Choose
one of the many ramifications resulting from the invention of the moveable type
press. Discuss the change and its impact upon the world.” (300 words)
From rIesling to reading
Prior
to the development of Gutenberg’s printing press, text was generally
handwritten (copied) in Europe or block printed in parts of Asia, specifically
China. Despite early success with printing, the multitude of Chinese characters
provided a road block to further success. Gutenberg’s mechanical mind and practical
skills, combined with the simpler Latin alphabet, was able to transform the
printing process. As a devout man, Gutenberg, could not have had a more ironic
inspiration in his development of the movable type printing press - the wine
press of his home in one of Germany’s most notable wine regions.
Apart
from the obvious increased output, one of the most important ramifications of
this invention was the standardization of the replicated text. Books, which
were now more affordable to produce and therefore consume, provided ideas and
information which could now literally be carried from one town to another by a
greater number of people. These standardized texts impacted the very linguistic
nature of the written word. Long term effects included formalizing the rules of
grammar and spelling, as well as the development of modern English.
Books
on secular topics such as science, philosophy, business and law, as well as
religious texts, began a slow filtering down through the wealthier classes to
more traditionally illiterate and lower, poorer classes. The
publication of the Bible, which had the support of the Church, had the
inadvertent follow on effect of creating a society which no longer was as
dependent upon the Church. Church elders, and to an extent non-church elders,
were no longer seen as the keepers of wisdom. Fundamentally, it empowered the
individual to be an agent of change in their own lives.
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