Summary: The Autobiography Of Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin, a well rounded American adept in many fields, once said, “either write something worth reading or do something worth writing” (Benjamin). Although this quote presents a false dilemma, Franklin chose a third option in which he did something worth writing and then wrote about it in his autobiography. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin is a different beast in its literature. Unlike most books, and possibly most autobiographies as well, Franklin’s autobiography does not have a smooth flow between his three sections. These abrupt transition could be accounted for by the many years of break Franklin took in between each section. The overall theme for Franklin’s autobiography is for one to become self developing. …show more content…
Part one of Franklin’s autobiography focused on his life as a child and what he did to later become successful. For starters, Franklin’s father had meant for him to become a priest or some sort within the Church, thus sending Franklin off to grammar school. Franklin moved above his peers in intellectual level so swiftly that he was presented with the opportunity to receive a college education, all before the age of ten. Unfortunately, Franklin’s father had many children and could not afford a college education so Franklin was sent to work in his father’s business. This was short lived because Franklin disliked the trade his father conducted. Although Franklin disliked his father’s trade, he admired him and described his father as a person with much integrity. For instance, when Franklin devised a plan to steal stones and use them for a wharf, which were originally meant to be used for a house, his father had, “convinced him that nothing was useful which was not honest” (Franklin 45). Josiah, Franklin’s loving father, planned for him to work with his brother in the printing business at the young age of twelve until he was to be twenty-one. Franklin made a friend that loved to argue much like he did, thus honing his debating skills proficiently. However, this beneficial relationship for Franklin was not ever lasting since his friend …show more content…
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin affected me by teaching me to become more self improving. I learned that hard work cannot bring you all the way, but having good connections with important figures in society may. For example, Franklin could not find work anywhere in Boston when his brother warned every printing business to stay weary of Franklin for breaking his contract early. I did enjoy reading the book because of how easy it was to read for it’s time and I learned what Franklin did to become successful in life. I believe Franklin left out an important turning point in history in his book and that is his contribution to writing the Declaration of Independence. Between part one and part two of his book, Franklin took roughly a decade break from writing to focus on the war for independence, but does not mention any of it or what he contributed. I would recommend this book to anyone no matter what major they pursue, whether it be business or in a science field, because Franklin was an extremely well rounded individual that excelled in almost all fields of study, besides math. There are quite a few things I learned from Franklin in his book. First, I learned that dishonesty will not bring any use and also will not bring anyone far in life. Second, I learned that sometimes it is more beneficial to not respond or argue with people that