https://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/douglass/douglass.html (Links to an external site.)
write a reading reflection on the document listed above, TNR size 12 front.
template of the reflection is attached.To ensure that you use the proper formatting on your Reading Reflections, I have provided you with this document. Simply copy/paste the below text (not this note), and replace everything in red with your own words. Then change the text to black. Because I am providing you with this template, no other formatting for Reading Reflections will count for credit.

Reading Reflection
Firstname Lastname
Date the reading was assigned
Assigned Reading

What kind of text is this, and how should we read it?

In this section, you should explain what the text is before beginning to analyze it. You will be assigned many different kinds of reading in this class, including primary, secondary, and tertiary sources. A text?s format and identity will determine how you will read it. For instance, you should read a chapter from a history book in a very different way than you would read a series of laws passed in the seventeenth century, or an interactive website on the Civil War.

In this section, talk about the format of the text (was it a book? An article? A newspaper? A digital resource? A photo or drawing?). Discuss the author, time period, and context. You may need to rely on lectures and other external sources to do this, and googling the author is completely acceptable (cite when necessary to avoid plagiarism). Then, explain how you intend to read the text. What are you looking for? What biases or limitations should you be aware of? What particular expertise does the author have? How can you get the most information out of this particular text? If you use an external source, cite it using a footnote.

What is the argument (or intent)?

In this section, you need to tell me the argument that the author makes. Sometimes this will be fairly straightforward. In secondary history texts, for instance, an author may say something like ?In this chapter, I will argue that Native American religions were environmentally conscious.? Or they may have a similarly strong, central argument, even if it is not signalled by such clear language. If that?s the case, make sure you quote and cite the text. Say whether or not the author fulfilled that argument, and what evidence they used to do so. Talk about whether or not that argument was enlightening for you, or important for them to make.

In most cases, though, the argument won?t be that straightforward. You?ll need to read between the lines a bit more. For instance, you may think that a diary of a Civil War soldier has no main ?argument.? But you can think a bit more broadly about the overall intent of the document. How does the soldier present himself? What things does he find important enough to relate to the audience? Or you may think that an online archive of the Freedman?s Bureau has no argument. But here, too, think about what they choose to present (and what they might not be showing). What do they want from the audience? What do they expect you to learn? In this case, quotations may still help – but make sure to keep them short.

Overall, think of this section like this: What is this document trying to do? Authors all write for a purpose. What does this author want? There are no readings in this class that lack an argument, whether that argument is explicit or implicit. This section is not about your reaction to that argument (i.e. whether or not you agree with the author), but about your attempt to understand what the author was trying to do and how they went about doing it.

How does it teach us about history?

Here, you?ll need to think about the document in the broader context of what you?re learning. This will be difficult, since you do the homework before the class where we discuss it! Don?t worry – I?m aware of that when I grade it. But the goal here is to broaden the author?s work into larger issues. You?ll also be building off of the previous section, where you listed the argument. Think about this section like this: why would I make you read something like this?

For secondary sources, try to think of the broader conversation they?re contributing to. Jared Diamond?s work, for instance, is interested in broader conversations about equality and inequality over time. Other scholars will be interested in different questions. They might care about the roots of sexism, the inner workings of capitalism, the structure of housing markets, or any number of things. Try to think about the broader academic discussions they?re trying to contribute to, and how their work speaks to those conversations.

Primary sources are a little different, and a bit more straightforward. What would that diary teach us, for instance? Not just in its content, but in the fact that it existed at all? What might we be able to learn from shipping records from the seventeenth century that talk about the importation of slaves? Here, think about how you would use those primary sources to tell a story about the past.

What thoughts/ideas/interests does it bring up for you?

This is the fun part! This section is largely free-form. What did you think of this writing? Do you agree with the author? Did the text make you think of something else that you know? I want you to bring your own experiences and knowledge to bear on the writing. Some of you may have outside knowledge that is particularly relevant. You may have found a writing funny or confusing. Or you may have been so personally affected by a particular writing that you need to talk about it. Think about the common reading for TAMUG – Hillbilly Elegy. Is this your experience? Were you inspired by or angered by the author? This section would be the place to put it. In particular, I want to see you make meaningful intellectual connections to the rest of the things you?re learning or experiencing in college.