Postman’s theory is an interesting one but is open to challenge. Postman suggests that the ‘invention’ of childhood resulted from the development of the printing press, with the result that children...

Postman’s theory is an interesting one but is open to challenge. Postman suggests that the ‘invention’ of childhood resulted from the development of the printing press, with the result that children needed a time of education in order to learn to read and therefore be able to access the knowledge of their society. Do you think that literacy is a sufficient explanation to account for a new social category, such as childhood, arising? If not, what other factors would need to be taken into account? It is only in recent years that adult literacy has become more or less universal in this country. Would an adult who could not read or write still be considered as an adult?