Looking Behind the Sources

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Looking Behind the Sources In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy, Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow all sought to find the Wizard. Dorothy wanted to go home; Lion wanted courage; Tin Man wants a heart; and Scarecrow wants a brain. They all go and ask the Wizard for these things – but they soon discover that *SPOILER ALERT* the Wizard is actually just a man behind the curtain.

Looking Behind the Sources What they learn is that the Wizard does not actually grant you your wish – it was always inside you. But Dorothy and the others had to look behind the curtain in order to get the truth.

Looking Behind the Sources JUST LIKE DOROTHY, YOU MUST LOOK BEHIND THE CURTAIN OF THE SOURCE IN ORDER TO FULLY UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH BEHIND THE SOURCE.

Looking Behind the Sources How to Read Primary Sources When we are reading primary sources – or any type of source– we must be aware of BIAS. What is BIAS?

Looking Behind the Sources EXAMPLE 1: When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self- evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness...

Looking Behind the Sources Thoughts... What do you think this source means?

Looking Behind the Sources Now, do you know who wrote this source?

Looking Behind the Sources It was Thomas Jefferson, and the example comes from the Declaration of Independence, written in The Declaration was a massively important document in American history; it signalled the break between the United States and Great Britain and stated that the United States was headed towards independence.

Looking Behind the Sources It has a very important line, “that all men are created equal,” – but where all men treated as equal? Do you think that Jefferson wanted all men to be equal in the United States at this time?

Looking Behind the Sources EXAMPLE 2: According to historian Stephen Ambrose: “Jefferson, like all slaveholders and many others, regarded Negroes as inferior, childlike, untrustworthy and, of course, as property.” He believed they were inferior to whites in reasoning, mathematical comprehension, and imagination. Jefferson thought these “differences” were “fixed in nature” and was not dependent on their freedom or education. He thought such differences created “innate inferiority of Blacks compared to Whites.” In Notes on the State of Virginia, Jefferson claimed that blacks prefer the beauty of whites over other blacks, and cited “the preferences of the Orangutan for the black woman over those of his own species.”

Looking Behind the Sources What was it like to be black in the United States during the 1700s and 1800s?

Looking Behind the Sources At the time that the Declaration of Independence was written – 1774 – blacks in the United States faced a very difficult life. Slavery was legal throughout the country; while there were certain people who believed that blacks should be free, there were still many more who believed that they should only be slaves. Even among those people who thought they should be free, many did not believe that they should be equal to whites.

Looking Behind the Sources Here is the tricky part: Jefferson owned slaves – but later in his life, he wrote and discussed how we could free all of the slaves in the United States. He was very conflicted, as were other slave-owners in this period.

Looking Behind the Sources WHAT DO YOU THINK JEFFERSON MEANT WHEN HE SAID THAT “ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL”?

Looking Behind the Sources In order to fully understand the primary source that you are reading, you must have an understanding of many things that surround the source.

Looking Behind the Sources TIME – the time period that people are writing in greatly influences what is written. When Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, slavery was active in the United States, and there was a great belief that blacks were inferior to whites.

Looking Behind the Sources BELIEF – personal beliefs also greatly impact what is written; it is important to know the background and beliefs of the person writing the source – this knowledge will give you great insight into what they meant in their writing.

Looking Behind the Sources GOAL – often times, people have a goal they look to achieve in their writing. This goal will greatly influence what they write and, importantly, HOW they write.

Looking Behind the Sources WHAT DO YOU THINK SOME OF JEFFERSON’S BIASES WERE?

Looking Behind the Sources HOW WOULD JEFFERSON’S BIASES AFFECT HIS WRITING AND WHAT HE MEANT?

Looking Behind the Sources How to Read Secondary Sources Just like primary sources, you also have to be aware of BIAS when you read secondary sources. Just as those people who write the primary sources are trying to influence the reader (or listener) towards a particular point of the view, those people who write secondary sources are trying to do the same – perhaps even more so.

Looking Behind the Sources Now remember – BIAS is not always something negative, it is usually a point of view that the author is trying to persuade the reader (who happens to be you) to also believe. There are a number of things that can help you identify BIAS in secondary sources:

Looking Behind the Sources AUTHOR’S LANGUAGE: does the author present certain people or events in a particular way? Is this author overly negative or overly positive towards these people or events?

Looking Behind the Sources AUTHOR’S IDEAS: does the author believe that a certain event happened because of events that other author’s say were influenced by other things?

Looking Behind the Sources AUTHOR’S PREVIOUS WRITINGS: what else has the author written? What is their background? You can find this information through biographies that exist on most historians through Internet and print-based searches.

Looking Behind the Sources It is very important to recognize BIAS in historical writing, namely because what you read will influence you own way of thinking. It is important to try and gain a broad understanding of a topic or event before you make up your mind on how that event really took place.

Looking Behind the Sources EXAMPLE 3: What, if any, BIAS do you pick up on in the author’s writings?

Looking Behind the Sources EXAMPLE 4: In the above passage, what do you think is the author’s thesis? Write your thoughts below:

Looking Behind the Sources The passage that you just read was written by H.W. Brands, an economic historian from the University of Texas. He has written well over 20 books, most of which deal with the economic impact of money and finance on the development of the United States. Throughout most of his works, he has written that money and the economy are driving factors in all forms of development.

Looking Behind the Sources With that in mind, we are going to read another passage from Brand’s book, The Money Men; this passage, however, does not necessarily deal with the overall thesis of the book – rather, it looks at the American Civil War, which most historians believe was caused by a combination of state’s rights, the issues concerning slavery, and the ongoing conflicts that had been occurring in the United States since the 1700s.

Looking Behind the Sources The result of the Civil War was that slavery was abolished, the South was brought back into the Union, and the rights that had once belonged only to whites were now extended to all races in the United States.

Looking Behind the Sources EXAMPLE 5: In the passage on the next page, pay attention to what Brand says about the Civil War, and then answer the following questions: What does Brand say was a reason for the Civil War? For Brand, what helped the North win the Civil War? What BIAS does Brand show in his discussion of the Civil War?