Benjamin Franklin

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Benjamin Franklin

• Impact on American History

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California State Standards

• 3.4 Students understand the role of rules and
  laws in our daily lives and the basic structure
  of the U.S. government.
• 1. Describe the lives of American heroes who
  took risks to secure our freedoms (e.g., Anne
  Hutchinson, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson,
  Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Harriet
  Tubman, Martin Luther King, Jr.).
• 5.4 Students understand the political, religious,
  social, and economic institutions that evolved in
  the colonial era.
• 5.5 Students explain the causes of the American
  Revolution.
• Describe the views, lives, and impact of key
  individuals during this period (e.g., King George
  III, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, George
  Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams).

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Founding Father

• Writer
• Printer
• Politician
• Scientist
• Inventor
• Statesman
• Diplomat

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The Paradox of Franklin

• Owned slaves
• Railed against Germans in PA
• Not a feminist
• Supported the military
• Rejected Christianity
• Socialistic views
• Fathered an illegitimate child
• Held Americans in low regard

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The Man of Many Faces

• The Oldest of the Founders
• Washington, 26 years younger
• John Adams, 29 years younger
• Jefferson, 37 years younger
• Madison and Hamilton, nearly 50 years younger

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The Man of Many Faces

• Prior to the Revolution, Franklin was already
  world famous
• Member of the prestigious Royal Society
• Honorary degrees from St. Andrews and Oxford
• A world leader in science and philosophy

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The Man of Many Voices
Pseudonyms Silence Dogood, Alice Addertongue,
Cecilia Shortface, Polly Baker, Busy Body,
Obadiah Plainman, Anthony Afterwit, Richard
Saunders, Poor Richard, An American, A
New-England Man, A Briton, A London
Manufacturer While in London, used 42 different
signatures
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Apprenticeship and Printer

• Hierarchical New England
• Two years of formal education
• Candle and soap maker
• Apprenticed to his brother James, printer
• 1721, New England Courant, James
• newspaper
• In 1722, at 16, Franklin secretly submitted
  satires, signed by Silence Dogood

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Leaving Boston

• James paper was shut down
• Franklin found apprenticeship intolerable
• Franklin had become
• a little obnoxious to the governing Party
• He was viewed as an Infidel or Atheist
• In 1723, left Boston for Philadelphia

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Young Franklin and Social Mobility

• Patronage was the accepted way of achieving
  upward social mobility
• Not uncommon for men of humble birth to rise to
  prominence
• Franklins talents were soon recognized by the
  governors of PA and NY
• Even Cotton Mather expressed an interest

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The Great Social Divide

• Gentlemen and Commoners
• Gentlemen were born wealthy
• Gentlemen did not work
• Puritan hard work ethic were meant for commoners

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A Gentleman

• By 18th century standards, Gentlemen did not
  labor or toil with their hands
• They inherited wealth
• Income was generated through rents, or interest
  on money
• They were free to pursue interests or leisure
• This is what Franklin aspired to

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Changing Times

• By the middle of the 18th century a new economic
  class was emerging
• This group was neither born into wealth nor
  commoners
• They were the known as middling men
• Included commercial farmers, artisans,
  merchants, traders, shopkeepers, etc
• They were becoming wealthy and saw themselves as
  better then commoners

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Middling Men

• Franklin epitomized this new man
• Wealthy and Industrious
• Interested in learning
• Interested in giving back to society
• Franklin organized local artisans who met to
  discuss common issues

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Freemasonry

• Secret fraternity in England
• Emphasized
• Generosity, Goodwill,
• and Sociability
• Also, allowed artisans to mix easily
• with Gentlemen
• Perfect organization for Franklin

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Franklins Dilemma

• By the 1730s Franklin was
• Successful
• Wealthy
• Civic Minded
• But not a Gentleman
• Feared being ridiculed as a
• Molatto Gentleman

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Franklin the Entrepreneur

• Monopolized printing in Philadelphia
• Franchised print shops from New England to
  Antigua
• Was postmaster general
• Rented houses
• Owned paper mills
• Creditor

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Retirement at 42

• By 1748 Franklin had acquired enough wealth to
  retire
• Timing significant
• Purchased several slaves
• Moved to a quieter part of town
• Franklin attributed his success to
• Industry and Frugality

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Franklin the Gentleman

• Painted by Robert Feke

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Franklins Experiments

• Time to read, write, and experiment
• with electricity
• Proved that lightning was electricity
• Published Experiments and Observations on
  Electricity in 1752
• Made him an international figure

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Fame and Recognition

• Degrees from Yale, Harvard, and William and Mary
• Praised internationally for the invention of the
  lightning rod

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Franklin and the Kite
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Public Service

• More important to Franklin than his scientific
  achievements
• Member of Philadelphia City Council
• Justice of the Peace
• Member of the Pennsylvania Assembly

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A Citizen of the Empire

• Albany Plan for Union
• Return to England, 1757
• London, lived the next 15 of 17 years
• Met with Britains preeminent figures in science,
  literature, the arts, etc.
• Became a great supporter of the Empire
• A Royalist

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Changing Fortunes

• Franklin in London
• Supported the Stamp Act
• His enemies blamed Franklin for the Stamp Act
• Franklins response to the Stamp Act
• a firm loyalty to the Crown will always be
  the wisest Course for you and I to take

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Return to Philadelphia

• In 1763 Franklin returned to Philadelphia
• was instantly looked at as a colonial leader
• inspected the colonies postal service
• -- helped quell the rioters from western PA
• Returned to London in 1765, as an agent for
• pro loyalists forces who wanted PA to
• become a royal colony.
• Planning a short visit, he stayed another 10 years

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Parliament

• House of Commons, Feb. 1766
• Argued against the Stamp Tax
• Parliament repealed the Stamp Act
• Parliament enacted the Declaratory Act

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The Crown vs. Parliament

• Franklin viewed the king as a benign power for
  good
• He saw Parliament as the problem for the
  empire/colonies
• He believed only the King could rule the colonies
  and not Parliament

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Finally taking up the Cause

• After repeated attempts to reconcile, Franklin
  changed his mind.
• Franklin had come to realize the pejorative view
  many in England had.
• Franklin humiliated by the Kings Privy Council.
• March, 1775 sailed for America.

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Super Patriot

• Upon returning, Franklin had to become a super
  patriot.
• Member of Second Continental Congress.
• Immediately embraced independence.
• Some suspected Franklins motives.
• Samuel Adams, Richard Henry Lee
• Son William, an embarrassment

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Franklin the democrat

• Proposed radical Constitution for
• Pennsylvania
• Simple democracy and popular radicalism

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Franklin the Diplomat

• July 1776, Lord Howe wrote Franklin
• Franklins response was swift and strong
• After the defeat at Long Island, Howe, again sent
  out peace offerings.
• Franklin and John Adams met with Howe and
  rebuffed his call to return to conditions that
  existed in 1763

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France the Ally

• Foreign aid and involvement was essential
• Franklin lobbied to go to France
• In February 1778 France and the United States
  signed two treaties commercial and military

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Diplomatic Success

• Against tremendous odds,
• Franklin solely responsible for the
  Franco-American alliance
• Franklin also participated in the peace
  negotiations with Great Britain

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A Stranger in his Nation

• By 1784 Franklin had spent 23 of the last 27
  years abroad
• While he had countless admirers, he had made
  enemies as well
• When he was recalled by Congress, in 1785,
  Franklin thought he might be a stranger in
  his own country

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Returning Home

• On September 14, 1785 Franklin returned to
  Philadelphia
• Philadelphia had become the leading city in the
  new nation
• Soon Franklin was elected to the ruling executive
  council in Pennsylvania

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Franklin in 1785

• Portrait by Charles Wilson Peale

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The Constitutional Convention

• Represented Pennsylvania
• Did not know most of the delegates
• Did not make any great speeches
• Seemed detached for most of the proceedings and
  did not agree with much of the final draftbut
  signed it anyway

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Franklin and Slavery

• Franklins thoughts on African Americans evolved
  over time
• By the early 1780s Franklin had become a leading
  abolitionist
• In February 1790 Franklin petitioned the Congress
  to abolish slavery

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Franklin vs. Congress

• Franklins petition generated outrage in the
  Congress and nation
• Franklin was accused of upsetting the social
  order
• The petition was rejected as Congress decided it
  had no authority to interfere in the affairs of
  the states

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Franklins Death

• Religious views kept private
• Child of the Enlightenment
• Believed in one God, Creator of the Universe
• Doubted Christs divinity
• But recognized Christs
• significance
• Died April 17, 1790

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Reaction to Franklins Passing

• France reacted more then America
• Eulogized many times over
• In America things were different
• While the House adopted a tribute, the Senate did
  not
• John Adams, VP, and others were jealous of
  Franklin
• Others linked Franklin to the French Revolution

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Franklins Legacy

• In the 1790s many of Franklins writings/
  autobiography were published
• While reviled by the Federalists, many
  Republicans embraced Franklin
• The new rising middling class of artisans saw
  Franklin as their hero
• This group now saw themselves as worthy to aspire
  to higher stations

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Franklins Way to Wealth

• Published in 1758 Franklin published his
  influential work as an essay.
• Franklin used adages and advice that he had
  dispensed in Poor Richards Almanac.
• Franklin Way to Wealth was and continues to be
  very influential

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Franklins Way to Wealth, quotes

• "There are no gains, without pains"
• "One today is worth two tomorrows"
• "Time is money"
• "A life of leisure and a life of laziness are two
  things"
• "Get what you can, and what you get hold"
• "Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor
  wears, while the used key is always bright"
• "Have you somewhat to do tomorrow, do it today"
• "The eye of a master will do more work than both
  his hands"
• "Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man
  healthy, wealthy and wise"

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Celebration of Labor

• Work and virtue became synonymous
• Parson Weems praised Washington as a man of
  industry and later wrote about Franklin
• Hard work was now viewed as admirable
• Men of low birth were encouraged to work their
  way to success..just like Franklin

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Franklin as an Inspiration

• James Harper, publisher,
• mayor of New York City
• Thomas Mellon, founder of Mellon Bank

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Pat Lyon at the ForgeJohn Neagle, 1829
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Changing times, changing attitudes
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Lasting Legacy

• Important concepts that have defined Americans
• Self made man
• Enterprise and opportunity
• Innovation
• Industry
• Work for a living

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And in the End

• Franklin was the second most important figure in
  the Revolution
• In the early years of the Republic, Franklin
  personified the American Dream

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References

• The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin,
• Gordon S. Wood
• Benjamin Franklin, Edmund S. Morgan
• Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin,
• Benjamin Franklin
• Way to Wealth, Benjamin Franklin