In
the case of history, our knowledge of history exists through interpretation.
When using primary sources, you confront two essential facts of studying
history:
1. The record of historical events reflects
the personal, social, political, or economic
points of view of the authors/participants.
Any account of an event, no
matter how impartially presented it appears to be, is essentially subjective.
When analyzing a primary source, ask yourself these questions:
·
When
was it written?
·
Can
you tell the intended audience?
·
How
reliable is the evidence? Some
eyewitness accounts are purposely distorted in order to avoid blame or to offer
praise. Some documents are written for
propaganda purposes. To determine the
reliability of evidence, check one source against another. Does the evidence contradict itself and does
it disagree with evidence from other sources?
·
Who
was the author? Why did she/he write
it? Was it intended to be objective or
to persuade readers to a point of view?
Can you detect a bias? Often
people’s attitudes toward the world influence the way they interpret events.
Without meaning to, even on-the-scene judgments can be incorrect. If you are emotionally involved, this can
distort your understanding of it.
·
Besides
what you can find out about the author, look at the source for internal
contradictions and inconsistencies, the use of adjectives and other words that
could point to the author’s hidden biases and unspoken assumptions. Do certain words or concepts keep cropping
up?
2. It works both ways. You bring to the sources your own biases,
created by your own personal
situations and the social environments in which you live.
In
the case of history, our knowledge of history exists through interpretation.
When using primary sources, you confront two essential facts of studying
history:
1. The record of historical events reflects
the personal, social, political, or economic
points of view of the authors/participants.
Any account of an event, no
matter how impartially presented it appears to be, is essentially subjective.
When analyzing a primary source, ask yourself these questions:
2. It works both ways. You bring to the sources your own biases, created by your own personal situations and the social environments in which you live.