The Printing Press

 The Printing Press

Our world has seen so many amazing innovations that once seemed impossible. The idea of creating fire had been the most innovative invention from humans just a short time ago. Today we have massive innovations in areas like social media and transportation. All of these innovations changed the world and how humans interact.

In the 15th century, one of those inventions was also created and is one of the most innovative of all time. A man by the name of Johannes Gutenberg created the Printing Press, a machine that allowed for mass production of all written media. Written media
is used in our everyday lives in the forms of books and newspapers. Without the invention of the Printing Press, none of this would have been possible.

It was the assembly line before the assembly line was created. Sorry Random E. Olds and Henry Ford but you were a few centuries behind! Without Johannes Gutenberg's invention, who knows where would be as a society today.

The History of the Printing Press

The origins of the Printing Press are still relatively unknown. The first idea of the printing press dates back to the first millennium A.D. in China. It was not until the 15th century where Gutenberg really made this invention more prominent. 

Prior to the invention of the Printing Press, all media that was going to be mass produced had to be done by the painstaking process of copying down the media over and over again. This made literature and news much harder to get a hold of and was very expensive as well. Having a lot of literature during this time was known as a symbol of status.

With the invention of the Printing Press, all written media could be produced at an exponentially faster rate than before. Information was also more accurate as the human error element of copying words down was essentially eliminated.

The original Printing Press was made out of wood with individual wooden blocks that were used as the letters. This Printing Press, made by Wang Zhen, was used by the Chinese for about 150 years until a better version of the Printing Press was made.

Insert Johannes Gutenberg, an inventor who was a political exile from Mainz, Germany. While being exiled Gutenberg resided in France, where he would spend the next 10 years creating what is known now as the Gutenberg Press.

The Gutenberg Press used metal blocks for the keys instead of wood making the machine as a whole work much more properly. Gutenberg even created his own ink that would work even better on the metal surfaces. Gutenberg had his machine and it was pumping out media faster than any human had been able to prior.

The Impact of the Printing Press

The Printing Press is one of the most innovative inventions in human history. Without it we would simply not be where we are today. Yet it was not always looked at that way. Upper class elites looked down on the Printing Press, stating that hand written books were a symbol of luxury compared to the simplicity of a mass produced book. For much time in the beginning of the Printing Press’s life, it was only the lower and middle classes who seemed like they wanted to benefit from this amazing invention.

The spread of Printing created a whole new field of work for German workers. People who once helped Gutenberg were now teaching the trade to others to help spread information around the world.

Prior to the Printing Press, receiving any sort of education was something that was for privileged people who were able to afford it. After the creation of the Printing Press, there was a surge in education as literacy rates began to skyrocket. 

Anyone and everyone was now able to get their hands on literature. The cost of books dropped by over two-thirds between the years 1450-1500. Not a coincidence when Gutenberg's invention was created in 1450. 

The Printing Press spread as fast as they were actually Printing the literature itself, by 1500 the Printing Press was being used by the Pope and Catholic Church. Politicians soon found out they could gain public interest by creating pamphlets at a super cheap price. 

Fast forward 100 years to 1605, the first ever newspaper known as the Relation was published. Newspapers would eventually start being made all over Europe. With literacy rates higher than ever before, more and more people were buying newspapers thus creating a whole new industry that is still being used today.

Without the Printing Press we would not be where we are today. It had impacts in every aspect of our lives. It helped create a world where reading was for everybody. Anyone and everyone were not able to buy books instead of just the elites. Information was able to be spread much more accurately. The Printing Press was not only just a pioneer for how we receive our news and other forms of literature, it was the foundation of it all.

Thank you, Johannes Gutenberg.