DIRECTIONS FOR THE PRIMARY SOURCE PAPER.
- THIS PAPER INVOLVES RESEARCH BUT IS NOT AN ESSAY.
- THERE IS NO “Introduction, body, and Conclusion” IN THIS PAPER.
The Paper
TYPE answers to the following questions. Your full length paper should be no shorter than 5 pages to 6.5 pages double spaced (before the citations page) with a font no larger than 12 and with margins no wider than one inch.
- Use short quotes.
- Give details such as names, dates, relevant explanations, etc.
- Use abbreviated citations at the end of sentences (Hutchinson 3)(Ulrich 182) like so.
Just type the number and then your answers to these questions.
This is NOT an essay paper with an introduction, body and conclusion.
Just type the number and your answer:
1) WHAT IS the PRIMARY SOURCE?Describe it in two sentences.
WHAT YEAR was it made?
WHO was the person(s) who made it?
WHAT is the full citation (Chicago/Turabian style) of the source (author, title, publisher, year), as well as where you found the source (e.g., a book citation or Title of a webpage and URL if applicable). (total of a few lines)
2) What FACTS ABOUT THE AUTHOR(s) of the source help you to understand the purpose of the document/source? What facts about the author help you to understand why it was created? Look this up in one of your secondary sources, or find information from a reliable website. Provide abbreviated citations at the end of sentences where appropriate. (Blake 132)(Smithsonian.com) like so – author and page number or website abbreviation. If your sources don’t tell you about the author, then do a little additional research to learn. IF YOU DO NOT KNOW THE CREATOR OF THE SOURCE– Example: if it is a newspaper article without an author about the Boston Tea Party, then use this question to talk about the newspaper itself. (about ¾ to 1 page double spaced).IF YOU ARE CONFUSED ABOUT HOW TO ANSWER THIS QUESTION – EMAIL ME!!We can easily get you on track.
3) What FACTS ABOUT THE TOPIC did you learn in your SECONDARY sources (or course material, if they help) that help you to understand the meaning and significance of your PRIMARY source?For instance, if your source is a newspaper article about pirates, then discuss what you learned about pirates in the colonies during this period of time from your reliable, scholarly sources. What event(s) or arguments related to your topic were important at the time just before, during, or after your source was made? In other words, how does your source and your topic fit into the events and arguments of that time in U.S. history? How does your source help you to understand the events or arguments? Example: If your topic is the Boston Tea Party, you might discuss arguments about the taxes by Great Britain and Britain’s attempt to control the colonists (about 1.5 pages)
3) What, exactly, was the PURPOSE of your primary source? In other words, why did someone write it or create it, and what did the person hope to accomplish with it? Use BOTH your primary source AND your secondary sources ABOUT THE TOPIC to help you answer this, along with your textbook. (about ½ page)
4) Summarize the main points in the primary source: What are all the major, specific, DETAILS in the source which the author used to support his/her purpose? (i.e., what are all the specific details that help you understand the author’s purpose or why the author created the source – what details made the author successful in achieving his/her purpose?) (about 1.5 pages double spaced)
5) Who had an DIFFERENT or OPPOSITE point of view of your topic at that time? Why—what was the perspective of that different person or group? Use short quotes or details from your module materials and secondary sources. Example: If writing about the Boston Tea Party, you might discuss arguments about the colonists having representation in the British Parliament. (about 1 page)
6) Give full citations of all your sources.
Reminders:
- Use information from your reading assignment on the topic
- No long quotes–a sentence or fragment of a sentence only
- Always use quotations marks when copying directly from a source. Mostly, use your own words.
- Plagiarism is easy to catch and anyone caught will receive an F for the assignment and an F for the course.
- Get help from the Writing Center if you need it. Spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc. count.
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