This section focuses on analyzing examples of primary and secondary source documents for historical perspective. The material presented is designed to help you meet the following objective. 

Primary sources

Primary sources are firsthand accounts of an event or a person. Historians use primary sources to learn directly about the past. They can and should be analyzed to determine their authenticity and reliability.

The following skills are needed in order to evaluate a primary source.

• Identify the source of the account. Who created it? When and why? Decide if he or she has firsthand knowledge of the event.
• Judge how reliable the source is. Look for evidence of bias.
• Recognize how emotions, points of view, and opinions affect the telling of the story. Does the document contain emotionally charged words?
• Determine which words indicate facts. What's the main idea? Separate facts from opinions. Are there enough facts to make the speaker reliable?