Benjamin Franklin: The American Dream

For the past two hundred years, Benjamin Franklin has been regarded as one of the most renowned Founding Fathers of the United States, and someone who brought the “American Dream” and its values to life. Since then, countless swarms of immigrants travel from their homes to come to this county, all for its ideals and opportunities. Despite the political state of the nation and the continuous controversy, people continue to risk their livelihoods to come to America, believing in the values that the founders brought with them from England. Although many men and women sought after and morphed what people now know as the American dream, only a select few initiated it, one of these people being Benjamin Franklin. When he begins the writings to his

Although the tone for differing people entering our borders today is negative, not all of American history has been this way. In the early years of America, there was not a definition of a true American, as many people were continuing to move across the borders searching for a new beginning and those born in the United States were usually the first or second generation. Benjamin Franklin fell in this group, as his father was born in England but moved to America in his early years. During this time period, many religious groups and racial groups gravitated apart due to clashing in beliefs and culture, but Benjamin Franklin had a different mindset from his peers. Whilst openly claiming to be deist despite his Puritan upbringing, Franklin understood the importance of differing views and opinions and how this benefited the budding country. If he was completely against mingling with those of other faiths, he would not have slept in Quaker meetinghouses while he had no other place to go. Along with this, Franklin also would not have kept his friendships with those who had beliefs different from his. Benjamin Franklin understood that for the greater good of the United States of America, people must learn to co-exist and the hate between people must be set aside. Tolerance of other people groups was not only essential to a country that had barely

Philanthropy, tolerance, and perseverance are only three of these traits that distinguish an American from those of other countries. Although Benjamin Franklin lived his life according to numerous characteristics he found important, including these three, it remains crucial that the citizens of today’s society learn from Franklin and carry on the importance of these characteristics in their own lives. Without the evidence of these characteristics in early Americans, the state of the country would be (quite) worse off than it already is. As hatred consumes the world, the need for these pivotal traits increases, and without them society will surely fall backwards and civilization will no longer be able to progress forward, leaving the next generations to pick up the pieces of these