Tutorial 2: Evaluating Primary Sources

The paradox of primary sources

Nothing gets the historian closer to an historical event than a primary source (which, by definition, was created by an actual participant or eyewitness of an event).

And yet, it is the testimonial value of a primary source, the fact that it was created by an individual with a distinct purpose and point of view, that makes it so necessary to approach primary sources carefully and, above all, critically.