NCERT Solutions for Class 10 Social Science History Chapter 5 - Print Culture and the Modern World

The last chapter of the Class 10 history lesson discusses the emergence and development of print. The concept of print developed in East Asia and gradually expanded to Europe and India. The earliest idea and process of print can be traced back to 594 A.D in China when printing was done by hand. The idea of calligraphy was also developed during the process of manual printing. Print culture thrived in China, where examinations were held to recruit officials who were well-versed in lessons printed in books. Gradually, there was an increase in readership, and more books were printed to satisfy the diverse readership.

The print process was brought to Japan around 768-770 A.D. In Japan, poet and writer published their literary pieces on the paper regularly. Gradually, illustrations were printed as well, which was found in various places. Libraries cropped up in Japan, and they were filled with books on various subjects.

Years later, in 1295, Marco Polo brought the knowledge of printing to Italy after exploring China for several years. In Europe, China's traditional woodblock printing technique was used to print book on paper for common folk and vellum for the aristocrats. Gradually, printed books gained popularity, and there was an increase in demand. However, the demand couldn't be satisfied by the slow manual printing process. Therefore, the printing press was invented and perfected by Gutenberg by the year 1448. Due to the increased speed of printing through the printing press, more machines were set up across Europe.

The increased volume of printed books led to a decrease in the overall cost of books. Consequently, a new circle of public readership emerged. Even though printing was becoming popular, people were protesting against it since often printing press was used to publish material that opposed the Church and so on.

The printing press also influenced the educational system around the world. Due to the availability of books, children were made to study compulsorily. Also, the progress of the printing press brought forth the idea of advertisements. Lastly, due to increased readership, censorship was established by the East India Company in India to control the publishing of disagreeable material in the newspapers.