Discussion
Where would we be if printing press had never been invented? Name some things that would be different without the invention of the printing press.
If the printing press had not been invented, our world would be very different. The widespread distribution of knowledge, which democratizes access to information, would have been hampered. Without the press, literacy rates might have remained a privilege for the elite, as books would be scarce, with painstakingly hand-copied volumes available only to the wealthy.
The Renaissance, which was driven by the spread of ideas, may have experienced major delays. The Reformation may have struggled to acquire traction without the ability to mass-produce tracts and bibles. Scientific discoveries would move slowly, hampered by the lack of journals and textbooks, limiting the rate of innovation and comprehension.
In politics, the concept of informed citizens would be significantly different, if not nonexistent, because newspapers and political tracts would no longer play such an important role in influencing public opinion and holding power accountable. Without the press to facilitate the exchange and growth of ideas, cultural uniformity would last longer.
Education would remain a luxury, with oral tradition and apprenticeship serving as the major methods of acquiring trades and stories. The average person would most likely navigate a more local and less linked world, with vistas not expanded by the printed word. In essence, the printing press is a cornerstone in the arch of human progress; without it, civilization would fall behind intellectually and culturally.
GRQ
1. camera obscura
2. light-sensitive chemistry
3. daguerreotype
4. negative/positive
5. "aura"
6. commodity value
7. exhibition value
8. cult value
9. photomontage
10. appropriated elements
11. cinematography
12. Photomechanical reproduction
13. Eadweard Muybridge's
14. Jules-Etienne Marey
15. The Dadaist
16. El Lissitsky
17. Photomontage
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