Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography: A Founding Text of American Literature

Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography, composed in four parts between 1771 and 1790, is one of the founding texts of American literature and one of the great works of Enlightenment self-representation. The book presents Franklin’s life as a story of upward mobility, practical wisdom, and civic engagement, and it has remained a basic reference for the American tradition of self-improvement and self-representation. This article examines the central themes, the literary techniques, and the lasting influence of the Autobiography.

The Composition of the Work

The Autobiography was composed over a period of nearly twenty years, and it reflects the changing circumstances of Franklin’s life. The first part, written in 1771 while Franklin was in England, covers his early life in Boston, his arrival in Philadelphia, and his early years as a printer. The second part, written in 1784 in France, continues the story with his establishment of the printing business, his marriage, and his early civic projects. The third part, written in 1788 in Philadelphia, covers his return to Philadelphia, his scientific experiments, and his early public service. The fourth part, written in 1790, the year of his death, brings the narrative up to the year 1757 and includes an account of his scientific work, his diplomatic service, and his involvement in the imperial crisis.

The four parts were not designed as a unified work, and they reflect different moods, different purposes, and different audiences. The first part, addressed to his son William, is a private letter of advice. The second part, addressed to a wider audience, is a more public statement of his principles. The third and fourth parts, written in his final years, are an attempt to present his life as a model for the rising generation.

The Themes of the Work

The Autobiography is organized around several central themes that are characteristic of the Enlightenment and of the American experience.

The first theme is the ideal of the self-made man. Franklin begins his life in poverty, the son of a candle maker, with only two years of formal schooling. Through hard work, frugality, and practical wisdom, he rises to become one of the most successful and most respected men of his age. The story is a powerful expression of the Enlightenment conviction that human beings are capable of improving their condition through the proper use of their rational and practical faculties.

The second theme is the importance of civic engagement. Franklin was not merely a successful businessman; he was also an active citizen, involved in a wide range of civic projects, including the establishment of the Library Company of Philadelphia, the American Philosophical Society, the University of Pennsylvania, and the various other institutions that helped to shape the cultural life of colonial America. The story of his life is, in this sense, a story of the proper relationship between individual achievement and civic responsibility.

The third theme is the practical value of science and reason. Franklin was one of the leading scientists of his age, and his scientific investigations are an important part of the Autobiography. The story of his experiments, including the famous kite experiment, is a powerful expression of the Enlightenment conviction that the proper use of reason can be applied to the practical problems of human life.

The Famous List of Virtues

One of the most famous passages of the Autobiography is the list of thirteen virtues that Franklin developed as a guide for his own self-improvement. The virtues are: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity, and humility.

Franklin developed a scheme for cultivating the virtues, in which he would focus on one virtue each week, while keeping a chart of his progress. The scheme was an expression of the Enlightenment conviction that the proper development of the human character required systematic attention to the cultivation of the moral virtues.

The list has been criticized, both in Franklin’s time and since, for its apparent emphasis on commercial success at the expense of more demanding moral virtues. Critics have argued that the list reflects a kind of bourgeois morality that values prudence, order, and industry over courage, generosity, and the more demanding forms of moral commitment.

Despite the criticisms, the list has remained an important document of the American tradition of practical ethics. ## The Legacy of the Autobiography

The Autobiography has had a profound influence on the development of American literature and on the American tradition of self-representation. The book is one of the most widely read works of American literature, and it has been an inspiration to generations of readers who have found in Franklin’s story a model for their own aspirations and achievements.

The book is also an important source for the study of the American Enlightenment and of the American revolutionary period. The various episodes of the Autobiography — the early years in Boston, the establishment of the printing business, the scientific experiments, the diplomatic service, the imperial crisis — provide a vivid picture of the social, intellectual, and political life of colonial and revolutionary America.

Further Reading

• The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (plato.stanford.edu), relevant entry
• The Cambridge Companion to [Thinker] (Cambridge University Press)
• Isaiah Berlin, Four Essays on Liberty (1969)