Study Of Themes Of Pride And Humanity In Autobiography By Benjamin Franklin’

Benjamin Franklin was math, inventor, scientist, printer, politician, and diplomat. Franklin was the one who helped U.S. in drafting independence declaration and the constitution of U.S. Franklin also negotiated the 1783 Paris Treaty. Further he was the one ending the war. Throughout the text Franklin has well adjusted these two features with varying grades of success. Franklin evidenced great deal in pride stating that he does not see many problems in vanity. His pride is an action of manifestation in himself in dealing with others, his confidence and his capabilities, way he is willing to acclimate his self-interest, and the translucent tone he adapts when anybody discusses his achievements. He does, however, say that he recognizes his requirement to be more generous, and adds it to his list of morality. It is not one that he feels that he is the God or that he is the master but he is very proud that he does what he can. The way in which Franklin use the understatement dodges bragging is rather appreciating given the record of the man’s achievements and accolades. A man is ought to be aware of his errors and pursue perfection in himself morally, and be aware of his gifts, desires, and accomplishments. Pride means knowing what is good and worthy for you. Pride can be replaced by the word proud, when we are using it as an adjective. The word pride can be used in a positive sense as well as in a negative sense. In positive sense it means one should have his/her self-respect. In negative sense, this means that someone has no respect for what other people do, only admiration for what he or she does.

Humanity today is falling so badly. We live in a world that defines our borders and limits. We live in a world that, at last, finds and observes all religions and beliefs and in which any person can choose his/her religion. Impersonate it, fight with it, punch it down, suffocate it, embarrass it as much as one pleases, it is still alive, and will every now and then peep out and show itself, you will see it, perhaps, this often happens in the history, for even if one could perceive that one had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humanity.

Introduction

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, he was 15th of his father’s children. As a child Benjamin Franklin always had an inspiration of becoming a master. This inspiration came from his father, Josiah. However later Franklin developed a keen interest in reading and

writing and he dropped this idea. Franklin was engaged in many fights. He engaged in one of his fights with his brother James at a very young age. After fighting with James, he quit his job and shifted to Philadelphia. In Philadelphia, he worked for Samuel Keimer(emigrant and English printer). Franklin had befriended some very important political figures; this also included the great royal Governor. When Franklin left England he then started working with his friend James Ralph in a printing press with whom he later became a stranger to. Shortly after returning to America in 1726, Franklin started a debating club which was knows as the Junto. Two years later, Franklin took The Pennsylvania Gazette from his friend and turned it into a successful publication with tools from London. In 1730, Franklin engaged his very old sweet friend Deborah Read. With her Franklin had two children. The first was William Franklin. He was born one year later; he is the man to whom the Autobiography is addressed in Part One.

Through the entire 1730’s Franklin used to hold some small, unnoticeable positions for working in printing press for government. During that time, he started Poor Richard’s Almanac and he then became postmaster at Philadelphia. Towards the end of the duration of ten years, he developed his Franklin stove. In 1740’s Franklin was engaged with several projects. Those included the fire brigade, the police force, the University of Pennsylvania, there were some street weeping services and other small work projects. He retired from the printing business in 1748 and then he began conducting scientific experiments in lightning. From Harvard and Yale university in 1753, he was awarded honorary degrees. Then, he became Postmaster General of America. In the next year, when war started between England and France (The French and Indian War) Franklin began to draft proposals. By this, he could raise funds for colonial defence. His many proposals were succeeded. He personally played a major part in organising the war effort. Although, The Autobiography, breaks off in 1757, is left unfinished. Eventually, The Autobiography was written in three different times: 1771 in England, 1783 in France, and 1788 in America.

Literature Review

The Vice of Pride of Benjamin Franklin- BY ROBERT C ROBERTS

This work defines the vice of pride by the medium of separating it in two columns and differentiating them that is from emotions that is the characteristic of it and from virtual

disposition which is by the familiar name, by the recognition of disposition that is virtue and by the difference or the uniqueness in them by differentiating it’s kinds. The conclusion is drawn by the perceiving of emotions as concern based construal and ideas. Ideas such as that of pride can be an area of concern for particular type or types of families. When Franklin was of the age of the age of twenty four. He had this preoccupied perception in himself of bold project of always arriving at perfection. But it is worth noticing that more than physical efforts he could have had achieved more by strategic discipline. For example, the precept associated with humility was “Imitate Jesus and Socrates”.

Reason and power in Benjamin Franklin’s political thought- GERALD STOURZH.

It has been notices that apart from modern history period that too the age of illumination there have been no other period that has been more a victim of simplification. The worships to God, the belief, value system and the progress in the important goodness and the moral conduct that is well being of human nature id most specifically usually related to 18th century climatic view. Many of the stereotypes have been automatically applied to Franklin. As compared to other people of his old age Franklin was seemed as the personification of his age.

Research Objective

Franklin was the best topic in order to understand the topics of pride and humanity in the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. It relates to the people of society, nowadays who are not following in their life. We come to know that Franklin takes extensive care to imprint a main motive to the timeline of his life as a way to match his individual story with that of the formation of America. The autobiography of Benjamin Franklin presents in front of you the real accomplishment of the American Dream as a revolution of freedom and independence over living a life of dependence. Franklin depicts his rise to statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father as a change from slave-to-fate to self-governing his own destiny.

Franklin is a symbol of a young, clever, and scrappy state, resisting arbitrary authority and becoming well-intentioned of encomium. He is a symbol of the self-made man, the pilgrim on the road to progress.

Research Areas

Pride

Pride is a feeling of being worth-while. Like a coin has two sides, pride also has two sides. One is the positive side and another is the negative side. Here, by positive side, I mean a constructive and a humble side. And by negative side, I mean a destructive and disrespectful side. Positive side of pride is to achieve respect and success. We can be proud of the achievements of our family members or anyone who is close to them. All these things make a person polite and good. This side of pride makes a person humble. The person following this side of pride, is respected by society.

On the other hand, the negative side of pride is the excessive or exaggerated feeling of being worthy. This side of pride builds overconfidence. People having this side, are disrespectful towards other’s achievements. This negative side of pride eventually brings loss of success and respect of others. Therefore, the negative side, like the Raven had in epic Ramayana, leads to defeat, loss of respect and loss of success. But, the positive side of pride is the way you can achieve respect and success in your life. In the above case we have seen both the consequence of pride(positive as well as negative). So, pride is good if it stays in limit and if you rely on positive prospective, otherwise pride can give bad results. In Benjamin Franklin autobiography pride is shown in the positive manner, Franklin was hard working, he values his work a lot after a lot endeavour future success. He on wealth and reputation by his hard work and after facing a lot of struggle. Franklin used pride and humanity as like the both sides of coin. He used pride as head and humanity as the tail. Infact in his life as well he used both of them in this manner only and his whole autobiography is all about his whole life history, his all ups and downs, all his things what all things he did in his life. In his autobiography he states that love, religion and all the things in the society use to give him some kind of peace, and Infact he state these all things use to give meaning to every man’s life. As somewhat to another everyone is linked to all these things after they take birth on this beautiful planet called earth. Pride is the feeling of getting satisfied by their success or achievement and still is humble and polite. On the other hand, humanity is the feeling of being generous, nice and true towards your soul and with others as well.

Humanity

Humanity includes all the humans, but it can also refer to the kind of feeling humans often have for each other. Humanity is a feeling of being kind and understanding. Humanity is not always being humble towards senior citizens or being kind and generous to your friend or family, It is something which comes out from the bottom your heart. When someone is in need, you give your hand to that person without hoping for any kind of return, so this act can be defined a part of being a humanity.

Pride and Humanity both are positive aspect. Pride is the feeling of getting satisfied from your results or achievement, if someone get over confident after this than it can create problem in the future success of that person. On the other hand, humanity is being humble, kind and helping someone without for our own pleasure. If you will stop working hard after achieving a huge success and you keep recalling it again and again means proud of that than the result will not be good after that, this was negative one, same goes for humanity to if you stop being humble and kind than it is also not the good sign of this thing also. Benjamin Franklin used this both words in very amazing manner, and it is one of the theme of his autobiography.

These both are the amazing and wonderful themes of the autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. If somewhere pride is shown in big manner than at that moment humanity can down, on the other hand, if humanity is shown in the broader manner than pride use to came down at that moment. Individually, Benjamin Franklin has balanced both of them. This value of Benjamin Franklin, to continue focusing on his own work and to balance pride and humanity in himself, we should acquire this value from him.