Ben Franklin Reports Essay, Research Paper
There was a man named Josiah Franklin. He owned a candle and
soap shop in Boston, Massachusetts. The sign for the shop was
shaped like a blue ball. Josiah had children, but there were often
not living at home. Josiah invited guests to his home to talk and
teach his children, but the guests were not aware that they were
invited to teach the Franklin children. Both Josiah and his wife
felt strongly about educating their children; they took their
children?s education very seriously. Benjamin, one of their
children, always listened to the guests; he was a very bright
child. Benjamin taught himself to read when he was only five years
old. His parents wished that they could send Ben to school, but
they were very poor.
Once three very important men visited Josiah and told him of a
new law which said that children must attend school. Josiah sent
Ben to the Boston Latin School because the only expenses were books
and fire wood. At the Latin School all the children were expected
to learn fables by heart. The fables had lessons which the school
master thought was an important part of learning. Ben’s best
friend’s name was Nathan. Ben helped Nathan learn the fable “The
Wolf and the Kid”, while Ben learned “The Dog and his Shadow”. At
the time of the recital of the fables the school master said, “and
Ben will recite “The Wolf and the Kid”, which was Nathan’s fable.
Ben thought, “If I say that it is Nathan’s fable, then the school
master will get into trouble. If I recite the fable, then Nathan
will get into trouble.” Ben did nothing; he simply stood there
looking up into the sky. Everyone said that Ben was lazy and that
he could not even learn one fable. Josiah Franklin stood up and
explained his son’s behavior and the school master was very
embarrassed.
Josiah and Nathan’s father both took their sons to the Writing
School. Ben was good in every subject except math. An example of
the type of math that Ben had trouble with is; 848 plus 262 equals
101010. Poor Ben would get a zero but his teacher would not
explain the math to him.
Ben loved science and frequently did experiments. His first
experiment was paddles to make him swim faster. When he tried his
newly invented paddles he found that although he could swim faster
the paddles hurt his wrists. Next he made a kite which could pull
him across the pond and he found this an enjoyable experience. Ben
and Nathan bought parts of a sailboat which they repaired and made
perfect.
When Ben got older he became his father’s apprentice in the
candle and soap shop. Ben, the only son who worked in the family
business, treated the customers well and helped his father. After
working with his father for several years Ben became his brother’s
apprentice in a print shop. Ben made a deal with his brother. His
brother would pay for half the cost of Ben’s dinner and Ben would
pay for his own food, and the leftover money would be spent on
books.
Ben wrote stories for the local newspaper about the problems
Boston was having. When he wrote these articles he used a pen name
and even his brother did not know that Ben was the author of the
articles. Ben thought that if he wrote about the problems of the
city, the other Bostonians would be embarrassed and would fix the
problems before other people made jokes about Boston. Eventually
people found out that Ben was the author of these articles and
Ben’s brother became jealous and mean to him.
Ben left Boston and moved to Philadelphia where he set up his
own printing business. He printed the famous “Poor Richard’s
Almanac” a best seller and decided that he would be print it every
twenty-five years. He never stopped experimenting and is known for
inventions such as; bifocal glasses, the rocking chair and his most
famous experiment showing how lightening can produce electricity.
Ben became a famous politician, a minister to France, and traveled
to Europe and talked about the American cause. He died on April
17, 1790.
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