P/S Worksheet
| Evaluative question | Primary Source Title
The Life of Alexander |
Secondary Source title
Alexander the Great |
| Who was the author? (Not the editor or the translator) | Plutarch | Stoneman, Richard. Alexander the Great. Routledge, 2004. |
| Who is the audience? Be Specific. This is never ALL people. | The author’s audience was youth. | Students and researchers. It was meant to provide orientation to scholars and students for more focused research or study about Alexander. |
| What type of document is it? (*More than a primary or secondary source. i.e., autobiography, letter, law, etc.) | A Book of History | A book of History.
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| What is the subject or author’s thesis? | The book is a biography, and the main subject concerns the life of Alexander the great, his political and social life. | The subject is Alexander the Great. |
| What was the author’s motive for writing the source? | Plutarch’s main aim was to inspire emulation in youth through his philosophical, historical, religious, political, and literacy subjects so that emphasis is on anecdote, moral choice, and character. The aim was to build a greater society from lessons of the past for both Greek and Roman audiences. | This book emphasizes the philosophical and political significance and impacts of Alexander the great on the world that followed him. |
| Does the author have an obvious bias? (*Note that all authors have biases, but not all are obvious.) What is bias? | There is no clear indication of an obvious bias by Plutarch. However, the author’s viewpoint could have been a source of bias. He is described as a chief magistrate, an exceptionally educated individual, and a priest at the Delphi. Another possible cause of bias could be in the translation of the text from its original language to English. The translation may have resulted in the loss of context or the intended meaning. | Stoneman has an obvious bias against many scholarly articles and books about Alexander the great; he believes that they do not stand still and have problems in terms of arguments and evidence regarding the subject matter- Alexander the great. |
| Where was the document written? How does this influence what is written? | The biography was written in Greece. The cultural, political, and social aspects might have influenced Plutarch’s choice of aspects of Alexander’s life for the book. He majorly talked about the social and political life, family, and relationships taking center stage. | This book was written in Abingdon Oxon UK. The author, therefore, included the local contributors majorly, thereby leaving the output and points of view of many other scholars.
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| When was the document written? | Written in Greece c.46 -c.125
First translated in 1683 and edited in 1859. |
The book was written in 2004. |
| What was the effect of the source on history? | The impact of the biographies on history cannot be down plaid; for instance, after the translation of the book to English, the known scholar Shakespeare used it for his three plays. The biography is still referred to as the cornerstone of western literature. | The book brings several arguments fronted by different major scholars concerning Alexandra the great. It has been able to prove the lack of enough evidence by some scholarly allegations and debunked their arguments. It has also been able to recognize some of the significant contributors to accurate information regarding the Greek ruler- alexander the great. The scholars and students of the day can, therefore, make informed decisions regarding the subject. |
| What was the historical context of the document? What was going on at the time that might have influenced the author’s opinions? How did the source affect your view of the topic or event, if a secondary source? | This biography was written at a time when moral values, vices, and virtues in leadership were of concern. The author, therefore, focused on the socio-cultural and political aspects of Alexanders life, depicting the leader as a cruel political figure but a social individual. | Alexander left no official writings of his own, and there are only fragments from those claimed to have documented his career. The author, therefore, realized the
existence of a knowledge gap for both students and scholars regarding Alexander’s political care and sought to collect a synthesize some of the primary sources to provide knowledge nosed on evidence. Before reading this, I understood Alexander the great as a noble ruler, and this book, however, has made me realize the tyrannical tendencies associated with Alexander. It has also made me appreciate the lack of evidence in this subject. I am therefore motivated to seek more answers through research on the subject. |
| Why was the document written? (*You may have to infer this by reading between the lines or doing further research.) | Plutarch was attempting to create a better future for the world by inspiring its youth on the importance of adopting proper values, vices, and virtues in leadership. This inspiration was meant to create a better society. He cautioned on the consequences of the corrupt leadership for both the leaders and the subjects. | This book purposed to furnish students and scholars with the knowledge gap reality regarding the historical studies of Alexander the Great, and it explains the sources suspected to be a sham and identifies the primary sources. It also explains the thought of these scholars regarding alexander the great.
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| Is the document credible? Why or why not? (*See how to determine reliability or credibility in Module 3’s Research Assignment.) | The document is credible because Plutarch was a well-educated scholar and a writer of about 50 biographies. He had an excellent course of inspiring both the Greek and Roman youth to better the lives of his people. He, therefore, had no reason to lie regarding the life of Alexander. Secondly, the book id genuine because historical accounts and prominent Persons and places mentioned by Plutarch are in collaboration with other works by him as well as other writers | Yes, in that it was written by Richard Stoneman, a publisher for Archeology and Classics at Routledge. Richard is also an established author of books concerning the culture and history of Greece. However, the author’s biases must be considered while evaluating the credibility of this source. The author also uses primary and secondary sources, new sources, together with numismatic and archeological sources as evidence. |