NCERT Questions & Answers + Important Extra Questions
NCERT Textbook Questions
Give reasons for the following: (a) Woodblock print only came to Europe after 1295. (b) Martin Luther was in favour of print and spoke out in praise of it. (c) The Roman Catholic Church began keeping an Index of Prohibited Books from the mid-sixteenth century. (d) Gandhi said the fight for Swaraj is a fight for liberty of speech, liberty of the press, and freedom of association.
Answer
(a) Woodblock printing had been developed in China around the 6th century but reached Europe only after 1295 because that is when Marco Polo returned to Italy after many years of exploration in China. He brought knowledge of the Chinese woodblock printing technology with him. Before Marco Polo's journey, there was limited direct contact between Europe and China, so the technology had not been transmitted. After his return, Italians began producing books using woodblock printing, and the technology gradually spread across Europe.
(b) Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation, strongly supported printing because it enabled him to spread his revolutionary ideas rapidly. In 1517, he wrote the Ninety Five Theses criticising the corrupt practices of the Roman Catholic Church (especially the sale of indulgences). A printed copy was posted on a church door in Wittenberg and quickly reproduced — within weeks, thousands of copies had spread across Germany. Luther's German translation of the Bible (New Testament, 1522) sold 5,000 copies in just weeks. He realised that printing was "God's highest and extremest act of grace, whereby the business of the Gospel is driven forward" — it could bypass Church censorship and reach ordinary people directly.
(c) The Roman Catholic Church began the Index of Prohibited Books (Index Librorum Prohibitorum) because printing had made it impossible to control the spread of ideas. Before print, the Church could regulate the limited number of hand-copied manuscripts. But with printing, heretical, anti-Catholic, and Protestant ideas spread rapidly. Martin Luther's writings, scientific works challenging Church dogma (like those of Copernicus), and philosophical critiques circulated freely. The Church felt its authority was being undermined, so from 1558 onwards it published a list of books that Catholics were forbidden to read, and imposed severe censorship.
(d) Gandhiji said this because he understood that the freedom struggle was not just about political independence — it was about fundamental civil liberties. The colonial government used press censorship, sedition laws, and restrictions on assembly to suppress the national movement. Newspapers and journals were the primary tools for spreading nationalist ideas, educating people, and building public opinion. Without freedom of the press, people could not be informed about their rights or the nature of colonial exploitation. Without freedom of association, political organisations could not function. Gandhiji saw these liberties as inseparable from Swaraj — true self-rule required a free and informed citizenry.
Write short notes on: (a) The Gutenberg Press (b) Erasmus's idea of the printed book (c) The Vernacular Press Act
Answer
(a) The Gutenberg Press: Johann Gutenberg of Strasbourg, Germany, developed the first known printing press with movable metal type around 1430s-1440s. He drew on his experience as a goldsmith to create metal moulds for individual letters that could be arranged, printed, and rearranged for new texts. His first major printed book was the Bible (Gutenberg Bible), produced around 1455 — about 180 copies were printed, of which 48 survive today. The press revolutionised the production of books — they became cheaper, faster to produce, and more widely available. By 1500, printing presses were operating in most European countries, and an estimated 20 million copies of books had been printed. This technology transformed European society by making knowledge accessible beyond the elite.
(b) Erasmus's idea: Desiderius Erasmus, the great Dutch scholar and humanist, had mixed feelings about the printing revolution. While he acknowledged its power, he was critical of the flood of low-quality books that printing produced. He wrote in his Adages (1508): "The swarms of new books are so foolish that even a learned man might be led astray." He feared that printing allowed "scandalous, irreligious, and seditious" works to circulate alongside serious scholarship. He believed that not everything deserved to be printed and that the sheer volume of books could drown out truly valuable ideas. His concern represents an early version of the "information overload" debate.
(c) The Vernacular Press Act (1878): Passed by Lord Lytton, this Act was designed to control the Indian-language (vernacular) press. The Act gave the government broad powers to censor and suppress newspapers and journals published in Indian languages. If a vernacular newspaper published anything considered "seditious" or critical of the government, the press could be confiscated and the printer/publisher could be jailed. The Act did not apply to English-language newspapers, exposing the discriminatory nature of colonial rule. The Act was modelled on the Irish Press Laws. Despite fierce opposition from Indian nationalists and journalists, the Act remained in force until 1882 when Lord Ripon repealed it. However, various press laws continued to restrict Indian journalism throughout the colonial period.
What did the spread of print culture in nineteenth century India mean to: (a) Women (b) The poor (c) Reformers
Answer
(a) Women: Print culture opened new worlds for women in 19th-century India:
(i) Books and journals written for and by women became increasingly popular. They addressed issues like women's education, child marriage, widow remarriage, and purdah.
(ii) Women like Rashsundari Debi wrote autobiographies — her Amar Jiban (1876) was the first full-length autobiography in Bengali, describing how she secretly taught herself to read and write.
(iii) Tarabai Shinde and Pandita Ramabai wrote passionately about the condition of upper-caste Hindu women, especially widows.
(iv) Hindi and Urdu women's magazines (like Khatun-e-Mashriq) discussed women's education, health, and empowerment.
(v) Conservative men and women also used print to oppose women's education, creating a debate within society.
(vi) Print helped literate women share their experiences and encouraged others to seek education.
(b) The Poor:
(i) Cheap, small-format books called chapbooks (battala publications in Bengal) became available at very low prices, making reading accessible to the poor for the first time.
(ii) From the late 19th century, public libraries were set up in cities and towns, allowing even those who could not afford books to read.
(iii) Jyotiba Phule wrote about the injustices of the caste system — his Gulamgiri (1871) compared the condition of lower castes to American slavery and drew on the ideas of the abolitionist movement.
(iv) B.R. Ambedkar and other Dalit writers used print to challenge Brahmanical claims and demand social justice.
(v) Kashibaba, a Kanpur mill worker, wrote Chhote aur Bade ka Sawal in 1938, highlighting the struggles of factory workers.
(vi) Sudarshan Chakr by Sacchidananda Sinha (published by Bangalore cotton mill workers) gave voice to working-class concerns.
(c) Reformers:
(i) Social reformers used print to spread their ideas and challenge orthodoxy. Raja Ram Mohan Roy published the Sambad Kaumudi and wrote against sati, idolatry, and superstition.
(ii) Newspapers became powerful tools for reform — they created public debates on social issues like child marriage, widow remarriage, caste discrimination, and women's education.
(iii) Print allowed reformers to reach a much wider audience than speeches or sermons ever could.
(iv) Tracts and pamphlets could be cheaply printed and distributed, creating mass awareness.
(v) However, print also gave a voice to orthodox groups who used it to defend existing practices, leading to vigorous public debates that ultimately pushed society towards change.
Important Extra Questions
How did print culture develop in China and Japan?
Answer
China: China was the first country to develop printing technology. By the 6th century, woodblock printing was being used — the earliest known printed book is the Diamond Sutra (868 AD). The imperial state used print to produce examination textbooks, and Buddhist monasteries printed vast numbers of religious texts. By the 17th century, urban culture flourished with printed fiction, poetry, and romances. In the 19th century, Western missionaries introduced modern printing techniques, and Chinese newspapers began publishing.
Japan: Buddhist missionaries from China brought printing to Japan around 768-770 AD. The oldest Japanese book was printed in 868 AD. Printing of Buddhist texts was initially dominant. By the 17th-18th centuries (Edo period), woodblock printing was thriving commercially — illustrated collections of paintings, novels, and popular literature became widely available. Urban readers consumed a variety of printed material including travel guides, tea ceremony instructions, and entertainment literature.
How did the printing press contribute to the French Revolution?
Answer
Print played a crucial role in creating the conditions for the French Revolution (1789):
(i) Enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire, Rousseau, and Diderot used print to spread ideas of liberty, equality, reason, and criticism of absolute monarchy and Church authority.
(ii) Their books and pamphlets were widely read — Rousseau's The Social Contract argued for popular sovereignty.
(iii) Diderot's Encyclopedia (published 1751-72) compiled knowledge and promoted rational thinking, undermining blind faith in tradition and authority.
(iv) Print created a new culture of dialogue, debate, and public opinion — reading clubs, coffee houses, and salons became centres of discussion.
(v) Cartoons and caricatures mocking the royalty and clergy circulated widely, eroding respect for the old order.
(vi) However, print alone did not cause the revolution — it created the intellectual climate that made people question the existing system and imagine alternatives.
How did print culture develop in India?
Answer
Print came to India through multiple channels:
(i) The first printing press arrived with Portuguese missionaries in Goa in the mid-16th century. Jesuit priests printed religious texts in Konkani and Tamil.
(ii) By the early 19th century, printing presses were set up by Christian missionaries, Company officials, and Indian reformers. James Augustus Hickey published the first newspaper, Bengal Gazette (1780).
(iii) Raja Ram Mohan Roy published Sambad Kaumudi (1821) to promote social reform.
(iv) From the 1830s onwards, religious texts in multiple Indian languages were mass-printed — cheap lithographic presses made it possible to produce texts in Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Bengali, and other languages.
(v) By the 1870s-80s, a thriving vernacular press existed — novels, poetry, essays, and political commentary were published widely.
(vi) Newspapers like Kesari (by Tilak), Hindu Patriot, Amrita Bazar Patrika, and Indian Mirror became powerful tools of nationalist mobilisation.
(vii) The colonial government repeatedly tried to censor the press — through the Vernacular Press Act (1878) and various sedition laws — but could not stop the growth of print culture.
What was the impact of print on Indian society?
Answer
Print transformed Indian society in the 19th and 20th centuries:
(i) It helped create pan-Indian awareness — people across regions could read about the same issues, creating a sense of shared identity and common purpose.
(ii) Social reformers used print to challenge oppressive practices — sati, child marriage, caste discrimination, purdah.
(iii) Print helped develop Indian languages — standardisation of grammar, creation of new literary forms (novels, short stories, essays), and enrichment of vocabulary.
(iv) Nationalism was spread through newspapers, pamphlets, and books — the ideas of Swaraj, Swadeshi, and self-governance reached millions through print.
(v) It gave voice to marginalised groups — women, lower castes, workers — who could now publish their perspectives and challenge the dominant narrative.
(vi) Print created a reading public — literate Indians engaged in debates about politics, society, culture, and religion through newspapers and journals.