A Historical Image - Essay Sample

Introduction

The historical source is a picture of black people in a room in the late 19th Century. To analyze this picture, it is compelling and essential to understanding the picture's physical nature. Who and what objects are in the picture? Are there any activities going on in the picture? Does the picture look fancy or bare and straightforward? Elegant or messy? What does the physical nature of the subjects say about the picture? The analysis should focus on the picture itself and the era from which it was taken. The information can be based on black people's social conditions in the United States in the 1880s. How was the social-economic life of the black people in the late 19th Century?

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A Political Cartoon

Political cartoons provide a critical public opinion about political events of the time of creation in a humorous manner. It is imperative to understand how a message in a political cartoon is relayed. Political cartoons focus on the primary visual code rather than words to convey their message. For example, this political cartoon shows the workers carrying a vessel with their work products and politicians on their backs. The demonstration can be interpreted to show the benefits of the manual workers goes to the political class. Therefore, in a political cartoon interpretation, one should focus on the physical features that are obviously exaggerated to understand the point the creator is trying to make. Another focus is the creator's captions. The written words such as "linen workers average $11 a week", "fields millions," and the dollar ($) on the politicians' stomach helps one understand the issues the cartoon is based on and the main historical events. Finally, identifying the analogy. Comparing different things highlights a particular similarity in the idea, such as comparing a politician and a manual worker to show a powerful difference in efforts and income.

A Written Primary Source Document

The letter from Anne Brown Adam seeks to get the media's attention through Alexander Ross on married women's struggles in the 19th Century. The letter highlights how married women were legally inferior to their husbands as they were not allowed to enter into contracts, keep their wages, or own property. In the analysis, it is essential to consider the background of the author and the recipient. Who was Anne Brown? Was she married? Did she own any property on her own? Did Ross hold any power to convey Anne's message? Secondly, consider the surface level of information one can interpret from the letter, such as the letter's subject matter, what were the subjects' living conditions? How does the author try to persuade the audience? How close did the author and the recipient seem? Thirdly, the analysis should focus on the deeper meaning that can be interpreted from the letter. Such considerations include investigating and learning more about married women's conditions and other historical topics addressed in the letter. Finally, how was the political class attitude towards the married women's struggles, and how has the approach been used in the modern era?

Conclusion

Thus, what was the situation of their education and employment opportunities? Were social amenities such as housing, electricity, infrastructure, health insurance adequately available to them? Further, there should be an evaluation of the picture's purpose, such as the message the owner was trying to get across and whether that message is explicit or implicit. Finally, what does the owner's race, age, sex, occupation, class, and political beliefs say about the reasons for taking the picture?