Recapping the World History Seminar “Impacts of Printing in Early Modern Europe: What We can Learn from the Paratexts of Early Printed Books?” conducted by Prof. Ann BLAIR on 8 September 2022

Prof. Ann BLAIR from the Department of History, Harvard University, was invited by the Centre for Comparative and Public History to deliver a lecture entitled “Impacts of Printing in Early Modern Europe: What We can Learn from the Paratexts of Early Printed Books?” on 8 September 2022. Prof. BLAIR started the lecture by discussing the etymology and history of “paratext”. Specifically, she examined the risks of print capitalism in early modern Europe in contrast with the Chinese printing projects. She approached this research conundrum by diving into a wide range of sources including publications of Erasmus, Copernicus, and Conrad Gessner in conjunction with books in the collections at CUHK. Her research shed light on how authors and printers of early printed books treated authorship and readership in their time. Some new kinds of paratexts took hold while others remained one-offs. The lecture concluded by regarding paratexts as an experimental site in which the printers and authors struggled to attract buyers, forestall criticism, and boost their reputation. In this sense, paratexts give a glimpse of the multiple people involved in printing a book.

 

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World History Seminar (2022-23)

Organisers: Centre for Comparative and Public History, Department of History, CUHK
Enquiry: 3943 8541

 

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