What did the spread of print culture in nineteenth century India mean to:
a) Women
b) The poor
c) Reformers.
a) Lives and feelings of women were written with intensity. This increased the number of women who took to reading. Liberal husbands and fathers started educating their womenfolk at home and some sent them to schools. Many journals began carrying writings by women, and explained why women should be educated. They also carried a syllabus and attached suitable reading matter which could be used for home-based schooling.
There was also a negative side to the introduction of books were women were concerned.
Conservative Hindus believed that a literate girl would be widowed.
Muslims feared that educated women would be corrupted by reading Urdu romances.
Social reforms and novels created a great interest in women's lives and emotions. Women's opinions and views were slowly considered and respected. Stories were written about how about how women were imprisoned at home, kept in ignorance, forced to do hard domestic labour and treated unjustly by the very people they served. Stories about the miserable lives of upper-caste Hindu women, especially widows also appeared in print. These stories paved the way for the liberation of the suppressed Indian woman.
b) Very cheap small books were brought to markets in nineteenth-century and sold at crossroads, allowing poor people travelling to markets to buy them. Public libraries were set up from the early twentieth century, expanding the access to books.
Libraries were usually located in cities and towns.
Caste discrimination was a major topic discussed in the print media.
c) During the early nineteenth century, there were intense debates on religious issues. Changes within the colonial society were debated in different ways, and religious beliefs were interpreted differently. Some criticised existing practices and campaigned for reforms, while others opposed reformers. These debates were carried out in public and in print.
Printed matter and newspapers spread the new ideas and the public were now more involved in state matters as they were more knowledgeable now.
As more people started reading about the controversies between social and religious reformers new ideas were born. The Hindu orthodoxy over matters like widow immolation, monotheism, Brahmanical priesthood and idolatry was discussed and soon social reforms were born, championing the cause of the down trodden.
Explain the main features of the first printed Bible. [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Or
Describe any three main features of the first printed Bible. [CBSE 2014]
Trace the history of print in China.
Or
How did China remain a major producer of printed materials for a long time ?
Or
The imperial state in China, was the major producer of printed material.' Support this statement. [CBSE 2014]
Name the printing presses which published numerous religious texts in vernaculars from the 1880s.
Write about the different innovations in the printing technology during the 19th century ? [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Study the given paragraph and answer the following questions that follow :
Liberty of speech…. liberty of the press freedom of association. The government of India is now seeking to crush the three powerful vehicles of expressing and cultivating public opinion. The fight for Swaraj, for Khilafat …. means a fight for this threatened freedom before all else ….'
(i) Who said these words ?
(ii) Name the freedoms he is talking about.
How did printing press create a new- reading public ? Explain. [CBSF. Sept. 2013]
Or
"There was a virtual reading mania in European countries in the 18th century". Explain the factors responsible for this virtual reading mania.
Print popularised the ideas of the Enlightenment thinkers.' Explain. [CBSE 2014]
Or
How did ideas about science, reason and rationality find their way into popular literature in the 18th century Europe ? [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Explain any three features of handwritten manuscripts before the age of print in India. [CBSE Sept. 2010. 2011. 2012. 2013]
Not everyone welcomed the printed books, and those who did also had fears about it.' Explain by giving examples.
In north India, the ulama were deeply anxious about the collapse of Muslim dynasties. They feared that colonial rulers would encourage conversion, change the Muslim personal laws. Mention any two steps taken by them to counter this.
’Liberty of speech … liberty of the press … freedom of association. The government of India is now seeking to crush the three powerful vehicles of expressing and cultivating public opinion, the fight for swaraj, for Khilafat … means a fight for this threatened freedom before all else….’
Who said these words ?
Explain how the print culture assisted the growth of nationalism in India. [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011]
What were the effects of the spread of print culture for poor people in nineteenth century India?
The shift from handprinting to mechanical printing led to the print revolution.’ Explain.
Explain the factors which were responsible for creating a virtual reading mania in Europe. [CBSE 2014]
Or
How did a new reading public emerged with the printing press ? Explain. [CBSE 2010 (D)]
Or
Explain any three reasons for an increase in reading mania in Europe in the 18th Century. [CBSE Sept. 2011]
Printing press played a major role in shaping the Indian society of the 19th century.' Explain by giving examples. [CBSE Sept. 2012, 2013]
Or
Explain the role of press in shaping the Indian society in the 19th century.
Or
How did print introduce debate and discussion ? Write three points. [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011, 2012]
Or
"Print led to intense controversies between social and religious reformers and Hindu orthodoxy."Support this statement with examples. [CBSE 2013]
How were ideas and information written before the age of print in India ? How did the printing technique begin in India ? Explain. [CBSE 2008, Sept. 2010]
Or
Explain the role of missionaries in the growth of press in India. [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Explain the impact of print culture on Indian women. [CBSE 2009 (O), Sept. 2012]
Or
Explain any three impact of printed books on women in India in the nineteenth century.
[CBSE Sept. 2010]