So what is a Primary Source? The Library of Congress defines it as: Primary sources are the raw materials of history — original documents and objects that were created at the time under study. They are different from secondary sources, accounts that retell, analyze, or interpret events, usually at a distance of time or place.
Example: If you are writing about Alden Partridge, primary sources can include both published and non-published (personal writing such as letters) by Partridge, but books and articles written by other people about Alden Partridge are not a primary source, but a helpful secondary source.
Consider: What is and is not a Primary Source is dependent on the project.The book The Color Purple by Alice Walker would be the Primary Source if the project was analyzing the original work. However, for a project examining the adaptations of The Color Purple, The Color Purple film, the stage musical and the film of the stage musical are all Primary Sources!
