Ever wondered what publishing literature was like before 2014? It is fascinating to look back and examine how societal views affected the books that were being printed.
The 19th century was a period of transition from the rationalism of the 18th century to the irrational thought that was emerging. As the security and optimism which characterized the belief in progress in the nineteenth century faded, fear and pessimism and demands for security began to take hold. The 20th century saw the growth and expansion of irrationalism reflected in the interest in psychology, advertising, mass propaganda, totalitarian states and war.
Read “The English Press in the Nineteenth Century” from the 1946 edition of University of Toronto Quarterly to learn more about the influences that affected the thought of society and subsequently the books being published in the 19th and 20th century.
