The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin -the First Great Book Written in America

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin with related documents by Louis P. Masur entirely proves how persistent self-improvement and a love for learning lead to Franklin’s success. The autobiography can occasionally be referred to as “the first great book written in America.” The motive of the book is to show how a person’s life and character could become a honorable one through constant self-assessment. Franklin wrote it almost as if it were a review on the failures and successes of trials in living.

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin has some themes that show clearly throughout the book. The main two being self-betterment and religion. Both of these purposes are significantly explicit. The significance behind Franklin’s purposes is he left a model for the advancement of others. It permits us to know what life was like in the 18th century. Franklin attains his purpose by writing several pieces separated by many years.

There are occasions in the Autobiography when Franklin sounds like he is trying to display one of his virtues. When Franklin is practicing vegetarianism with Keimer, he explains how he was able to maintain the diet because of his great determination. Keimer was unable to keep up the practice. Franklin uses this to show the reader his own skills of determination by showing that another person was unable to accomplish the same things he did.

The book itself explains all the ways in which Franklin betters himself more than the people who were superior to him earlier. He writes about him and his brother’s disputes. Franklin’s brother saw himself as better and so to get revenge, Franklin goes to Philadelphia and ends up printing the most successful newspaper in Philadelphia if not in the entire the New World.

Franklin demonstrates that he does have a generous side. For example, he loans money to Ralph, and Franklin is never repaid. Franklin reveals here that although he thinks it necessary to live righteously, he doesn’t mind helping others and giving to people who do not live righteously, such as Collins and Ralph.

Franklin’s discussion of Poor Richard’s Almanac is ignored because of Franklin’s desire to educate the “common people.” This comment is strange because Franklin himself was once one of the “common people? He was not born into anything. All the good he gained was because of his own hard work. While he does not mean to, he looks down on the common people from a position he hasn’t even had for a long time.

Franklin’s life is far from perfect. He is hurt, for instance, when his son dies at the age of four.. Despite hardships, though, he does return to Boston for a visit to see his family, and he makes up with his brother, James. This shows Franklin’s side of perseverance and determination. With both of these characters, you have the ability to overcome anything life throws your way.

In conclusion, I read online how compared to many authors of the 18th century, Franklin’s style is noticeably concise and easy to read. He gets to the point very quickly and reports on the important facts rather than the secondary ones. It is oftentimes remarkable how much information and how many stories he can fit into a single page. I absolutely cannot believe this. This may be believable in the 18th century, but now it no doubt was the hardest piece of writing I’ve ever read. Although it was extremely difficult to focus on, after writing this review I can realize why my professor chose this as a book review. Reason being, you don’t understand the purpose behind The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin until you sit down and review the book as a whole.

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