History of the Americas
IA Part A Identification and Evaluation of Sources
2 pages
APA
SOURCES:2
Type Part A in your IA document ahead of Part B.
Type part A in the same document as part B. It should be about 500 words, following the directions attached. Your introductory paragraph must set the context (how topic fits in the broader Cold War context) and state your research question. Choose your two most important sources (ones you used the most, and/or where you got the information most critical to your analysis). I would recommend one primary and one secondary (the most important of each), but that is dependent on what you actually used.
Part A must:
• clearly state the question you have chosen to investigate (this must be stated as a question)
• include a brief explanation of the nature of the two sources they have selected for detailed analysis, including an explanation of their relevance to the investigation
• analyse two sources in detail. With reference to the origins, purpose and content, the student should analyse the value and limitations of the two source in relation to the investigation.
You will write at least four paragraphs (numbers 3 and 4 may each be split into two):
1. Set the context (time, place, other things going on), why the topic is important in context, and state your research question.
2. Describe the two sources you chose (What are they? Who wrote, when?). Explain why those two sources are important (why you chose them for part A).
3. Source 1: Explain how the source is Valuable (useful to a historian studying your question) based on its Origin (who created, it under what circumstance), Purpose (why it was created, intended audience) and Content (what is in it). Explain the source’s Limitations (what a historian has to be careful of when using it) based on its origin, purpose and content. Be specific about why OPC affect VL.
4. Source 2: Explain how the source is Valuable (useful to a historian studying your question) based on its Origin, Purpose and Content. Explain the source’s Limitations based on its origin, purpose and content. Be specific about why OPC affect VL.
5. You must foot/end note any sources you used (just like in Part B).
Word Count: approximately 500.
Sample:
Section 1: Identification and Evaluation of sources
This investigation will explore the question: To what extent did World War II lead to women in the United States becoming permanent participants of the labor force? The years 1940 to 1950 will be the focus of this investigation, to allow for an analysis of women’s employment during the war, as well as its evolution in the post-war period.
The first source which will be evaluated in depth is Julia Kirk Blackwelder’s book “The Feminization of Work in the United States, 1900-1995”, written in 1997. The origin of this source is valuable because Blackwelder is a professor of history at Texas University, specializing in Modern US and American women’s history, and has written extensively on women’s employment in scholarly journals and books, indicating that she is knowledgeable on this topic. Furthermore, the date of the publication of this source, 1997, strengthens its value, as it indicates that Blackwelder, benefitting from hindsight, has been able to analyze a comprehensive range of sources, including government documents, interviews and statistics. However, the origin of the source is limited in that Blackwelder is not a professional expert in economics, with which this topic is closely related and, consequently, might have misinterpreted some of the economic data presented.
The purpose of Blackwelder’s book is to analyze the trends of American women’s employment in the 1900-1955 period, and “to let evidence speak for itself” (Blackwelder xiii). This is valuable, for it indicates that an extended period of time has been examined, permitting for connections to be made between the trends discovered. However, the fact that the author has covered nearly a century of economic developments limits its value to a historian studying economic developments within a short time period.
The second source evaluated in depth is Mary Anderson’s 1944 address American Economic Association “The Postwar role of American women”, which was delivered in March, 1944. The origin of this source is valuable because the address was delivered by the head of the Women’s Bureau of the Department of Labor, and therefore provides an insight into the views of a well-known figure regarding women’s employment and post-war plans. Additionally, the date of delivery of the address, 1944, indicates that the source allows for a valuable understanding of contemporary views on women’s employment. However, this date is also a limitation, for it suggests that the source, having been written before the completion of the war, is likely to fail to analyze extensive research on women’s employment. In terms of origin, the source is also limited in that Anderson was herself a former factory worker and was “ particularly well attuned to the thinking of female employees” (Weatherford 256), indicating that she might have tended to shape the address according to her views, and, consequently, may have provided a slightly subjective insight into government plans.
The purpose of this source is to underscore the importance of the adoption of measures to secure the position of women in the American post-war workforce. The address therefore provides a valuable insight into government plans at the time. The source is, however, limited in its purpose in that the address, having been written to convince others of Anderson’s point of view, perhaps omits some ‘inconvenient truths’ about the government’s views, merely describing encouraging plans for female workers.
