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What Are Benjamin Franklin's Contributions To The Community

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BENJAMIN FRANKLIN:

Sean Huggins

History 1100

March 11, 2017

When most people think of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, the first thing that comes to mind would hardly be the image of Franklin. He is thought of more as an inventor, a humanist, and, of course, one of the authors of the document that guides our every governmental decision. Benjamin Franklin, Community Service and Statesman Website (2013) reminding us of his involvement in starting the nation’s first library his role as co-founder of the American Philosophical Society; and his aid in organizing such common community supports as the first fire insurance company, and probably his most notable contribution, “the educational academy that …show more content…

When he speaks about the academy and his work in getting subscriptions and essentially seeing the project through to fruition, he is suggesting that he had to do it because he had the time and the resources. The whole discussion of Franklin and the virtuous life then comes down to living life activity, contributing what you can to make your community a better place for all. Looking at his 13 virtues then we cannot necessarily and definitively attribute each one to the natural tendency to reach out and provide the needs of a community. Temperance, for instance, makes a better more solid citizen and in the end contributes in and of itself to the betterment of the entire community. The better the man, the better the community in which he …show more content…

Obvious examples are our impressive system of hospitals throughout the country. On local levels, many organizations operate in the interests of the public. In Europe, many of these community projects are generally provided automatically by the government with little individual effort or input. In America, our system requires the action of groups and individual to advocate for communities and their needs. In that one might say that Franklin’s encouragement toward the action of virtuous men has made its mark, and is still thriving in our society.

Bibliography

Benjamin Franklin: Community Statesman and Service. “Building a Teacher Website at

Educator Pages.com.” “Last modified March 9, 2013.”

https://educatorpages.com/site/lmnorton93/pages/benjamin-franklin-community-service-and-statesman

“Critical Essays: Franklin and the Spirit of Capitalism” The Autobiography of Benjamin

Franklin. Accessed February 27, 2017.

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/a/the-autobiography-of-benjamin-franklin/critical-essays/franklin-and-the-spirit-of-capitalism

Franklin, Benjamin. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1916.

McKay, Brett and Kate McKay. “The Virtuous Life: Wrap Up”. The Art of Manliness.

Accessed February 27, 2017.

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