Historians\nprimarily use written text to learn about the past. In this assignment, you\nwill begin to construct valid data sets we can use to learn about the past. A\nvalid data set begins with observations: things we can see by looking at a\ntext. For each primary source, I will provide an image of the original document\n(or the closest surviving parallel example) and a translation\/transcription of\nthe text. You may make observations on what you see in the image and what you\nsee in the translation\/transcription. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Observations\nare anything we can see. Do not be afraid of making what seem to be\n“obvious” observations. Each observation contributes to our data set\nto help us learn about the people of the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An\nobservation is valid as long as everyone looking at the same text agrees that\nwhat you have highlighted is actually present in the text or image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once\nwe collect our observations, we have to interpret them: we have to explain what\nwe think our observation tells us about the past. While we must all agree that\nan observation is present for it to be valid, we can (and should) have\ndifferent ideas about each other’s interpretations. Each of us will try to make\nsense of the past in a way that makes sense to our individual contexts. This is\npart of what makes history fun, and makes it a living discipline that is\nconstantly evolving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While\nwe can argue about our interpretations, there are clear rules about what makes\nan interpretation part of a valid data set for historians:<\/p>\n\n\n\n