Benjamin Franklin Thesis

Luis Di Meco

Hist 1301

Critical Analysis Paper

Here is the story of a man who was born in arduous times, only a century after the first settlers landed in the New World, and still became to be one of the most prosperous men in all of history. My analysis is on the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin, a man who was not only a scientist but a printer, politician, inventor, author, postmaster, diplomat, and a prominent civic activist. The overall theme of this book is to show, how through self-improvement and consistent work ethic, one can achieve success. This autobiography is not just a story Benjamin claimed to write so that his own example on how to live a better life could be passed on to his son, but it is also a model

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston in 1706, coming from a family of descendants from Northamptonshire, England. He was the youngest son, and had 16 other brothers and sisters. Since an early age Benjamin had shown great enthusiasm and ability in reading and writing. Thus, his father Josiah, took him to his brother James, where he signed an 8-year contract to work for him, in his printing business. This is where Benjamin was able to take the opportunity to increase his reading and writing skills, which developed his interest over time. The issue, was that James was a stubborn man and seemed to bump heads with him a lot. This is when, at the age of 17, Franklin lost importance in working with his brother, decided to break the contract, and look for work elsewhere. He had to leave the city because James made sure that he couldn’t find a job anywhere else in town. He

This autobiography has been an eye-opener, in the sense that it has made me reevaluate my priorities and goals in life, and that is exactly what I think Benjamin Franklin wanted for his readers. The fact that he accomplished so much in a time where life was not as simple as today, goes to show that anything is possible as long as you set your mind to it. I was very interested in his virtue system and the way he always tried to achieve excellence, although he figured out that it wasn’t impeccably possible, one could definitely improve greatly. Franklin states, "It was about this time I conceived the bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection. I wished to live without committing any fault at any time; I would conquer all that either natural inclination, custom, or company might lead me into.” with this list of 13 virtues that are: Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Chastity, and Humility. He created a weekly plan where he focused on one virtue per week, until he got developed them greatly by focusing on his successes and fails, which he would write down and analyze. "There will be sleeping enough in the grave." Franklin although unable to find perfectionism, said that he did find felicity thanks to the constant development of these