Historical document analysis is essential in history. There are different ways to analyze these documents and the historical phrase is one of these methods. It is a way of summarizing the essential information contained in the document into a single sentence. This will help you focus on the important elements of the document and to set aside information that is not useful to you.
You must analyze your document in order to write your historical phrase, and find the speaker, the intention, the subject, the space and the time. Then you will be able to integrate these elements into a single phrase.
The speaker is the person or group of persons who formulated a message in a document. This may be a historical actor, a witness, a historian, a painter, a photographer, a caricaturist, a political group, etc. The speaker is the person behind the message. Sometimes the speaker in a document is not relevant to understanding the document. This often happens with iconographic documents, such as photographs, caricatures, posters, etc. This happens, for example, when a painter paints a canvas showing an event that they did not personally live through, one that they know only from sources that they have studied. In this case, you do not need to know the identity of the painter in order to understand the document. And in this case, the speaker would be the painting.
The intention is the reason why the speaker wrote the message. As a rule, the intention is expressed by a verb, which will vary depending on the nature of the document and the words used. The intention may be to describe, explain, give an order, motivate, debate, illustrate, represent, denounce, ridicule, etc. You can look at the words used in the excerpt and the type of document to help you find the speaker’s intention. For example, a legal text sets out directives or laws ; a petition formulates a demand; a user’s guide explains; a caricature denounces or illustrates something or someone; a history text debates; a poster motivates, etc.
You must also find the subject of the document. This means you must describe the content of the document, find its central issue, that is, what the document is “talking” about. The subject may be related to historical actors, culture, the economy, politics, territory, society, etc. You must report the subject in your own words so that you can master the content and be as specific as possible.
When you are studying history, it is essential to situate documents in time. You must look for a time marker. This may be a specific date, a month, a year, a decade or a historical period. Some examples of historical periods are prehistory, Antiquity, the English Regime, etc.
You must be quite capable of distinguishing between primary sources and secondary sources at this stage.
To find out more about primary sources and secondary sources, see the concept sheet on first- and second-hand historical sources.
You must geographically situate the document you are studying. Geography and history are closely connected: you cannot have one without the other. Your degree of precision may vary, just as it does when you are identifying the time. The document may involve a specific place, a city, a region, a country, a continent, etc. What is important is that you locate the document in a geographic space, regardless of how precise that space may be.
When you are drafting your phrase, you can use the following formula, known as a stem sentence, in which you fill in the blanks.
“Between 1700 and 1755, the population of New France went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000 inhabitants due to a high birth rate [...]. Most immigrants, and there were not very many of them, were young men. A few dozen immigrants arrived each year: soldiers, prisoners, tradesmen. Half of them left after a few years.” - Jacques Mathieu, historian
Mathieu, J.(2001). La Nouvelle-France, les Français en Amérique du Nord, XVIe-XVIIIe siècle- Translation provided by Alloprof
Speaker: The source reference states that the author of the quote is a historian. The author and the speaker are the same person in this case, since it is the author who provides the text in the excerpt.
“Between 1700 and 1755, the population of New France went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000 inhabitants due to a high birth rate [...]. Most immigrants, and there were not very many of them, were young men. A few dozen immigrants arrived each year: soldiers, prisoners, tradesmen. Half of them left after a few years.” - Jacques Mathieu, historian
Mathieu, J.(2001). La Nouvelle-France, les Français en Amérique du Nord, XVIe-XVIIIe siècle- Translation provided by Alloprof
Intention: This excerpt gives us facts that can be verified, such as statistics. The tone of the text is neutral and the quote allows readers to imagine a reality that they did not experience. Note that this excerpt is a description. This means that the speaker’s intention was to describe.
“Between 1700 and 1755, the population of New France went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000 inhabitants due to a high birth rate [...]. Most immigrants, and there were not very many of them, were young men. A few dozen immigrants arrived each year: soldiers, prisoners, tradesmen. Half of them left after a few years.” - Jacques Mathieu, historian
Mathieu, J.(2001). La Nouvelle-France, les Français en Amérique du Nord, XVIe-XVIIIe siècle. Les Presses de l’Université Laval.- Translation provided by Alloprof
Subject: Words such as “inhabitants,” “birth rate,” “immigration,” etc., are used to highlight concepts related to population. This field is also called demographics. In addition, the sequence: “went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000” shows that there was an increase in the population. The document also states that this increase was the result of a high birth rate. So, we could say that the subject is “demographic growth due to the birth rate.”
“Between 1700 and 1755, the population of New France went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000 inhabitants due to a high birth rate [...]. Most immigrants, and there were not very many of them, were young men. A few dozen immigrants arrived each year: soldiers, prisoners, tradesmen. Half of them left after a few years.” - Jacques Mathieu, historian
Mathieu, J.(2001). La Nouvelle-France, les Français en Amérique du Nord, XVIe-XVIIIe siècle. Les Presses de l’Université Laval. - Translation provided by Alloprof
Time: Two time intervals are given in this document: first, in the excerpt (1700 to 1755), then in the reference to the source (2001). The time marker in the quote (1700-1755) is more relevant to the study of the document, since it refers to the time when the described events occurred. Therefore, the time marker could be “the first half of the 18th century.” We could also write the time marker as “from 1700 to 1755.”
“Between 1700 and 1755, the population of New France went from about 14 000 inhabitants to close to 55 000 inhabitants due to a high birth rate [...]. Most immigrants, and there were not very many of them, were young men. A few dozen immigrants arrived each year: soldiers, prisoners, tradesmen. Half of them left after a few years.” - Jacques Mathieu, historian
Mathieu, J.(2001). La Nouvelle-France, les Français en Amérique du Nord, XVIe-XVIIIe siècle. Les Presses de l’Université Laval. -Translation provided by Alloprof
Space: The place where the described events unfolded is clearly stated in this document. So, the place is “New France.”
The historical phrase summarizing the document may be written as follows:
