I wrote this for class.

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Gildehus, Mark T. History and Historian: A Historiographical Introduction, 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002.

McLuhan, Marshall. Understanding Media: “The Printed Word.” New York: McGraw Hill, 1964.

   This chapter from a textbook by Marshall McLuhan deals with the history of typography, how it evolved, and the changes it impacted on society. The change from manuscripts to moveable type, and more recently to electronic type, made revolutionary changes on society. A variety of methods of analysis are used to make sense of the evidence, including historical fact and quotations from historical writings.

   The significance of this piece is that it deals with the question of how printed sources have changed over time. This corresponds with the way the modern historian and the profession of historian evolved in the modern era starting during the Renaissance, at about the same time as the printing press as stated in the chapter by Mark Gildehus. The availability of the printing press has made it much easier for historians to access historical sources. Previously to copy an historical writing, it had to be done by hand. With the invention of the printing press, it became much easier for historians to analyze the past.