Reference no: EM133279351

Question - History of the United States to 1865

Primary Source Analysis - A Midwife's Tale documentary

Reading: Introduction to Laurel Thatcher Ulrich's A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on her Diary, 1785-1812

Historical Context - Two to four sentences that places the events of Martha Ballard's life & diary in historical context. In other words, use your lecture notes to mention and briefly describe one or two specific events, movements, policies, or developments that occurred from the American Revolution to Thomas Jefferson's presidency.

Thesis Statement - One to three sentences that use A Midwife's Tale to answer the following question: How did Martha Ballard and her family's experiences demonstrate the ways Americans lived in the late 18th and early 19th century?

Body Paragraphs - Using both the documentary and reading, specifically answer each of the following questions, using a couple short quotes as evidence for your answers to each question:

What does Martha Ballard's life/diary tell us about gender roles in the years after the American Revolution?

How does Ballard's life/diary shed light on sexual customs of the time? What ways does religion shape Ballard's life?

How does Ballard's life/diary reflect class conflict? (For example, disputes over taxes, land, respect to employers)

Using Ballard's life/diary, argue why midwives were more important than doctors.

Your analysis must include concrete examples from the documentary & article. You are welcome to make broad statements (e.g., "Ballard helped a lot of people..."), but you must cite specific examples from the sources as evidence. On the whole, a solid paper displays critical thinking through creative analysis that interrogates the sources and uses knowledge gained from our course.