A famous Ben
Franklin quote reads; “Either write something worth reading, or do something
worth writing”. Upon reading the first two volumes of his autobiography, I came
to a much better understanding of how he was able to accomplish both of those
things. I was amazed by the number of things he accomplished in such a short
period of time, and I feel that his writing mimics very closely the richness of
his life. No two lines talk about the same event in his life; there’s so much
substance for discussion that if you skip a line or two while reading, you
might miss out on the opportunity of finding out about one of his many
accomplishments. This was one of the things that struck me as most amazing, and
I couldn’t help but wish for myself that first, I have a rich and interesting
enough life that’s worth writing about, and second, that each and every line can
be filled with a different story or anecdote.
No
matter what one’s definition of success is, I think it is very hard to refute
the fact that Franklin had a successful life. However, what I found
inspirational was the fact that all the accomplishments in his life that he
seemed to be proud of, and consider as contributing factors to his “success”,
were results of his efforts, perseverance, and determination. In other words,
nothing was handed to him on a silver platter (merely even in a China bowl, for
that matter), and he had to work for everything he achieved during his
lifetime.
As
a child, he was treated as a grownup by his parents (especially his dad), and
was unable to receive much education. However, one thing that I found really interesting is how aware he was, both
of himself, as well as of those around him. Reflecting on his family, and his
brothers’ lives, he seems to be quite aware that he was a peculiarity among his
siblings. What I think is even more praiseworthy is the fact that he never
tried to curb, ignore, or get rid of this side of him. He embraced his
differences from other members of his family, including his father, and further
sharpened these differences throughout his lifetime. I think Ben Franklin
wouldn’t have become the Ben Franklin we know and speak of today, had he given
in to the norms and traditions that were tried to be imposed on him by his
authoritative father. Therefore, in his case, being independent and
“free-spirited” was of crucial importance to his later accomplishments in life.
I
believe that independence and freedom of spirit are great qualities; not traits
to have just for their own sakes, but if they are likely to serve a purpose in
one’s life. Looking around me, I see many of my contemporaries who try to have,
or try and appear as if they have a
“free spirit” because it’s the “cool thing” have nowadays. I think freedom of
spirit does not come merely from going against the wills of one’s parents or
other figures of authority in their lives, but comes rather from freeing one’s
mind and heart from any restrictions that they believe are imposed onto them by
some external source of authority. I think this is one of the hardest
challenges in a person’s life because as humans, we are social creatures who
value the views and opinions of those around us, and for the most part, act
with a desire to be liked and accepted by those we care about. Hence, it is
difficult, perhaps even unnatural, to do what Franklin did, and realize the
presence of, and break the chains that might be tying us down or holding us
back.
When
considering some of the factors that might have contributed to his “success”,
there are a few major points/overarching themes that strike me as highly
relevant. Firstly, among the thirteen virtues that he practiced, the ones that
stood out to me as I read his autobiography were Industry, Resolution,
Frugality, and as odd as it may sound, Cleanliness. His industriousness was a
recurring or perhaps underlying theme in his life as he always worked hard to
achieve more, and he took every opportunity he found fit to get a step closer
to reaching his goals. It seems like there was no time in his life for being
bored, and that all of his time was spent learning or creating something.
Similarly, Resolution seems to be a strong one of his virtues because he always
seemed to have a sense of what he wanted his next step to be, and he took the
necessary steps (whether it be meeting new people who would bring him back to
Philadelphia, closing a deal to take full ownership of a newspaper publishing
company) to make it happen. Frugality seems to be a part of his DNA or perhaps
a symptom of his humble upbringing, and he continued to make sure he saved as
much of his money as he could when travelling, trying to find accommodation or
make business deals throughout his lifetime. Finally, he was aware that if he
wanted to be a well-known publisher, he would have to maintain a clean, positively
reputable look, and paid close attention to his clothing and appearance.
Besides
these virtues, he was also endowed with talents such as the ability to write,
being open-minded, and very strong interpersonal skills. Clearly, it was his
writing skills and interest in reading that led him into the path of
publishing, which sort of determined the flow of the rest of his life.
Furthermore, he always kept his options open, and whenever he saw an
opportunity to move and grow or learn, he took it. Without this talent, he
probably would not have moved around as much as he did, and consequently would
not have met as many people he met during his lifetime. Finally, and what I
appreciated the most in him was his appreciation of people in general, regardless of their background or status. He
seemed to know how to interact with different people under different
circumstances, and made many friends and acquaintances who were able to help
him during different points of his life. In the end, I think it was these
“talents” that contributed more greatly to his achievements.
All
this, however, is not to say that Franklin was flawless. In fact, one of his
great characteristics was his ability to self-criticize. He did so by pointing
out to the “errata”, which I interpreted as perhaps the regrets or mistakes he
believe he made in retrospect. The two that he refers to are (1) using Vernon’s
money (which he wasn’t able to repay for a long time, and (2) not writing
frequently to Miss Read, both of which I think can be grouped under the
category of an inability to hold his promises. I think these errata played a
really important role in Franklin’s life; guided his behaviors later in life as
he tried to correct the mistakes he believed he made.
So,
in the end, I think Franklin is a speckled axe, just like anyone else to ever
walk the earth. However, what makes him him
is the fact that he realized his speckles, and tried to clean as much of them
as possible. Some might find his approach towards attempting to perfect his
personality to be very mechanical, but I respect him for having come up with a
method, and for trying as hard as he did. I truly hope that during this
semester, I will be able to make a self-satisfactory progress in not thirteen,
but at least one of the virtues that he worked on to perfect.
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