Social Science (087) — CBSE Class 10 board question

Print culture contributed to the French Revolution in the following ways:

1. Spread of Enlightenment ideas: Print popularised writings of Voltaire and Rousseau, which attacked Church authority and despotic power of the state, eroding the legitimacy of the existing social order.

1. Culture of dialogue and debate: Print created a public culture where all values, norms and institutions were questioned and re-evaluated, giving rise to new ideas of social revolution.

1. Literature mocking royalty: By the 1780s, cartoons and pamphlets mocked the monarchy and criticised their morality, circulating underground and building hostile sentiments against the existing order.

Source: Chapter 5, Section 4.2 — Print Culture and the French Revolution

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• This is a 3-mark, 3-point question — one clear point per mark is ideal. The examiner expects exactly three distinct effects.
• Use the three arguments from the textbook: (1) Enlightenment ideas, (2) debate culture, (3) anti-monarchy literature. Don't mix them up.
• Name Voltaire and Rousseau — examiners reward specific examples.
• Avoid writing a lengthy introduction; go straight to the points.