Human Architect

I used the term human architect (here) to convey the idea that  any  source you examine has been created by a person living in a particular moment in time, place, and socio economic context. It’s your job, as a thoughtful reader, to examine the source in such a way that you can draw inferences about the person who created it and, often more importantly, the time period they were or are living in.  Many students will read sources as content that needs to be learned for a test. Some well intentioned students, if they are interested in more than just the test,  may still read sources too literally, as content that if remembered equals knowledge. Sources must be read for meaning. And to read for meaning, you must ask questions that probe the concepts and structures of a text.