Evaluation of Sources
The most critical component to the analysis on “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1 and 2” in relation to abortion is the television episodes themselves. However, the analysis provided thereafter is also important for discussion, which is why the episode “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1” and the news article “Maude’s Abortion Fades Into History”, by Lewis Beale, will be discussed. “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1” is essential to the discussion of abortion because it shows the instinctive reactions of the characters and writers. The episode, as it is detailed later, was to highlight a “Zero Population Growth” idea; the writers given the task to craft a story that included this message with a political twist for the time period. This episode is …show more content…
Additionally, it is a way to sway an audience to consider opinions of the cast they may have not considered prior, especially concerning those critical to the show’s success. The article is not an expose; rather, it is an analytical document supplemented with testimony from those close to the show.
The issue of abortion truly came to the forefront of national debate with the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade in 1973, in which it agreed that abortion was protected by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution (Roe). However, just a year prior, millions of Americans tuned in to the life of a late forty-year-old woman who was debating an abortion; the episode, “Maude’s Dilemma Part I and II” of the popular series Maude, changed the way Americans viewed abortion. Fundamentally, Maude changed the way Americans viewed abortion by showing a personal decision, thus garnering support for the cause in later years. By the time Maude appeared on the air, the debate for and against abortion had quietly been brewing beneath the surface. More American women were getting abortions performed than ever before, and news outlets quickly realized that the debate over abortions was one that would not simply …show more content…
Some pieces of evidence lead better as a transitionary detail than they do as an embedded supporting detail, or vice versa. This was especially relevant with the use of statistics regarding the abortions performed in New York during the early 1970s. While these details served well to support the idea that ideologies were changing, they also provided an interesting transition into the discussion of Maude’s influence. Finally, it is crucial that a historian chooses a topic they truly want to delve deeper into. A historical investigation is about uncovering and interpreting evidence, and it is much easier done with a topic that is not only interesting to the audience but to the historian as well. A topic such as the communist scare of the 1950s or the abolishment of slavery, while both interesting separately, would not provide as much enthusiasm in researching and writing the paper as did abortion in this instance. With these ideas in mind, it has become increasingly clearer that a historian’s job is not simply to report facts. Historians investigate, uncover, interpret, and present information in a way that is near revelation-inducing to better the knowledge of themselves and the audience they present
The most critical component to the analysis on “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1 and 2” in relation to abortion is the television episodes themselves. However, the analysis provided thereafter is also important for discussion, which is why the episode “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1” and the news article “Maude’s Abortion Fades Into History”, by Lewis Beale, will be discussed. “Maude’s Dilemma: Part 1” is essential to the discussion of abortion because it shows the instinctive reactions of the characters and writers. The episode, as it is detailed later, was to highlight a “Zero Population Growth” idea; the writers given the task to craft a story that included this message with a political twist for the time period. This episode is …show more content…
Additionally, it is a way to sway an audience to consider opinions of the cast they may have not considered prior, especially concerning those critical to the show’s success. The article is not an expose; rather, it is an analytical document supplemented with testimony from those close to the show.
The issue of abortion truly came to the forefront of national debate with the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade in 1973, in which it agreed that abortion was protected by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution (Roe). However, just a year prior, millions of Americans tuned in to the life of a late forty-year-old woman who was debating an abortion; the episode, “Maude’s Dilemma Part I and II” of the popular series Maude, changed the way Americans viewed abortion. Fundamentally, Maude changed the way Americans viewed abortion by showing a personal decision, thus garnering support for the cause in later years. By the time Maude appeared on the air, the debate for and against abortion had quietly been brewing beneath the surface. More American women were getting abortions performed than ever before, and news outlets quickly realized that the debate over abortions was one that would not simply …show more content…
Some pieces of evidence lead better as a transitionary detail than they do as an embedded supporting detail, or vice versa. This was especially relevant with the use of statistics regarding the abortions performed in New York during the early 1970s. While these details served well to support the idea that ideologies were changing, they also provided an interesting transition into the discussion of Maude’s influence. Finally, it is crucial that a historian chooses a topic they truly want to delve deeper into. A historical investigation is about uncovering and interpreting evidence, and it is much easier done with a topic that is not only interesting to the audience but to the historian as well. A topic such as the communist scare of the 1950s or the abolishment of slavery, while both interesting separately, would not provide as much enthusiasm in researching and writing the paper as did abortion in this instance. With these ideas in mind, it has become increasingly clearer that a historian’s job is not simply to report facts. Historians investigate, uncover, interpret, and present information in a way that is near revelation-inducing to better the knowledge of themselves and the audience they present