Biography Data Base
A biography is simply the story of a life. Biographies can be just a few sentences long, or they can fill an entire book—or two. Very short biographies tell the basic facts of someone's life and importance. Longer biographies include that basic information of course, with a lot more detail, but they also tell a good story. Biographies analyze and interpret the events in a person's life. They try to find connections, explain the meaning of unexpected actions or mysteries, and make arguments about the significance of the person's accomplishments or life activities. Biographies are usually about famous, infamous people, but a biography of an ordinary person can tell us a lot about a particular time and place. They are often about historical figures, but they can also be about people still living.
1. The Question is the Answer
A great biography is driven by great questions.
Boring questions produce boring answers.
Boring answers put readers to sleep.
Step One: Decide whose biography you will write. Learn enough about the person to make a wise choice. You will be spending a good deal of time on this person, so his or her life better be pretty intriguing. You may want to see if there is any good information readily available on your person and look ahead on this page to the questions to see which ones might be interesting to explore.
Step Two: Open a word processor file and type your person's name at the top. Then save the file with an appropriate file name in your private folder.
Step Three: 1.Browse through the following questions to see which ones seem worth pursuing. 2. Identify the 4-5 questions you wish to research.
3. Copy and paste your questions on your word processing file.
4. Provide 2-3 inches of space between each question
Biography Questions
1. In what ways was the life admirable?
2. What human qualities were most influential in shaping the way this person lived and influenced his or her times?
3. Which quality or trait proved most troubling and difficult?
4. Which quality or trait was most beneficial?
5. Did this person make any major mistakes or bad decisions? If so, what were they and how would you have chosen and acted differently if you were in their shoes?
6. What are the two or three most important lessons you or any other young person might learn from the way this person lived?
7. Some people say you can judge the quality of a person's life by the enemies they make. Do you think this is true of your person's life? Explain why or why not.
8. An older person or mentor is often very important in shaping the lives of gifted people by providing guidance and encouragement. To what extent was this true of your person? Explain.
9. Many people act out of a "code" or a set of beliefs which dictate choices. It may be religion or politics or a personal philosophy. To what extent did your person act by a code or act indepently of any set of beliefs? Were there times when the code was challenged and impossible to follow?
10. What do you think it means to be a hero?
Outline of a Biography: An example
1. Origination
a. Name of person
b. Date of birth, place of birth. Put it in context of what county the town was in, and if not a large place, give a general approximation of how far it was in what direction from the larger well-known city.
c. Names of Parents, their birthplaces
d. Siblings, birth order. Special note of siblings who live near them now, or those of other special accomplishments
2. Heritage
a. Occupation of parents
b. Places lived while at parents' home -- why might they have moved?
c. What was this area of the country known for?
3. Education
a. Grammar/High School
b. Anecdotes/accomplishments of their youth
c. College / Vocational Schooling
d. Post-grad / Additional Vocational studies
e. Scholastic achievements of merit
4. Military
a. When enlisted
b. Where enlisted
c. Branch of service, and company/regiment information
d. Ranks, promotions
e. Battles, wounds
f. When discharged
5. Occupation and Life
a. First Job/s
b. Trials/Struggles
c. Towns/Areas they lived in -- why would they have moved each time?
d. Path of jobs/businesses led to the prime one
e. Professional Accomplishments
f. Professional awards and recognition
g. Retirement
6. Family
a. When married
b. Children, when and where born. If they are grown and working, tell where they work, to whom they are married, and whether they have any children
c. Describe progression of places they lived
d. Deaths in the family, where buried
7. Community
a. Church
b. Volunteer
c. Clubs/Organizations
d. Public Office, elected or appointed
e. What did the town/area look like that they lived in? What were the conditions there?
8. Conclusion
a. What others think of the person
b. Main accomplishments of lifetime
c. Death/burial, if applicable
d. Surviving spouse info
e. Is there a single anecdote or story from their life that sums up the essence of the person? This would be the place to put it.