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Benjamin Franklin's Quote Analysis

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Upon doing some research on the quote I found out that was is written in number nine is not actually the quote, nor is it the context that Benjamin Franklin met it in. The actual quote is “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” Ironically enough this quote was met very literally to a situation that Benjamin Franklin was writing about. The quote was a part of a letter written in 1755 on behalf of the Pennsylvania Assembly to the colonial governor. The assembly wished to tax the lands of the Penn family in order to raise money against the French and Indian attacks. The quote meant exactly what it said about giving up the freedom of their land, in reference to taxes, for defense. …show more content…

We have given up our freedom of speech to holler what we want, where we please, in order to keep ourselves and everyone else on that plane safe. To agree with Benjamin Franklin’s quote in this situation would be illogical. Do we not deserve to be safe just because we are willing to make the necessary sacrifices of our freedom to get it? Yes, we have ordered some of our freedom, but it is for the greater good of ourselves and others. To reference to John locke's social contract, the purpose of the government is to protect our rights and keep us safe, but it does that by setting laws and punishing those who break those laws and infringe on other's rights. This goes to show that the same government that gives us safety is also the same government that sets laws that limit our freedoms and is to punish us if we do wrong. It is also the same government that monitors us for our safety and the safety of others. To submit to a government that can incarcerate us, monitor us and do many other things the government does, can be viewed as giving up our liberty, but at the same time, everyone in America does this to be

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651 Words | 3 Pages

After seven years of the fighting the French and Indian War, tensions had grown between Britain and its American colonies. In response to the substantial debt Britain was burdened with after the war, they began taxing the colonist with the intent of recuperating their losses. The colonist, who had not been given representation in the British parliament, felt the taxes were unfair. After more than a decade of increased restrictions and taxes, the prominent members of the colonial society were left with a decision to make: pay the taxes willingly or prepare for war ("Patrick Henry’s Speeches"). Although many colonists believed action against the British was necessary, only a few were willing to voice their opinions.

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688 Words | 3 Pages

Slavery: what a disgrace. Although slavery is still practiced in numerous countries, America has successfully abolished slavery. However, it did not happen quickly and in fact took centuries to end. It took the willpower of several individuals to reach this standpoint. One of which is Benjamin Banneker, son of former slaves, who writes an extensive letter to Thomas Jefferson for the purpose of abolishing slavery.

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803 Words | 4 Pages

It basically states that the government simply wasn't able to tax any of the colonists because of the need for 10 out of 13 states to accept the taxing on imports. Since Rhode Island is a heavily commercial state none of the other states that revolved around commercial goods would vote for it either, this is way less than a 10 out of 13 vote. Even further, because the congress did not have the power to tax the army and their funds relied solely on donations from others as indicated in the letter from Joseph Jones to George Washington. Even if the Congress asked for money or made a law including a tax no one was actually forced to follow it because of the individual freedom of each of the states. This was a huge problem created by the AoC because Congress wasn't able to provide enough money for a sufficient army because they couldn't pay their soldiers properly, and this lead to a very poorly defended

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783 Words | 4 Pages

This included the newspaper, wills, deeds, pamphlets and even playing cards. The colonists did not want to pay the tax, not because of the money that they had to pay but because they had to pay for a war that they were not involved in. He said the reason we had to do this is because Britain was in great debt from the war with France. Since we benefited from the war the British government decided that we should

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779 Words | 4 Pages

In debate Darla Davis discusses the Taxes imposed on the American Colonists by Parliament. First not everyone in parliament believe that taxation of the colonies was right thing to do. According to Darla’s Article, Will Pitt and Edmund Burke, were two members of the parliament that under stood why the colonist were opposing the tax. Colonist were opposing men felt that the opposition from the colonists concerning the taxes existed, because the colonist had been practically ignored by England since having been established.

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955 Words | 4 Pages

This was a war where the fight was with the New World and France. The British King tried to imposes taxes on the thirteen colonies to help pay for the cost. Thomas Paine talked about these types of “burdensome taxations” in Common Sense as well as in his other writing titled Rights of Man. He talked about these issues because he knew the colonists were angry. Writing about the injustice would appeal to them (Hacht, 178).

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410 Words | 2 Pages

In Benjamin Franklin’s speech, he uses some phrases that are able to support his opinion on the faults of the constitution. He is willing to change his opinions for the benefit of our people. Ben Franklin believes that opinions are changed over time because even his opinions were changed as he matured and took the opinions of others into consideration. He stated that “- to change opinions even on the important subjects, which I once thought were right, but found to be otherwise.” It is crucial that people not only consider their opinions when making a decision, but also the views of others.

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540 Words | 3 Pages

Britain was cutting of and taxing the colonists an improper amount. The intolerable acts are what sparked the colonist’s resentment towards Britain, with biased taxes and unfair regulations. Patrick Henry’s empowering rhetoric in his “Speech to the Virginia Convention” uses an abundance of pathos to persuade and emotionally charge the colonists

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787 Words | 4 Pages

“Words can inspire, and words can destroy. Choose yours well.” - Robin Sharma. In 1787, a convention was held to determine the efficiency of a debatable Constitution discussed by the delegates. Benjamin Franklin, having represented Pennsylvania, then presented a speech regarding his position on the topic, declaring his agreement to it in spite of his uncertainty on whether or not it will result in negative consequences in the future.

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189 Words | 1 Pages

“A religious sect may degenerate into a political faction in a part of the Confederacy…” In the following quote, James Madison gives a prediction. The predication states that many political parties give protection in a country, which is a good thing because it means that no political party will be too powerful. From some people’s points of view, there are understanding that, Madison might have not looked at political parties as factions. Factions canceled on each other.

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596 Words | 3 Pages

Many of you are taught all about the Founding Fathers and how America got it’s Independence. I’m positive you’ve all heard about the famous Founding Father, Benjamin Franklin, and about all his contributions to history. He has contributed to the draft of the Declaration of Independence, but that wasn’t the only important contribution he made. He bought a famous paper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, proved the electrical nature of lighting with a kite, and many other things were done by Benjamin. You were probably not told too much about Franklin’s other accomplishments.

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941 Words | 4 Pages

This therefore proves and validated his assertions about one’s ability to justify one’s actions through reasoning. Franklin’s assertions can be proved in many other historical events and aspects of society, most notable being slavery in the United States, tax evasions, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Slavery is something that existed for many, many years around the world

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1956 Words | 8 Pages

Scientist, diplomat, and inventor are three elements that describe Benjamin Franklin. Many people know that Benjamin Franklin studied electricity, but he did so much more. As a well known diplomat, Ben Franklin, showed Americans that they should be freed from British rule by fighting for their freedom. He left a lasting legacy as a Revolutionary War hero, a founding father, and a great scientist. The origin of Benjamin Franklin started when he ran away from his family at the age of 17.

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696 Words | 3 Pages

Benjamin Franklin’s essay, “Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America,” depicts the Native Americans as civilized people, but many dub them as “savages.” Franklin discreetly describes the Indians as civilized, polite, peaceful people; while, the white people are really the uncivilized slavish people. The essay contrasts the way most general white people diminish the lives and nature of the Native Americans. Based on feelings of superiority, the whites believe to be a more “perfection of civility,” believing that they are more civilized then the Indians. Franklin’s essay states, “Savages we call them, because their manners differ from ours, which we think the perfection of civility,” the whites think of themselves in a higher esteem then the Indians.

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518 Words | 3 Pages

Franklin claims that he has been living long enough to see errors that he made, therefore as he grow older, he tend to “doubt of [his] own judgment” because nobody is perfect due to his past experiences (43). The informations that Franklin presents is to show his reputation that he is not perfect, also his constitution but he is open minded and willing to make what is best for the people. The perspective errors of the constitution have, is being “sacrificed to the public good” meaning all the flaw that constitution have will not be reveal to the people (44). Franklin is very passion about what is best for the people and their happiness, furthermore his characteristic is very respectful toward the citizen and the congress.

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