Welcome to the History of English Podcast, a podcast about the history of the English

language.

This is Episode 139, The Business of Printing.

In this episode, we're going to look at the introduction of the printing press to England,

and the first books to be printed and mass produced in the English language.

The person who made that happen was a merchant and businessman named William Caxton.

He was part of the growing merchant class in England, and his activities reflect the intersection

of language and money in the late Middle Ages.

In order to understand the ultimate impact of his press on the English language, we have

to remember that he was a merchant, not a linguist.

His printing decisions were designed to increase sales, not to reform or standardize the

language.

This motivation left English with a mixed legacy.

In some ways, it encouraged standardization, but in other ways, it had the opposite effect.

So this time, we'll explore the business of printing in the late Middle Ages.

But before we begin, let me remind you that the website for the podcast is HistoryofEnglishPodcast.com.

You can sign up to support the podcast and get bonus episodes and transcripts at patreon.com

slash HistoryofEnglish.

Now last time, we looked at the collection of letters written by the Past and Family of

Eastern England.

They reflected the fact that England was an increasingly literate society in the late Middle

Ages.

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