The Gutenberg Revolution in the Light of Media Philosophy and Book Studies

The article is devoted to the analysis of the printed book as a technological and anthropological phenomenon that caused the third information revolution and radically transformed the cognitive, social and cultural structures of human existence. The research is based on an interdisciplinary approach, combining media archaeological, philosophical and anthropological, and socio-historical methods. The key role is played by the theories of Marshall McLuhan, who in his works The Gutenberg Galaxy and Understanding Media substantiated the idea that the printed word formed «homo typographicus» – a type of subject with linear logical thinking, visual bias and individualised identity. Benedict Anderson, Elizabeth Eisenstein, Roger Chartier, Henri-Jean Martin, Walter Ong, Jacques Houdy, and Michael Gieseke reveal the mechanisms of print’s influence on the formation of national identities, rational thought, bureaucratic systems, and cultural order. Yuval Noah Harari emphasises the ambivalence of printing, which contributed to both enlightenment and the spread of irrational ideologies. In the Ukrainian context, the works of Yaroslav Isayevych, Yevhen Nemyrovsky, Vira Fris, and Yurii Yasynovskyi highlight the specifics of the development of print culture, emphasising its organic nature in the European space. The modern digital era, analysed through the ideas of Manuel Castells, shows the decline of the Gutenberg Galaxy and the transition to a networked culture with fragmented perceptions and fluid identities. Sociological data confirms the declining role of the paper book, the growing popularity of electronic formats, and the transformation of reading practices in Ukraine and the world. The study predicts the preservation of the book as a niche product and emphasises the need to understand media transformations in order to understand future cultural shifts.