5-page Analytical Essay on a Primary Source

1. What kind of primary source is it? This is pretty simple. Is it a speech, a philosophical text, an image, a law code, a poem, etc.?

2. Who is the author or creator (if known)? This will be straightforward for this assignment. We will consider the author the person who is given attribution on the website that hosts the document. If you have any questions about authorship, please contact me.

3. Can you tell why was it written or created? This question is asking about the author's’ purpose in creating the primary source at the time. What was he or she trying to accomplish?

4. What is the primary source's tone? What words and phrases (and/or scenes and visual perspectives) convey it? “Tone” asks you to identify the “mood” or emotion evoked by the words and phrases a primary source. Every primary source has multiple tones. Tone reflects and project attitude. You might have heard the phrase, "Don't use that tone with me." So, what tone(s) is the author using with us? Be sure to cite words and phrases that support your choice of tones.

5. What are the author's or creator's values and assumptions are? Is there visible bias? Explain your answers. “Values” refer to what the author holds dear or thinks is important. Literally, what the author values or esteems. It also includes by extension what the author does not value or esteem. “Assumptions” are beliefs that the author holds true without proof. It is similar to what people call "common sense." It can also be about future effects or outcomes. “Bias” can be positive or negative (for or against something). Bias usually means that there is a lack of balance in the primary source. It strongly favors one point of view over others and so is unbalanced.

6. What information does it relate? Did the author or creator have first-hand knowledge of the subject or did s/he report what others saw and heard? The first 5 questions are asking if the primary source you chose can be trusted to give a reliable picture of the period in which it was created. Can it be trusted as a source for historical knowledge? Question 6 is asking what can we learn about the society from which the primary source came. This is what historians really want to know from a primary source but they have to trust that it is something that is reliable or, if it has limitations due to bias, what those limits are. It may shed light on some aspects of history but not others and may need to be supplemented. Of course, first-hand knowledge is more reliable than second-hand knowledge - being a witness to something instead of being told about it by someone else who will filter the information provided.

7. What issues does it address? “Issues” is another word for “problems” or "concerns" that the primary source raises and addresses and proposes to solve. While the issues and concerns may be implicit (hinted or implied) rather than explicit (stated outright), these "problems" or "concerns" are closely related to the author's purpose or motivation in creating the primary source in the first place.

8. What is your overall assessment of the primary source and its usefulness/significance for the historical study of your topic? This is the main question you need to answer for the Analytical Essay: how useful is the primary source for understanding the society from which it came? However, you can only answer prompt 8 after you have answered the other 7 prompts When you write your essay, the answer to this prompt will be the thesis statement of your essay and the body of the essay will be your answers to the other 7 prompts.