Ben Franklin Biography/Critique Essays - Benjamin Franklin

Ben Franklin Biography/Critique Ben Franklin: Early Life In his many careers as a printer, moralist, essayist, civic leader, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, and philosopher, for later generations of Americans he became both a spokesman and a model for the national character. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts on Jan. 17, 1706, into a religious Puritan household. His father, Josiah, was a candlemaker and a skillful mechanic. His mother, Abiah Ben's parents raised thirteen children--the survivors of Josiah's seventeen children by two wives (#1). Printer & Writer Franklin left school at ten years old when he was pressed into his father's trade. At twelve Ben was apprenticed to his half brother James, a printer of The New England Courant. He generally absorbed the values and philosophy of the English Enlightenment. At the age of 16, Franklin wrote some pieces for the Courant signed Silence Dogood, in which he parodied the Boston authorities and society (#3). At one point James Franklin was imprisoned for his liberal statements, and Benjamin carried on the paper himself. Having thus learned to resist oppression, Benjamin refused to suffer his brother's own domineering qualities and in 1723 ran away to Philadelphia (#1). Soon Franklin found a job as a printer. After a year he went to England, where he became a master printer, sowed some wild oats, amazed the locals with his swimming feats, and lived among inspiring writers of London. By 1726 Franklin was tiring of London (#1). He considered becoming an itinerant teacher of swimming, but when a Quaker merchant by the name of Thomas Denham offered him a clerkship in his store in Philadelphia, he decided to return home (#5). Returning to Philadelphia in 1726, he soon owned a newspaper, the Pennsylvania Gazette, and began to print Poor Richard's Almanac. In the Pennsylvania Gazette, a citizen asked editor Franklin the following question: If A found out that his neighbor B was sleeping with his wife, was he justified in telling B's wife, and persuading her to seek a little revenge with A? The editor's response: If an ass kicks me, should I kick him again? (#4) His business expanded further when he contracted to do the public printing of the province, and established partnerships with printers in other colonies. He also operated a bookshop and became clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly and postmaster of Philadelphia (#3). Civic Leader & Scientist In 1727, Franklin began his career as a civic leader by organizing a club of aspiring tradesmen called the Junto. They aspired to build their own businesses, insure the growth of Philadelphia, and improve the quality of its life. Franklin led the Junto in founding a library (1731), fire company (1736), learned society (1743), college (later the University of Pennsylvania, 1749), and an insurance company and a hospital (1751). The group also carried out plans for paving, cleaning, and lighting the streets and for making them safe by organizing an efficient night watch. They even formed a voluntary militia (#1). Franklin had steadily extended his own knowledge by study of foreign languages, philosophy, and science. He repeated experiments of other scientists and added his own ideas that led to inventions of the Franklin stove, bifocal eyeglasses, and a glass harmonica. The phenomenon of electricity interested him deeply, in 1748 he turned his printing business over to his foreman, intending to devote his life to science (#5). Experiments he proposed, showed that lightning was in fact a form of electricity. Later that year his famous kite experiment, in which he flew a kite with the wire attached to a key during a thunderstorm, further established that laboratory-produced static electricity was akin to a previously mysterious and terrifying natural phenomenon (#1). He was elected to the Royal Society in 1756 and to the French Academy of Sciences in 1772(#3). His later achievements included formulating a theory of heat absorption, measuring the Gulf Stream, designing ships, and tracking storm paths. Statesman & Diplomat Franklin held local public offices and served twelve years as a postmaster for Philadelphia. In the Plan of Union, which he presented (1754), to the Albany Congress, he proposed partial self-government for the American colonies. When he went to England in 1757 as agent of the Pennsylvania Assembly, he was alarmed to hear

Role of Women in My Antonia Essay Example

Role of Women in My Antonia Essay Example Role of Women in My Antonia Paper Role of Women in My Antonia Paper Essay Topic: Literature In Willa Cathers novel, My Antonia, there is a distinct difference in the roles of women. One sees the female characters taking on not so feminine roles by working in the fields or playing in the dust and dirt with boys. We also get to see a great independence for women as they get jobs and raise families. Willa Cather could very well have been a blossoming feminist in her time since she crumbled the stereotypes of women and boldly placed them in positions of power. She made not only the main female character of this book, Antonia, but all of the women reject society rules and have the confidence to make their own decisions about what to do with their lives. Willa Cathers novel really escapes from the societal norm of women at the time and replaces it with female characters unbound by stereotypes. Running a business, unheard of for women at that time, yet Cather has one of her characters, Lena Lingard, practice dress making. She eventually gets a job and starts selling what she makes. This eventually leads to her running her own store and having a well-respected place in society. It is worth noticing that Cather doesnt put her in the position of struggling to keep her business going but as being successful and happy. It seemed to me wonderful that she should have got on so well in the world (Cather, 171). Cather also included several other characters that embodied a strong independent woman like Mrs. Gardener. It was Mrs. Gardener who ran the business and looked after everything. Her husband stood at the desk and welcomed incoming travelers. He was a popular fellow, but no manager (Cather, 117). With Mrs. Gardener she had her running the business and the husband doing all the petty work, effectively switching gender roles. Lastly she writes a couple pages on what happened with Tiny Soderball, who went up north during the gold rush and ran a hotel-like business from there. There she sometimes fed a hundred and fifty people a day. Miners came in on snowshoes from their placer claims 20 miles away to by fresh bread from her, and paid for it in gold (Cather, 193). We also see a swap in gender roles here where all of these men are depending on a woman instead of the other way around. Cather really breaks women free of stereotypical bonds and has them makes their own independent choices. Miss Cather, I think, in this book has taken herself out of the rank of provincial writers and given us something we can fairly class with modern literary feminism (Bloom, 5). Country women in the novel were not confined to staying inside and caring for the children while making dinner. Antonia is the perfect example of this because, early on, we see that she is a lively young girl whose youth is not yet affected by the social norms of that time. Antonia had opinions about everything, and she was soon able to make them known (Cather, 22). When her father died she had to take up labor in the fields to help her family survive. She didnt complain about it like Ambrosch did, it seemed very much like Ambrosch did very little work and just spent his time bossing her around. Ambrousch hired his sister out like a man, and she went from farm to farm, binding sheaves or working with the threshers. (Cather, 95). Throughout the novel, Antonia was probably the one who did the most work out of anyone. In the end when Jim returns to meet her we find out that she is still working even after she has born numerous children. Though Antonia seems old and worn shes still the happy, energetic kid Jim remembers from his childhood. Antonia had not lost the fire in her life. Her skin, so brown and hardened, had not that look of flabbiness, as if the sap beneath it had been secretly drawn away. (Cather, 217). Cather had her be the vision of a woman who could still be proud even after a life of hardship. Cathers use of the daughters being the main lifeline for families switches the roles between them and the sons (Bloom, 17). Bloom brings up a very good point in that the families often relied on their daughters for support rather than their sons. Frances was the oldest daughter of the Harlings. Frances, was a very important person in our world. She was her fathers chief clerk, and virtually managed his Black Hawk office during his frequent absences (Cather, 97). Antonia was the Shimerdas communicator for the outside world and she also worked in the fields to support her family when her father died. When Lena, Tiny and Antonia went to Black Hawk for work they always sent the money back to their families, keeping only enough to get by for themselves. Antonia seemed fine with this and often bragged how much ploughing she had done that day. (Cather, 118). So, where were the boys while the females labored tirelessly? They were almost never out in the fields working, they were just in school. Other farmers greatly approved of women working to support their family and saw nothing unusual with women doing a mans job. The farmers liked her and were kind to her, said they would rather have her for a hand than Ambrousch (Cather, 95). Women could do more than just stay inside and cook, they could do hard labor and have jobs just like any man could. Willa Cather portrayed all of her women characters as strong roles models ready to combat whatever came their way. They could run business, work on the farm and raise a family all by themselves. These women were not affected by societys beliefs, stereotypes bounced off them as they went on their way, being just as capable as men. They were independent and could lead their own lives. Cathers novel helps pave the way for women equality everywhere. (Bloom, 2).