HUM 260: Research Methods in the Humanities (Dr. Rodrick)

Academic sources are written for many different reasons, and you will use them for different purposes. You can organize your thoughts on a topic by organizing your sources using the BEAM method:

• Background: general information that will help you explain the foundation of your topic
• Example: evidence that helps you make your argument, like a primary source text or data
• Argument: a source that makes an argument that you want to engage with or borrow from
• Method: using the source's way of analyzing a topic, such as postcolonial theory, and applying it to your own topic

Look at each of these sources and think about how you might use them in a paper about Henry VIII and religion. Could you use them for background, examples, arguments, or methodology? Keep in mind that a single source can be used in multiple ways, depending on how you formulate your guiding question.

After you have looked at these resources, work with your table to come up with a few research questions you could ask based on what you've read.