Primary Source:
* Autobiography: When the biography is written by the person themselves, it is a primary source. They are offering their own firsthand account of their life experiences.
Secondary Source:
* Biography written by someone else: When someone else writes about the life of another person, it is a secondary source. This is because the author is relying on information gathered from other sources, like interviews, documents, and other historical records.
Here's a simple breakdown:
* Primary source: The person themselves is the author.
* Secondary source: Someone else is the author, drawing on information from other sources.
It's important to note:
* Even a biography written by someone else can contain elements of primary sources, like quotes from the subject or excerpts from their personal writings.
* When evaluating a biography, it's crucial to consider the author's perspective, biases, and the sources they relied on.
Ultimately, whether a biography is primary or secondary depends on who wrote it and the nature of the information presented.