ABSTRACT
Up until the 20th century, the majority of people in every society were not literate and schooling was reserved for a small population of male elites. It wasn’t until after the invention of the printing press in Asia and Europe that literacy spread to the common people. The development of widespread literacy and the mass-production of books eventually led to important cultural developments in Europe. These developments not only furthered the creation of new knowledge, they also led to new political debates over how society should be governed, which ultimately led to the development of democracy.
