Benjamin Franklin Madness

Benjamin Franklin, one of the most well-known of the United States’ founding fathers, was also a writer. He created works to say something to society and try to teach others new or important concepts. Many of these concepts, or themes, attempt to show us as people how we should treat or think of others. For many, these lessons have been necessary to help initiate cultural reform, and, if they challenged societal norms, been considered madness. These outlandish morals typically tell society that something it is doing is wrong, such as mistreating people or holding unjustified prejudices against them. Such is the case with Benjamin Franklin’s, “Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America.” He writes this essay with subversion because if he …show more content…
Speaking of the Indian council meetings, Franklin writes, “To interrupt another, even in common conversation, is reckoned highly indecent. How different this from the conduct of a polite British House of Commons, where scarce a day passes without some confusion, that makes the speaker hoarse in calling to order; and how different from the mode of conversation in many polite companies of Europe, where, if you do not deliver your sentence with great rapidity, you are cut off in the middle of it by the impatient loquacity of those you converse with, and never suffered to finish it” (245)! Franklin’s distinct contrast here even expresses sarcasm to emphasize the backwardness of the white people’s thinking, saying, “The politeness of these savages” (245)… The oxymoronic use of the words politeness and savages together indicate that the savages really are not the Inidans at all, but rather the European people who lack even the simplest of manners. Franklin uses this to point toward the illegitimacy of the Europeans’ pride in their great politeness. He shows that the Indians treat all people more kindly than the Europeans do because they just see it as part of life, and yet the whites still think of them as savages. This division in communication adversely effects instances when the two groups attempt to understand one …show more content…
The arrogance of the white civilization is demonstrated in Franklin’s essay by his examples of how interactions produced social, religious, and economic conflicts. The way he composed the essay allows for this interpretation as well as others. He uses many examples of sarcasm and irony that make the true theme difficult to find if the reader does not detach themselves from possible prejudice. Even the essay’s title, “Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America” would, taken out of context, appear to support the white agenda by referring to Indians as savages. In this way, Franklin’s essay is a Trojan horse. He subversively uses his popularity and ethnicity to gain a readership, and then he presents his theme in a way that draws the reader into the idea that white society may not be as wonderful as it seems and less superior to the Indians than previously thought, or not superior at all. This idea was unheard of and challenged the commonly held beliefs of Franklin’s audience. This creates purpose for his writing because it shows society a way that it can improve. Although Franklin presents this idea, its reception amongst white society would be largely negative since it implies that they could be better by being more