2010 American Literature 2 Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790

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Franklin exemplifies the Age of Enlightenment (a typical example).
• Franklin’s image is an archetypal American success that has since become part of American popular culture.
2. His philosophy:
a. He had faith in human accomplishment and progress. b. He believed an individual, with industry and thrift, will improve himself and his community. ( Pragmatic individualism) c. He emphasized the perfect moral man. d. He believed happiness depended on an economic success. He is a typical American in Marxism sense of the world in his class in America.
5). Frugality. Make no Expense but to do good to others or yourself. 俭朴：节约开支，把钱用在对自己对别人都有益的事情上， 不要错花一文钱，换言之，切忌浪费； 6). Industry. Lose no Time. Be always employ’d in something useful. Cut off all unnecessary Actions. 勤奋努力：永远要抓紧时间作有益的事情，戒掉一切不必 要的行动，不要浪费时间； 7). Sincerity. Use no hurtful Deceit. Think innocently and justly and, if you speak, speak accordingly. 忠诚老实：不要说有害于人的诺言，思想要纯洁公正，说 话也要如此； 8). Justice. Wrong none, by doing Injuries or omitting the Benefits that are your duty. 公正：不以不端的行为或者办事不诚实去伤害他人，不要 忘记履行对人有益而又是你应尽的义务；
A story of a well-accomplished life. Part One portrays Franklin as a young man in Boston and Philadelphia. Part Two is the controversial “art of virtue” section. Here, Franklin recounts his youthful attempt to achieve “moral perfection.” Part Three reveals how the adult Franklin uses his principles of conduct in order to perform his roles as a scientist, philanthropist and a politician. Partially due to his ability to selfpromote.
III. Poor Richard’s Almanac
★ Publication
Franklin began publishing Poor Richard's Almanac on December 28, 1732, and would go on to publish it for 25 years, bringing his publisher much economic success and popularity. The almanac sold as many as 10,000 copies a year.
e. He marked a historical shift in emphasis
from Providence to the individual, from afterlife to this life. f. He believed that God is the supreme Servant of Man and that the most acceptable of God was doing Good to Man. g. He believed that the soul is immortal, crime will be punished by virtue. h. He also emphasized on freedom (How can a man be free without sLife and works
• • • • • • • • Benjamin Franklin 1706---1790 A polymath: An author An inventor A civic activist A politician A diplomat
1. An exemplary self-made man
The Enlightenment background
• A new image of God
(different from Puritanism). God is revealed in nature, not in the Bible. • New ideas: Man can be perfected through education. All men are created equal. • The Great Awakening • The New World (the first 13 colonies) demonstrated the theological certainties of Newton and the evidence of an omnipresent God in the natural world, liberalized the strict Puritan doctrines. (Jonathan Edwards)
3. His works
• Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1733, with the pseudonym Richard Saunders • The Autobiography, published after his death
II. The Autobiography
5. His thirteen virtues in Part Two of The Autobiography:
1). Temperance. Eat not to Dullness. Drink not to Elevation. 节制欲望：食不过量，饮酒不醉； 2). Silence. Speak not but that may benefit others or yourself. Avoid trifling Conversation. 寡言：少 说废话，言必于人于已有益，避免无益的聊天； 3). Order. Let all your Things have their Places. Let each part of your Business have its Time. 生活秩序：有条不紊，所有的物品都要井然有序， 所有的事情，都要按时去做； 4). Resolution. Resolve to perform what you ought. Perform without fail what you resolve. 信心坚定：信守诺言，出色的完成你所承诺的任 务，当做必做，决心要做的事应坚持不懈；
4. The Style
• Plain Style: It is a practical style that makes his thought seem lucid, precise, and his advice on individual developments seem readily attainable. • A narrative point of view of an older Franklin (in Part I).
3.Term
• Term: Autobiography is a branch of literature which is an account of a person’s life. The essential difference between a novel and autobiography is this: • The novel ‘uses’ real experience as the raw material for fiction by inventing plots and characters. • Autobiography simply presents with a more elegant and formally ordered version of the writer’s experiences and memories.
2010 American Literature 2 Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)
Benjamin Franklin:
The main points: 1.His life and works 2.The Autobiography 3.Poor Richard Almanac 4.Franklin’s critics
Poor Richard Almanac from 1732 to 1757
• The portrayal of the humorous Poor Richard as a character and axioms of wisdom printed on the margins of the pages for more than 20 years. Poor Richard was a convincing character testifying to Franklin’s talents in story telling.