HIST101 American History

Citation: Who created the primary source? When? 

Context: Context allows historians to situate a source within the larger framework of what was happening at the time.
What was going on at the time that the primary source was created?

Content: Content refers to the main ideas of the source.
What do you think are the most important parts of this letter?

Argument: The argument is the point that the author most wants to get across to the reader.
1. What was Cato asking for (this is their argument)?

2. Provide one piece of evidence from the source that supports your answer.

Comparisons: Comparing sources helps us to get a better sense of what people were thinking about at the time.

Compare Cato’s letter to the opening of the Declaration of Independence. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

How does what she wrote fit with those ideals and how does it differ?

Analysis: This helps historians to determine what makes a source useful.

1. How might the Declaration of Independence have influenced Cato’s thinking as they wrote this letter? 

 

2. How does Cato’s letter help us better understand this period?