How to Close Read a Primary Source

A primary source is any piece that you analyze directly to findevidence for your paper's argument. It may be provided for you (e.g., a play in a literature class) or you may find it yourself through research (e.g., a photograph of a Viking sword for a history paper).

Some Examples of Primary Sources

  • Newspaper articles
  • Images (e.g., photographs)
  • Films
  • Diary entries
  • Personal- or professional correspondence
  • Literary works (poems, novels)
  • Manuscripts
  • Official documents (e.g., law codes, meeting minutes, inventory sheets)
  • Speeches
  • Artifacts

Close reading is the process of asking critical questions about your primary sources to glean as much information as possible. The answers to your close reading questions often become the evidence that shapes and supports your thesis statement.

Sample Close Reading Questions

  • Who created this source? What do I know about him/her? What biases might s/he have?
  • Where and when was this source created? Under what circumstances?
  • Who is the intended audience of this source?
  • What is the purpose of this source?
  • Is this source what it claims to be? (e.g., is it a forgery?)
  • How reliable is the source?
  • How is the source organized? (Written: In what order is the content? Visual: How do different aspects of the piece spatially relate to one another?)
  • What patterns do you see within the source (written, auditory, visual)?
  • How is this source similar or different to the other primary sources you are using? How does it match up to what other scholars have said about the topic you are investigating?
  • How common/representative is the type of source you are using?
  • In what way(s) does this source interact with/rely on knowledge of other sources? (e.g., a political cartoon satirizing a speech; a Renaissance sculpture depicting Greek mythology)
  • How applicable are your findings from this source to other sources concerning your topic?

Questions Specific to Written Sources

  • In what language(s) is the source written? What does this say about the intended audience?
  • Are the author and the speaker the same person?
  • What literary devices or fomulae are used? What effects do these devices accomplish?

Questions Specific to Material/Visual Sources

  • What materials and processes were used to create this item? How long would it have taken to construct?
  • In what condition is the source? What might the condition say about its function, storage, and degree of usage?

Tips

  • Remember that one person's secondary source can be another person's primary source depending on the topic. For example, a scholarly article from the 19th century on 13th century castles may be viewed both as a secondary source on 13th century castles and as a primary source on 19th century attitudes or linguistic styles.
  • At each stage of close reading think not only about what your observationsare, but what the significance of these observations is. What do your answers to the close reading questions reveal about the source, and how does that shape the way that you understand the source?
  • Try making a note to yourself if you find anything unexpected in your close reading, like a break in a pattern or an unlikely similarity between two elements. Pointsthat stick out to you as interesting or surprising often lay the groundwork for thesis statements!

Compiled by Kelli Conley (AWC Tutor in 2015-6)