Primary Source Analysis Paper Instructions
Here are the textbook pages for the Watts Riots topic: 390-395, plus you may also what to make a comparison with the Rodney King Riots (p. 521). For the Watt’s paper, there is also a good short secondary source telling of the story on the riots (at the beginning of the documents).
Also, I have uploaded some videos that you may use as sources if you wish.
Papers should be
• 3 ½ -5 pages, MLA format
• Have at least 3 body paragraphs…you may do more, plus a good intro and a conclusion
• Double-spaced,
• one-inch margins,
• 12pt font.
• Use attached paged 390-395 and 521 plus 3 primary sources from the attached documents and videos as works cited.
a. Pages 390-395.pdf
b. Page 521 – Rodney King.pdf
c. https://youtu.be/CzDgWsJqMwA | https://youtu.be/Qr4_4N_iOg4 | https://youtu.be/sBpiK4nWsB8
• Plus you may also what to make a comparison with the Rodney King Riots (p. 521)
How do you start?
Read the textbook pages and packet of primary and secondary sources about the Watts Riots. Then, using the sources, you will write a paper analyzing the sources.
1. Your first paragraph will contain an introduction of the topic (Watts), and your thesis (argument).
• Remember, to make a good thesis, you ought to look at the sources to come to your decision, not psychically make your thesis without taking a look at what the sources actually say (and how to analyze them!
2. At least 3 supporting body paragraphs address at least three major themes within the documents that back up your thesis.
• Each of your main ideas should be organized into separate paragraphs.
• Make sure to back up your assertions with evidence (quotes, pictures, common themes throughout the sources)
• Plus evidence from the documents to support these themes.
3. A good conclusion with concluding thoughts about the topic.
4. Make a good title for your paper that reflects your thesis.
Primary sources do not speak for themselves. They must be analyzed and interpreted.
Here are some basic questions to ask yourself when first encountering a primary source.
1. Who wrote it? (What do we know, or can we guess about the author?)
2. Why was it written? (To convince, to entertain, to educate, to fool?)
3. Who is the intended audience? (What do you know about this audience?)
Analytical questions:
1. When was it written? (What is the historical context?)
2. What do some the authors imply without saying? (Assumptions about Indians, assumptions about the African American community, etc.).
3. What sort of narratives do the sources seem to back up?
4. What kind of stereotypes do you see in the document?
5. Some of the sources are sympathetic. But are they respectful? Why or why not?
6. What can you surmise about the relationship between the priests and the Native Americans, or the police and the inhabitants of Watts?
7. Can you ever spot the ‘voice’ within these sources, even when it is not the narrator doing the talking? (For example, what might you learn about the Native American point of view when non-Indians are the narrators)?
8. How is the tone different in the later documents than in the earlier ones?
• For example, after the red power movement in the 1970s, there are different views about Father Serra (see later articles about controversy over Serra’s sainthood).
• A Watts Riot example might be what we have learned (or not learned) about Watts after the Rodney King Riots 30 years later. Did History repeat?
9. Discuss other observations you made from these sources. What do they reveal?
