LESSON 2.2 How do we know about the emergence of the modern world?
LEARNING INTENTION By the end of the lesson, you should be able to: • explain how we know about Europe from 1500 to 1650 • identify key historical sources from this period • develop skills in using historical evidence effectively.
Tune in In medieval Europe, monks wrote most records, as the majority of people couldn’t read. Between 1500 and 1650, many Europeans were still illiterate, but ideas spread among the educated. The printing press became key for sharing ideas. Although China had used movable type since the tenth century, Johannes Gutenberg (1398–1452) built Europe’s first printing press between 1440 and 1452.
SOURCE1 An artist’s depiction of Johannes Gutenberg inspecting the first printed sheet of his Bible
1. Explain how life would be different if all books still had to be copied by hand. 2. Describe what daily life would be like without the invention of printing. 3. Analyse the impact the printing press had on the spread of knowledge and literacy.
20 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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