An Introduction to Document Analysis What do historians look at when they analyze historical documents?

Document Analysis Quietly working with a partner, take a few minutes to examine the document provided. On your own sheet of paper, list as many observations or conclusions as possible that you can derive from the document.

SOAPS

S S peaker Who do you think created or published this document? – Look for symbols, materials used, names,function, etc. What bias might they have about the topic of this document? – Would their point of view be the most accurate on this topic

O ccasion When was the document written, printed, or published? – Look for dates and context Under what circumstance was the document created? – What situation necessitated the creation of the document?

A udience For whom was the document created? –Who do you think the author intended to view the document. Consider writings style and system, function of the document, etc.

P urpose Why was the document created? –Note that this is not the same thing as “what” is the document. Another way of looking at this is, why was the document created the way it was created?

S ignificance What does it mean? – Not the same is what is it about. What are they trying to say about that topic. How would it be received? – Is it controversial, informative, illustrative, etc. How could it be useful? – Specifically, how might a historian be able to use this? What question or argument might it be able to answer?

Assignment: Now try it on your own! Read the excerpt of Hammurabi’s Code on your own. After reading, with a partner complete a SOAPS analysis on the form provided. WARNING: This activity does require critical thinking!

Hammurabi’s Code Speaker  Hammurabi, who was a military ruler famous for uniting Mesopotamia and consolidating laws into a code. Occasion  The law code was created in Mesopotamia between 2285 and 2242 BCE. However, the document provided was actually published in Scotland in Audience  Hammurabi organized the laws for the people of Mesopotamia around 1790 BCE.

Hammurabi’s Code (cont.) Purpose  Hammurabi was trying to unify a large empire and undoubtedly sought a common set of laws for all his subjects. Perhaps he needed to clarify earlier laws. Either way, he clearly needed these laws to deal with situations that arose with some frequency in his society that someone saw as dangerous. Significance  Let’s look at the individual laws one at a time here:

Hammurabi’s Code (cont.) 1. If a man weaves a spell and puts a ban upon another man and has not justified himself, he that wove the spell upon him shall be put to death. Notice that almost all the laws use "man" not "woman" as the active subject. This indicates something about the nature of gender relations in Mesopotamia. The fact that any man could "weave a spell" also tells something about the nature of religion, that there was a level at which all could participate, but also that there were defined rules to follow. This law indicates that "weaving a spell" could be a very serious offense that could lead to death if the spell was applied improperly. This particular law does not say how you prove this, but that is contained in the next article! This is very impressive and shows how various eventualities had to be completely pre-thought for this law code, a very complex task).

Hammurabi’s Code (cont.) 2. If a man has put a spell upon another man and has not justified himself, he upon whom the spell is laid shall go to the holy river. He shall plunge into the holy river, and if the holy river overcomes him, he who wove the spell upon him shall take to himself his house. If the holy river makes that man to be innocent, and has saved him, he who laid the spell upon him shall be put to death. He who plunged into the holy river shall take to himself the house of him who wove the spell upon him. This reminds one of the trial by ordeal (usually fire or water) procedures used by the church during the Middle Ages.

Hammurabi’s Code (cont.) 3. If a man, in a case pending judgment, has uttered threats against the witnesses, or has not justified the word that he has spoken, if that case be a capital suit, that man shall be put to death. Indicates that there was a system in place to protect witness. This is only a very recent innovation in modern law codes.

Hammurabi’s Code (cont.) 6. If a man has stolen the goods of a temple or palace, that man shall be killed, and he who has received the stolen thing from his hand shall be put to death. It was a very serious matter to "mess with" the priests who enjoyed a protected, and lucrative, status in Mesopotamian society. Obviously the priests had wealth, and they wanted to make sure that it was protected by the king. (It was never a good idea for a king not to protect his religious leaders, because they could always call down the wrath of a god or gods upon the king, making the people lose faith in the king).