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The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin: with Related Documents
This second edition of Franklin's famous autobiography is accompanied by a portfolio of illustrations and an introduction that provides background for students and invites them to think about the work's lasting impact on American society and culture.
Paperback
,
208 pages
Published
April 2nd 2003
by Bedford/St. Martin's
(first published January 1st 2000)
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One of the finest autobiographies I have read. If one needs a peek into what American literature sounded actually was in the eighteenth century, this book is a must.
Additionally, reading this biography would strike a fine difference between narrative style of a politician and a philosopher. One realizes upon reading this piece of art that the American English language has undergone innate changes in its composition and that flexibility of placing verbs and nouns has been formalized greatly in En ...more
Additionally, reading this biography would strike a fine difference between narrative style of a politician and a philosopher. One realizes upon reading this piece of art that the American English language has undergone innate changes in its composition and that flexibility of placing verbs and nouns has been formalized greatly in En ...more
This is not something I would have picked up on my own but was assigned as a reading assignment for my US history course. I thought since I wasn't going to get any leisurely reading done this summer I might as well take credit for schoolwork.
The book is decent. I got bogged down several times but the writing included enough anecdotal information to keep it moving. The editor maintained Franklin's writing style by capitalizing all the nouns regardless of placement in the sentence & some of t ...more
The book is decent. I got bogged down several times but the writing included enough anecdotal information to keep it moving. The editor maintained Franklin's writing style by capitalizing all the nouns regardless of placement in the sentence & some of t ...more
I think we all learned a little about Benjamin Franklin in our history classes, such as his experiments with lightning, his inventions, and some of his public service achievements, as well as his involvement with the Continental Congress. But I was especially interested in his Plan of Conduct as well as his list of Virtues which he tried to follow. According to his autobiography, he was a great believer in industry, frugality, prudence, knowledge. He believed that in order to succeed, you needed
...more
Actually enjoyed this book more than I thought I would! A real window into the life and times of one of America's first statesmen. Poignant, humorous, informative and instructive. I definitely found the first half (written specifically for his son) to be far more whimsical than the second which dragged and droned a bit - but by the time he wrote that portion he was an old man and it reveals something of his personality in the latter years, which the book doesn't cover.
Benjamin Franklin definitely did many worthwhile things during his lifetime and apparently wanted to help others improve themselves as he sought to do for himself. But I would not look to him for a moral compass as he admits that his public image may not always have reflected his true private character. He acknowledges that lack of humility was one of his greatest flaws. He seemed to think quite highly of himself. I was struggling to get through some of this, but decided to plunge through to see
...more
well this book is based on ben franklin and the documents that he advised or the documents he wrote and or sighned. wgat a walk in the past that was to read about his invalments and some of the cooky stuff he did document wise. such as he talk about severl contacts he wrote from a trade with a goat to doing chores.
This book was all right for me, hence the two-star rating. I didn't particularly enjoy it, but I didn't downright dislike it. There's not much to say, except that everybody should read it, considering Benjamin Franklin's importance, especially in America.
Franklin's humble beginnings did little to foretell the man he was to become. His services to the public throughout his life, his long career in the printing service, and experiments he performed all added up to a very accomplished man.
Benjamin Franklin started out as the son of a candle maker. He recounts his days helping his father in the business rather unhappily. When Franklin is twelve years old, he is apprenticed to his brother James in the printing business. From here he publishes some o ...more
Benjamin Franklin started out as the son of a candle maker. He recounts his days helping his father in the business rather unhappily. When Franklin is twelve years old, he is apprenticed to his brother James in the printing business. From here he publishes some o ...more
Ben Franklin rocked. I read this for my American history class (and wrote 7 pages about it), and it's obvious why he was such an influential figure in the progression of the country. He was so smart, and had a real grasp on how the world functioned (or malfunctioned and needed fixing). He understood that he was awesomely talented, but he used that to better himself and tried so hard to be a good person. My professor said that some people think he's a pompous elitist or something, but I really do
...more
I was surprised by all of the things he invested his time to. His list of virtues and the ones he actually worked on.
Enjoyed this book. I especially enjoyed reading his list of virtues. I loved his honesty about how hard he found it to live up to those virtues but he never wavered from asserting that man needed to have virtues. "And conceiving God to be the fountain of wisdom, I thought it right and necessary to solicit his assistance for obtaining it;..."
I really liked his "Little Richard" quotes and references. B.Franklin was an amazing man.
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Benjamin Franklin
was a writer, a philosopher, a scientist, a politician, a patriot, a Founding Father, an inventor, and publisher. He helped with the founding of the United States of America and changed the world with his discoveries about electricity. His writings such as
Poor Richards' Almanac
have provided wisdom for 17 years to the colonies.
More about Benjamin Franklin...
