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Primary Sources

How to Evaluate Primary Sources

Consider the following questions as you observe and study your primary source. Depending on what medium your primary source is in (i.e. photograph, drawing, letter, newspaper article), the following tips might need to be changed to accommodate the type of primary source. It's important to remember that whatever source you are viewing, you must engage and think critically about it. 

Author Authority & Date

  • Who is the author?
  • What do you know about them?
  • When was this created?

Purpose

  • Why was this source created? 
  • Who was the intended audience for this source?

Content

  • What is the main idea of the primary source?
  • What can you observe about the primary source?
  • What is it telling you about an event, or life, or time period?
  • Has the source been altered in any way from the original?

Context

  • How does this source fit into what you know is happening in this time period? 
  • What questions could be answered by using this source?
  • How does this source fit into other scholarly narratives? Does it challenge those narratives?

Limitations

  • What biases or assumptions might have influenced the author or creator?

Connection

  • How does this source fit into my argument?
  • How does this source fit into my historical knowledge?

Consider the following questions as you observe and study your primary source. You may notice that these questions are similar to evaluating historical primary sources - they are! The difference is in the time frame that you apply context and find evidence to support your argument. It's important to remember that whatever source you are viewing, you must engage and think critically about it. 

Author 

  • Who created this source? 
  • What authority do they have on the subject?
  • How do you know, based on your past experiences, that this person or organization has authority?

Publisher/Platform

  • Where was this source published or posted?
  • Does the platform the source was published/posted in/on change perspective of the source?

Purpose

  • Why was this source created? 
  • Who was the intended audience? 
  • Was there a sponsoring organization invested in its creation?

Content

  • What is the main idea of the primary source?
  • What can you observe about the primary source?
  • Has the source been altered in any way from the original?

Context

  • What questions could be answered by using this source?
  • How does this source fit into other scholarly narratives? Does it challenge those narratives?

Limitations

  • What biases or assumptions might have influenced the author or creator?

Connections

  • How does this source fit into my knowledge about this topic?