Social Science (087) — CBSE Class 10 board question

Print culture created favourable conditions for the French Revolution in three ways:

1. Spread of Enlightenment ideas: Writings of Voltaire and Rousseau criticised tradition, superstition, and despotism. Readers began questioning the authority of the Church and the state.

1. Culture of debate: Print created public dialogue where values, norms, and institutions were re-evaluated through reason, giving rise to ideas of social revolution.

1. Anti-monarchy literature: By the 1780s, pamphlets, cartoons, and caricatures mocked the royalty and criticised their morality, circulating underground and building hostile sentiments against the monarchy.

Source: Print Culture and the Modern World, Section 4.2

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Examiners expect three distinct points for a 3-mark answer — one per mark. Each point should name the argument clearly and support it with a brief example (Voltaire/Rousseau, public debate, underground cartoons). Avoid writing a lengthy introduction. Start directly with the points. The phrase "eroding legitimacy of a social order based on tradition" is textbook language — using it scores well.