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The Transformational Century And Historical Sources And Tools Essay

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1. Why is the 15th century called the transformational century and what historical sources and tools can be used to verify this description! Please discuss fully.

While the 15th century had an abundance of things that collectively caused it to be called the transformational century, such as the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of the Byzantine Empire, and the use of guns to fight battles, I believe that the printing press makes a strong statement about the change in society. The reason the printing press stands out is it was a major change to how information was exchanged. Prior to the invention of the printing press, it’s estimated that only about 10% men/1% women were literate (Willis, 2015). However, in 1674 literacy rates were 60% for men and 30% for women (Harvard, n.d.). This increase in literacy rates greatly aided the Renaissance age by allowing information to be spread much more rapidly than previously possible. Just as the printing press encouraged the renaissance age, the renaissance age encouraged the use of the printing press. This can be seen by the rapid increase in the number of towns that had printing presses in use, around 236 towns had their own print shops (Maxfield, 2009). This also caused ideologies to spread much faster than, exposing people to previously unknown ways. Which in turn allowed people to develop their own new ideas. This increased desire for knowledge is the heart why the 15th century is called the transformational century. There

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