Benjamin Franklin’s personality and his contribution to the country’s development were chosen for the final project. Franklin went down in history not only as one of the founding fathers of the United States but also as a scientist and thinker endowed with various knowledge and talents, a pragmatist and promoter of the ideals of humanism, and a writer and a diplomat. Primarily due to this, already during his lifetime, he became a symbol of the new America. Thus, studying this versatile personality is significant for understanding the characteristics of the American Enlightenment.
In the 18th century, the population and economy of the British colonies in North America grew rapidly, and a new nation was formed with its own socio-economic, political, cultural, and linguistic realities that distinguished it from the peoples of Europe. The United States of America, the first independent state in the Western Hemisphere, was created. These momentous changes were brought about by the active participation of Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), whose life spanned much of the Age of Enlightenment.
The 18th century also brought significant changes to the spiritual, intellectual, and social life of America. According to Wilkinson (2022), the old ideas and beliefs were not rejected but rethought and reformulated under the scientific and philosophical views of the Age of Reason. The American Enlightenment of the 18th century was a social movement closely associated with the national liberation movement and the American Revolution. The main goals of the Enlightenment were to replace tradition with a rational approach, absolute religious dogmas with scientific research, and monarchy with representative power (Schaller et al., 2020). The thinkers and writers of the Enlightenment defended the ideals of justice, freedom, and equality, considering them as inalienable human rights. A vivid embodiment of the reorientation of American thought and the Enlightenment is the personality of Benjamin Franklin.
The significance of the critical changes that took place in the 18th century in the country and the role of Benjamin Franklin in the history of the United States indicate the relevance and importance of studying those events and processes that are connected by visible and invisible threads with many phenomena in the life of modern society. The latter circumstance, and the fact that the United States is now persistently claiming global leadership and the right to decide the fate of the world, increase interest in the initial pages of American history.
The American Enlightenment was filled with many colossal events in US history. Among them are the acquisition of political and spiritual independence, the birth of a young republic, the formation of the American nation, and the first conscious attempts to create a national identity. The key figure in these events was Benjamin Franklin, an educator, scientist, statesman, and public figure, leader of the revolutionary movement in America, and one of the authors of the US Declaration of Independence and the 1787 Constitution. Thus, this great personality’s activities significantly contributed to the history of the United States.
Benjamin Franklin made an incredible contribution to American history through his actions, ideas, and efforts as a politician, musician, writer, inventor, naturalist, social activist, and journalist.
References
Elliott, C. A. (2021). History of science in the United States: A chronology and research guide. Garland Science.
Gunderson, J. (2019). The real Benjamin Franklin: The truth behind the legend. Compass Point Books.
Hart, D. G. (2021). Benjamin Franklin: cultural protestant. Oxford University Press.
Schaller, M., Greenwood, J. T., Kirk, A., Sheehan-Dean, A., Purcell, S. J., & Snyder, C. (2020). American Horizons: U.S. history in a global context (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Wilkinson, H. (2022). A New Attribution to Benjamin Franklin. The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 146(1), 1-25.
The life and destiny of Benjamin Franklin can be seen as an embodiment of the American dream. Franklin was born in a family f a maker of candles and soap belonging to the low class. Thus, his great desire to achieve personal growth and development helped him to become one of the prominent political figures in the history of America. This early fusion of deed and thought, common enough in childhood, is especially important in Franklin’s case because, more than with most of the world’s great thinkers, he was a life of action. Virtually all of his writing arose from particular circumstances, served an immediate purpose, and had a deliberate intent.
Hard work and persistence, clear career goals, and good oratory skills are the main values followed by Franklin. “I drew a sketch of the plan and rules that would be necessary, and got a skillful conveyancer” (Franklin 75). If we may judge from the abundant written remains, his thought and philosophy grew hand in hand with the full life he led. Thus, though Franklin’s education, beyond what has been said of the imponderable effect of his childhood experiences, must be described in terms of the books he read and the ideas he might have gleaned from them, it is necessary to remember that as soon as he is old enough to act importantly his mental biography is interwoven inextricably with the events of his life in the unique environment of the new world.
To some extent, Franklin was limited by Hochschild’s tenets, but he overcame these barriers and created his unique life path and career. The contents of the books Franklin remembered as important to him as a boy have been recounted in some detail to emphasize the furnishings of mind which underwent the alleged conversion. He had a thorough indoctrination in the conventional wisdom of his day based on readings and personal philosophy.
This wisdom, by its very commonness and by its almost inevitable overthrow by new ideas already at work on more sophisticated. However much he might ridicule the Establishment and satirize its hypocrisy, he generally admired the personal qualities of New Englanders. In a very deep sense, he brought to Philadelphia a clear notion of what he admired in human beings; an especially important foundation for one whose life was spent dealing with people, not secluded in a study. Following Hochschild, Franklin holds: ‘out to you an example of diligence, economy, and virtue, and personifying the triumphant success ” (21).
The ideas important in forming the minds of men who themselves later make contributions to intellectual history are too seldom sought in the popular wisdom, the events and causes dominant during their youth. A person with Franklin’s value system would not be free in modern society limited by secular dogmas and norms. “I never was without some religious principles. I never doubted, for instance, the existence of a Deity — that he made the world and governed it by his providence” (Franklin 77).
Thus, his progressive ideas concerning equal rights and cultural homogeneity would help a person to live and understand the world around them. Though Franklin never ceased to search for and welcome new ideas and more than most men grew mentally all his life, his attention as a youth to fundamentals left him with habits of mind he never revised systematically. Rather, he made an amendment, an extension, and continually redefined precepts in the face of altering circumstances. A description of Franklin’s mind, soon after he departs from Boston, shows that the reservoir from which he drew the rest of his life. His eagerness to get started in business showed him to be a diligent Puritan lad, not a vagrant, licentious youth.
Works Cited
Franklin, B. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Macmillan, 1914.
Hochschild, J. L. “What is the American Dream”. In Facing Up to the American Dream, Princeton University Press, 1996, pp. 15-39.
Benjamin Franklin was an outstanding leader who could turn the smallest project into a citywide success. One of such success stories was the establishment of the public library in Philadelphia. Being a desperate book lover, Franklin found it astounding that there was no bookstore in the city, as in the only bookseller’s store, “they sold only paper, etc., almanacs, ballads, and a few common school-books” (Franklin, p. 78). Because of it, he organized a book club in one of the little rooms of this store driven by the idea of sharing books with other citizens of Philadelphia. As all of the club members left their books in this little room, it came to Franklin that the club could become a library. Finding around fifty rich people, especially young tradesmen, he turned this dream into reality. As the library was opened, it became easier to find more willing contributors to finance the project. As a result, it contributed to the intellectual development of the local society, as “reading became fashionable” and “people became better acquainted with books … and more intelligent than people of the same rank generally are in other countries” (Franklin, p. 78). As for Franklin himself, establishing the first library in Philadelphia helped him to improve his knowledge and satisfy his only amusement at that time – reading (Franklin, p. 79).
Franklin’s strive for constant personal development became the foundation of his quest for moral perfection he began at the age of twenty-two (B. McKay and K. McKay, p. 231). It was based on the system of thirteen moral virtues. He made this list himself by reading as many authors and works on moral perfection as he could find. Therefore, he developed a unique system of values, which would drive him through the path of his life and make committing to these virtues a habit. The thirteen virtues are the following: temperance in eating and drinking; silence (speaking to benefit others); order in one’s place and business; resolution to performing all promises; frugality (wasting nothing); industry (losing no time for unnecessary actions); sincerity; justice; moderation (avoiding extremes); cleanliness (body, home, and clothes); tranquility (avoiding disturbances at trifles); chastity (using venery only for health and offspring); and humility (B. McKay and K. McKay, p. 231-232; Franklin, pp. 83-84).
Having developed the system of moral virtues, Franklin made a separate book for marking successes and failures. He spent one week turning one of the virtues at a time into a habit. Franklin had the schemes for each virtue. Keeping in mind that he had followed this path for more than fifty-five years, it can be said that the quest was another success. Still, there were some virtues he found challenging such as order because of being not accustomed to it and having a good memory that contradicted with the use of the scheme (Franklin, p. 88). He even said that “a speckled ax was best” (Franklin, p. 89), thus pointing to the inability of most people to reach perfection and give up effort facing challenges.
Still, giving up was not about Franklin. It can be said that religion, especially avoiding religious sects, helped him to succeed. Although he identified humility – “Imitate Jesus and Socrates” (Franklin, p. 84), – “there was in it [the system of virtues] no mark of any of the distinguishing tenets of any particular sect” (Franklin, p. 90). Therefore, it is evident that being a non-religious person helped him to develop a unique system of virtues, which “might be serviceable to people in all religions” (Franklin, p. 90) because it ignores the postulates of all of them.
Works Cited
Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Edited by Charles Eliot, Gutenberg, 2016.
McKay, Brett, and Kate McKay. The Art of Manliness. How Books, 2014.
In 1749, one of the most famous London newspapers posted a speech of the woman who became accused by the court of bearing a child outside of wedlock. In the eighteenth century, the court could punish those women who were pregnant before marriage. According to Hall (2018), Polly Baker stated that instead of punishment, the court should take part in the creation of a statue in her honor. The character believed that she did not commit a crime and positively influenced society to fight against such unfair rules. Miss Polly Baker stated that she had done the duty of God as the birth of a child is a God’s nature which the want of society cannot destroy. The court found Baker guilty five times for the same actions, but she denied it since the birth of these children was planned, and their living conditions were at a good level.
Polly Baker said that she is not the only person who should take all responsibility, but also bachelors must receive the court’s punishment (Hall, 2018). Benjamin Franklin was one of the creators of The Speech of Miss Polly Baker, and most of the ideas displayed his personal beliefs. Franklin was a part of the USA’s political system and could analyze all advantages and disadvantages of the law. I believe that he would analyze the positive and negative sides of the situation and give clear ideas to make the story more receptive. Benjamin Franklin became one of the first politicians who helped establish connections with other countries and achieve the independence of the United States. The modern state of mind changed the attitude toward women, and they received more rights. The modern world is different from the eighteenth century, and women feel free in their actions and participation in the political sphere. The attitude towards women began to change because of the influential speech of Benjamin Franklin, and this was one of the largest changes in the American history.
Reference
Hall, M. (2018). Benjamin Franklin and Polly Baker. The University of North Carolina Press.
Benjamin Franklin is considered the founding father of the United States. He was a renowned author, one of the first printers, one of the finest scientists and inventors among great scientists, and also a great politician and diplomat in the time he worked for the United States. His work in science was exemplary he will forever be remembered for his discoveries and contributions in electricity. He invented various appliances like the lighting rod and the unique glass ‘armonica’. He also initiated a public lending library; the first in America alongside a pioneer fire department that was in Pennsylvania. He had a brilliant mind that somehow revolutionized the world.
Analysis
The purpose of the analysis in this study is to give a brief overview of Benjamin Franklin’s life which will help to answer various questions about his character.
A brief autobiography
On 6th January 1706, the lastborn son of Josiah Franklin was born. He was named Benjamin Franklin. He had sixteen other siblings. Benjamin briefly attended school only until he was ten years old. When he was twelve, he got interested in his brother’s James work who was a printer working for New England Courant. Benjamin progressed well becoming a contributor at some point and later a nominal editor. His progress was not accepted well by his brother who had introduced him to the trade and Benjamin decided to run away due to the constant quarreling. He first seeked refuge in New York, but later came to move to Philadelphia in 1723 (Foner, 12).
He was employed as a printer for a while then Governor Keith persuaded him to go to England. Governor Keith’s promise felt to meet his expectations and he got to work as a compositor until Denman a merchant facilitated his way back to Philadelphia. He was offered a position in Denman’s business where he worked until the demise of Denman. The death of Denman made him go back to his previous trade but this time he opened up his own printing house where he used to print The Pennsylvania Gazette which was a platform for raising local issues that needed reform (Foner, 32). In 1732, he stated distributing Poor Richard’s Almanac which made him quite popular as a writer. He quit his work as a writer for Almanac in the late 1750’s and printed a sermon called Father Abraham’s which was definitely one of the most successful literature works in colonial America.
During this time, Franklin got involved gradually with public affairs and he even set up an academy which would later develop into the University of Pennsylvania. He also founded the American Philosophical Society for the sole purpose of helping scientist to be able to share their findings with one another. He had also started doing electrical researches on his own. Earlier in 1748, he had sold his printing business because he had already acquired sufficient wealth and he wanted to finance his studies. He made significant discoveries which earned his great recognition across Europe (Foner, 55).
In politics, he became popular by being a good administrator and one of the best controversialists. He however tainted his name when he abused his position to help his relatives advance. He is however remembered for his postal system reform. As a statesman, he was only involved in colonial relations with Great Britain and at a later stage France. He was sent to England in 1957 to raise concerns that were emerging concerning the authority of the Penns in the colony government. He continued to shed more light on colonial provisions for five years. He later came back to America and was a key player in the Paxton affair but however could not keep his seat in the assembly. This made him to be sent to England for the second time as a representative for the colony but with a different role of formally requesting to the King take back the government from the administrators (Foner, 70).
He strongly contested the proposed stamp act which made him less popular. In 1767 he went to France where he was regarded a hero. Just before he went back to America, he lost his seat as the postmaster in 1775. He was then elected when he went back to America as a member of the continental congress. Two years later in 1777, he was preferred in the continental congress then elected to be an ambassador of the United States and was sent to France. He worked well as a commissioner for ten years and upon his return, he was appointed as a champion of American independence. He later died only five years after his appointment in April 17, 1790.
Character evaluation
Some may argue that Benjamin Franklin was unusually ambitious but he was a type of person who had a strong will and passion to succeed. The best example is his scholarly achievements. For a person who never graduated and only went to school up to the age of ten, he was really ambitious and got his education through voracious reading. Other people who are greatly recognized for scientific inventions and contributions are people who got an education beginning from a tender age, and gradually grew as they advanced in higher academic institutions. He had a quest for knowledge and he never let anything stop him from succeeding.
A lot of people come across different texts and information about Benjamin Franklin but what remains unanimous is the acknowledgement of his achievements. I personally found Eric Foner’s account to be fascinating because it focused on highlighting the great things that he achieved. But also, going through Franklin’s autobiography one gets to identify the various accomplishments that are attributed to him as the story of his life unfolds in his autobiography. I consider Benjamin Franklin to be one of the greatest individuals who ever lived despite his flaws and my opinion still remains the same even after a keen comparison between Eric Foner’s account and Franklin’s autobiography.
There are a lot of contributions that Benjamin Franklin will be remembered for. Personally, I think he should be remembered for everything that he did but there is one particular contribution that I find outstanding. His marvelous contribution in different inventions and scientific enquiries was a great contribution in the world of science. He was an extraordinary inventor coming up with things like the lighting rod which might not seem extraordinary now but it was unheard of in those days (Franklin, 80). The other great thing about him was his generous nature. He never patented any of his inventions. He asserts in his biography that “we should not only enjoy the inventions of others, but should be thankful to have the chance to help other with our inventions” (Franklin, 88).
There were some instances that potrayed Franklin as a racist in several occasions with the most notable quoted in his autobiography being “why should Africans be brought to America while there is an chance for us to increase if we keep out the blacks and tawneys i.e. Hispanic looking whites e.g. Italians (Franklin, 124)” However he was not a hypocrite in any way he firmly expressed his opinion in all matters.
In matters of religion, Franklin hard a unique perception. He believed that religion’s purpose in life was a tool to make men to do good to other men but he was skeptical about attending services. His religious background stems from the Puritan belief of the old South Church where he was baptized and his parents attended. However, he differed with certain Puritan beliefs on issues of Jesus’s spirituality, the existence of hell, and the possibility of salvation (Franklin, 90). But this did not shake his faith in God, principles, and the belief that there is decency in man.
Although Franklin was born in the United States, he was transatlantic because his father was a Briton and his mother was an American. His father Josiah Franklin was born on the 23rd of December in the remote Northamptonshire England son of a typical English farmer and blacksmith father Thomas Franklin and Jane white. Abiah Folger was Benjamin Franklin’s father a native of America from a place called Nantucket in the present state of Massachusetts (Foner, 18).
Franklin tried to achieve moral standards throughout his life and they paid well because they can be linked to his various achievements. These moral standards can be attributed to the Puritan virtues that were instilled in him when he was still young. In his civic works and various published works, he used these morals standards and succeeded to some extent because some of the American cultures are based on his moral standards.
Franklin worked to achieve high moral standards because he wanted to be virtuous and he also knew that the high moral standards would help him succeed in life. A good example is the respect and tolerance that he demonstrated. He condoned the many churches that were coming up he even once said “there are a lot of fresh places of adoration willingly constructed, but no matter what faction, I have never opposed”(Franklin, 108).
Through various projects that he initiated like building one the first fire stations, it was a matter of time before he joined politics. He was a good politician considering his track record. He first got elected as a councilman in October 1748 and a year later got a different role and joined justice of the peace. He progressed further when he was elected into the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1751. Three years down the line, he was assigned a prestigious position of deputy postmaster-general. He got wide recognition in his period as the deputy postmaster general when he initiated reforms that ensured mail was distributed on weekly basis (Franklin, 180).
Franklin was a product of self constructed persona as opposed to the notion of a product of education. As seen in the study, he only got formal education up to the age of ten and he later came to do his own extensive reading and research which made him achieve a lot in the world of science. His perpetual personal reinvention was driven by necessity and also he did it to benefit himself. A good example is his generous nature. He never patented any of his inventions. He asserts in his biography that “we should not only enjoy the inventions of others, but should be thankful to have the chance to help other with our inventions” (Franklin, 88). He saw the need to enlighten others with his inventions.
He also wanted to benefit himself because at some point he sold his well established printing business in 1748 and acquired enough wealth to fund his studies. He also initiated various projects like starting up the fire station and public library so that he could get recognition before venturing into elective politics.
Conclusion
According to the study, Benjamin Franklin is indeed a great scholar and politician not only in America but the entire world. He might be perceived to be a racist or a hypocrite by some but that does not change the fact that he literally brought independence to America, changed the world with his unique inventions, and was a great writer. He has achieved a lot of things despite his humble beginnings. What is inspiring about Franklin is his desire to succeed. Even though it has been over a century since he died, he can still be used as a positive role model in the 21st century to encourage people who are ambitious that everything is possible if a person is determined and sticks to his principals. Franklin was a product of self constructed persona as opposed to the notion of a product of education.
Works Cited
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty! An American History. New York: Norton, 2009.
Franklin, Benjamin. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. New York: Dover Thrift Editions, 1996.
Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers and participated in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence. Born in 1706 in Boston as the tenth son of a soap and candle maker, he went from being a printer’s apprentice to a member of the Continental Congress and a diplomat. Franklin received only a little formal education, and most of his knowledge he gained through self-learning. Among other things, he is famous for his writings created in an elegant style and revealing the issues that the newly created US was faced with.
Perhaps, the reason for Franklin’s writing Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America was the author’s concern about the future of the US and the relationship between Native Americans and European immigrants. In this piece, Franklin argued that Native Americans were called savages just because their culture was different from that of Europeans. In order to prove that Indians were not indeed savage, the author told stories revealing Indian hospitality and peacekeeping attitudes. For example, Franklin wrote that Indians always fed and warmed a stranger coming to their village, while white people were primarily interested in whether a stranger could pay for food and shelter.
One quote from this piece is as follows: “The politeness of these savages in conversation is indeed carried to excess, since it does not permit them to contradict or deny the truth of what is asserted in their presence.” By this quote, Franklin meant that Indians always intended to avoid disputes by believing that what the other person said was true. The author cited an example of a Swedish Minister telling Indians the biblical facts on which Christianity was based. Indians did not argue that that story was false; instead, they accepted it and narrated the tale on which their religion was based. However, the Christian Missionary objected to Indians’ story, thus offending Indians. This episode shows that Indians were more tolerant toward other cultures and, in fact, more civilized than Europeans.
This piece is considered literature because of the elegance of style in which it is written and the meaningful ideas conveyed by its author. Franklin did not merely narrate facts; he told stories that disclosed the identities of Indians. The significant ideas found in this piece are the importance of tolerance toward other cultures and the value of hospitality and respect for personal boundaries.
Red Jacket was a chief of one tribe of the Senecas, a group of indigenous Americans living south of Lake Ontario. His Indian name was Sagoyewatha, and he got his nickname Red Jacket for wearing red clothes presented to him by the British. This man was famous for the significant role he played in the negotiations between the Senecas and the recently formed US. He aimed at peace with the white people, but, at the same time, he defended the interests of his own people.
Red Jacket was an eloquent orator, and his talent is captured in one of his famous speeches called “Indian Speech.” It was delivered to a missionary who aimed at making Indians adopt Christianity. In this speech, Red Jacket explicitly told the missionary that Indians were not going to renounce their own religion and accept Christianity instead. To defend his views, Red Jacket pointed out the flaws in Christians’ arguments. For example, he mentioned that it was difficult to believe in the truthfulness of Christianity because Christians themselves could not agree on their religion.
One quote from this speech is as follows: “BROTHER. We do not wish to destroy your religion, or take it from you. We only want to enjoy our own.” This quote is significant because it shows Indians’ peacekeeping intentions. Indians respected Christians’ right to practice Christianity, but they also wanted to gain the same respect for their religion. This speech is considered literature for its form and content. As for the form, the speech demonstrates the author’s mastery of rhetoric. In terms of content, it conveys the Indian values through the narration of their history and beliefs.
“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” — Benjamin Franklin
In the quote found, the famous American statesman and writer addresses the concept of biological factors, linking them to health. As we know, health is a complex, multidimensional system consisting of six dimensions. When Franklin writes about the need for early falling asleep and early waking, he is addressing only the physical and social aspects of health because it is directly related to circadian rhythms, the body’s need for sleep, and the body’s functional recovery. However, the contradiction is that an individual can sleep the correct number of hours during the day, and this will also contribute to the well-being of the body if the individual’s waking and sleeping patterns are different. Therefore, I am convinced that in this quote, Franklin is also addressing the social characteristic of health since human interaction, work, learning, and meetings traditionally take place during daylight hours, but not at night. In other words, it is as if Franklin is saying that if an individual wants to be wise and healthy, he must sleep at night in order to be socially active in the morning.
I cannot say that I agree entirely with Franklin’s saying, for I do not support the idea of one-sided propaganda. In my opinion, a person can maintain their health and wisdom even when they do not go to bed early and wake up late; it is optional. Having a critical mindset, paying attention to one’s own body, and preventing illness are what make a person healthy at all hours of the day. Based on the above, I would like to propose two questions for further discussion:
What exactly is the biological mechanism behind Franklin’s chosen strategy of going to bed early and getting up early? That is, why is it good for the body?
Have there been times in your life when you felt awake and healthy after sleeping during the day?