Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin I would like to start by saying that I felt as if Benjamin Franklin was manipulating us, through the way he expressed himself, to feel the way he wanted us to. It also explained to me why “Poor Richards Almanac” was so popular, because Benjamin Franklin is able to capture his audience’s attention and keep it. ... For an example of this spin, I feel that in a way Benjamin Franklin is manipulating us to believe that he actually spent at times every minute of a day trying to achieve a set of stepping stone goals he had set for himself. This does not mean that the work achieved is invalid but it needed a little more convincing to do when it came to my perspective, or a more critical understanding of the Benjamin Franklin’s true motivation. ... I did find it a bit difficult to read without getting the distinct feeling that layer-by-layer Franklin was crafting and molding the image that he wants to leave the world with regarding his accomplishments. For example, here Franklin addresses the concept of perception versus reality in, "I cannot boast of much success in acquiring the reality of this virtue [humility]; but I had a good deal with regard to the appearance of it, (Franklin, 97), which explains a bit more what I am trying to say.