Challenges Facing Historians Looking to Interpret a Source
Many would agree that WW2 changed the face of history and it was a war that had very different elements to any war fought before. The proceeding discussion illuminates one aspect of the war ,the aid effort during wartime Australia.
How can one understand the sentiments and beliefs of the time? How can one form an opinion or draw a conclusion about the aid effort during WW2.
To gain an insight and better understanding of that era one turns to the primary and secondary sources available. One would need to understand the distinction between primary and secondary sources before seeking to analyse and interpret the sources. A primary source is a document, book or object that was created during the time that is being analysed. A secondary source may be seen as an interpretation or a discussion about the era under discussion and such sources are removed from the actual event or era under discussion.
For this discussion the following 3 primary sources will be deliberated: a) a poster adverting the Red Cross; b) a poster for ACF; and c)poster for a stamp drive. Each source will now be addressed in turn.
Through viewing the first primary source (ACF Poster) , it is impossible just by looking at the source to ascertain the author of this source, however we do know that it was published somewhere between 1939 and 1945. One of the outstanding organisations of World War Two was the Australian Red Cross and upwards of 450,000 Australians were members of the Red Cross during the war. With 95% of members being women, the Red Cross was probably the largest women‘s organisation in Australian history.(footnote-taken from topic notes)
It appears that the poster was designed to target a broad and vast group of people, not only for the simplicity in the actually message but that it didn’t specify any conditions to joining the Red Cross. Based on the climate in Australia at the time, the reason behind creating such a source could be that it was to drum up support and members
How can one understand the sentiments and beliefs of the time? How can one form an opinion or draw a conclusion about the aid effort during WW2.
To gain an insight and better understanding of that era one turns to the primary and secondary sources available. One would need to understand the distinction between primary and secondary sources before seeking to analyse and interpret the sources. A primary source is a document, book or object that was created during the time that is being analysed. A secondary source may be seen as an interpretation or a discussion about the era under discussion and such sources are removed from the actual event or era under discussion.
For this discussion the following 3 primary sources will be deliberated: a) a poster adverting the Red Cross; b) a poster for ACF; and c)poster for a stamp drive. Each source will now be addressed in turn.
Through viewing the first primary source (ACF Poster) , it is impossible just by looking at the source to ascertain the author of this source, however we do know that it was published somewhere between 1939 and 1945. One of the outstanding organisations of World War Two was the Australian Red Cross and upwards of 450,000 Australians were members of the Red Cross during the war. With 95% of members being women, the Red Cross was probably the largest women‘s organisation in Australian history.(footnote-taken from topic notes)
It appears that the poster was designed to target a broad and vast group of people, not only for the simplicity in the actually message but that it didn’t specify any conditions to joining the Red Cross. Based on the climate in Australia at the time, the reason behind creating such a source could be that it was to drum up support and members