Oral History Project Summary:
You have spent this semester learning history and what it means to be a historian. In this assignment, you will have the opportunity to be the historian, conduct research, and create and analyze a primary source. For this project, you will interview someone and use the recording of your interview as a primary source. After the interview has been conducted, you will analyze the audio and craft a short essay to make sense of your research. The person you interview doesn’t have to have lived during some “marquee” historical event, but it is recommended that you interview a person from a different generation than you. You may not interview anyone enrolled in this class or anyone under the age of 18. Interviewing a family member is strongly encouraged but not required. The main goal of the assignment is to determine what it means to live in Texas and/or be a Texan in different social and temporal contexts.
Some major themes that you can choose to pursue are:
Their personal story
The proper role of government and how Texas fits in
Texas’s role in the world or Texas’s role in America
Texan identity (qualifications, characteristics, etc.) how it is similar or different to American identity
Meanings of citizenship
Personal experiences (events, motivations, etc.)
Culture (family traditions, the arts, entertainment, etc.)
Societal issues (sexism, racism, rights, liberties, institutions, the balance of power, etc.)
These are only suggestions you can choose one or several. If you have another focus /theme in mind, let’s discuss this.
Oral History Essay
In at least 750 well-chosen words, critically analyze the primary source you have created. This process will prove very similar to previous primary source analyses and the critical essay we have already completed. Basically, tell their story but place it into the larger context of our course. Quote and paraphrase from the recording just as you have in your other assignments as use of evidence, so you allow yourself to go beyond just providing a summary. You are permitted to use first-person pronouns in this. You must type your essays double-spaced and in size 12 font appropriate for a formal paper. Be sure to include an appropriate title and formal style along with citations. (MLA/APA/Chicago MS are all acceptable)
Questions to consider while drafting your essay:
What did you learn from and about your interviewee?
Why does this person’s story matter? Why should we care? Why do you?
How does your interviewee’s story connect to the materials we have covered this semester? What connections did you uncover? Explain.
Simply tell your person’s story and make sure to quote them.
