New Sources, New Analysis!
Hi everyone! At long last, here's the information for your second primary source analysis post. With this one, you’ll be analyzing a source of your choice from a series of collections transcribed and digitized by the Smithsonian. Here are the options:
“The Girl Graduate - Her Own Book” - 1925 scrapbook created by Marjorie P. Collins, a student at Prairie View College (now Prairie View A&M University), a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in Prairie View, Texas.
Abbott’s Monthly Vol. II No. 1 - (1931) Monthly magazine featuring African American news and fiction stories. Publication founded by Robert Sengstacke Abbott, the founder and owner of the Chicago Defender, the most popular Black newspaper in the country at the time.
Solon Borglum Letters to Emma Borglum and Children, 1918 July-August - Solon Borglum was an American sculptor who studied art in France and worked as the Director of Sculpture at the American Expeditionary Forces Art Training Center. He served in the Third and Fifth Army during World War I. This is a series of letters to his family in the US.
The Crisis, Vol. 18, No. 3 - The Crisis was the publication of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). W.E.B. Du Bois was the founding editor. This is the July 1919 issue, featuring articles on Black education and an editorial by Du Bois about Black soldiers in WWI.
The Show-Down Vol. 1 No. 1 - The Show Down was a magazine devoted to Black nightclub life and entertainment. It was created by Sally Cathrell, and features many photographs of her sister Laurie Cathrell, a showgirl and performer. This issue is from November 1935.
Zenos R. Miller World War I Diaries - Diary 2 - Zenos Miller was a pilot with the 27th Aero Squadron of the US Air Service during WWI. He was held as a prisoner of war before he was freed in November 1918. His diary contains entries by Miller’s fellow prisoners and descriptions of life in the prisoner of war camp.
A note on these sources: you are not required to analyze the entire collection in your post. For example, if you choose one of the magazines, you can choose one article. If you choose the diary, you can choose one entry. Ultimately you'll be sharing your thoughts on one piece of a larger collection of your choice.
![A silver gelatin print depicting a hand-colored, black-and-white image of Sally Cathrell. Cathrell is depicted from the thighs up standing three-quarter profile with her arms akimbo. She is looking over her proper left shoulder towards the viewer. She is wearing a short sleeve, light colored, satiny dress with a large bow along the proper left side of the neckline, and a matching belt at the waist with a metal buckle. The dress has been tinted pink. Cathrell’s cheeks have been tinted pink and her lips painted dark red. In the bottom right corner of the photograph is a handwritten inscription in black ink that reads, [To My Baby Sister / Laura / Lovingly / Sally].](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/edcf55_3b0bd72971e646fdbb31fc3a58029ee3~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_700,h_1059,al_c,q_85,enc_auto/edcf55_3b0bd72971e646fdbb31fc3a58029ee3~mv2.jpg)
How to Organize Your Post
Once you find a source that is interesting to you, consider these questions for your forum post. Essentially, you'll be following the same format as the last post, but I’ve provided some more specific instructions this time.
1) What do you notice? What do you wonder? These questions are just to get you thinking and writing about your initial impressions of the source. What stands out to you about the source you chose? (This might be why you chose it in the first place.) What questions do you have about it?
2) Source: Tell us a little bit about the source itself. Is it a letter, article, photograph, advertisement, diary entry, etc.? When and where was it created? Who was the initial intended audience?
In this section, be sure to link to the source or upload an image of the source so everyone can see it.
3) Context: Using what you know about the time period in which this ad was placed, provide some context for the content of the ad.
Provide some background information that might help to answer some of the questions you posed in Question 1.
Cite at least one module blog post in your contextualization.
4) Implications/Conclusions: Why is this source important for understanding American history? Is it illustrative of any larger trends? Does it help to clarify, humanize, or personalize any particular event or phenomenon in the early twentieth century? Essentially, why was this source saved for people like us to examine?
5) Discussion Question: End your post with a discussion question for everyone else to answer. This question should be one that doesn’t have one “correct” answer.
In your reflections for Primary Source Post #1, most of you noted that the bulk of the time required for this assignment went to researching and finding a source. I imagine that it might take a little longer to find a source this time, since they are so different! Keep that in mind as you budget your time over the next two weeks.
Coming Soon...
I'll post an example of my own analysis in the coming week! Now, which collection to choose from...🤔
Due Date!
Your post will be due on October 23. (Please note this due date is extended by one week from what is on the syllabus.) Check Canvas for more details about how to declare your submission and get your points!
Happy researching!
Questions? Leave a comment below or reach out through email.