15th- end of 16th, 28000 new titles appeared
4
Q
Religious Books
A
- was the largest category of publication
- Protestant countries had a large demand for vernacular bibles, by 1640 630,000 English bibles printed
- Catholic reform and counter reformation: printed papal bulls and other ecclesiastical pronouncements assisted church centralisation after suffering with Protestant blows
5
Q
The Impact of Printing
A
- emergence of the vernacular texts and translation culture increased literacy rates
- the renaissance, the reformation, and the rise of modern science was better understood through the prism of print
- growth of libraries, including public ones
6
Q
Literacy Levels in Europe
A
- highest among the urban upper classes of north west Europe
- a slow increase from 1500 to 1800
- greatest gap between male and female literacy was in the middle of the social scale
- by mid 18th century, majority of male artisans could read and write, women could not
- writing was considered more expensive than reading so children learned to read first
7
Q
Conclusions
A
- by the 18th century, reading tastes shifted away from religious books towards more secular, entertaining materials (French Revolution)
- education, literacy, free access to the printing press could produce material that damaged the state
