Mixed practice test 2, Grades 11–12 — question 5 of 25
Listen to the conversation between Mr. Salazar and Dana about her history assignment. Then answer the questions.
The Owner’s Letter
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Mr. Salazar: Dana, your source analysis uses the Hollis letter as proof that the cannery workers were satisfied with their pay. Tell me who wrote it.
Dana: Edward Hollis. He owned the cannery, I think.
Mr. Salazar: He did. Does that change how much weight you would give his opinion of the workers’ pay?
Dana: I guess he would want people to think the pay was fair. But it is a primary source, and you told us primary sources are the strongest evidence.
Mr. Salazar: I told you they are the closest to the events. That makes them valuable, not neutral. A primary source tells you very reliably what its author wanted someone to believe. Whether it was true is a separate question.
Dana: So should I take it out?
Mr. Salazar: No, keep it. It is good evidence of how the owner described conditions. Then put a source from the other side next to it. The county archive has records from the strike that year, including a list of the workers’ demands. If the workers were satisfied, that list is hard to explain.
Choose the best answer.
What does Mr. Salazar mean when he says primary sources are “valuable, not neutral”?
You can move on without answering. Unanswered questions are counted as wrong.