Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Autobiographie von Benjamin Franklin
Für wen es gedacht ist
For readers who love practical wisdom, early American history and a wry self-portrait told in plain words, and for anyone who enjoys exploring the habits that make a useful life.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
A poor boy runs away from his apprenticeship and walks into Philadelphia with bread under his arms. Within a few decades he is one of the most useful people in America. Benjamin Franklin begins his life story in 1771 as a letter to his son William, and he returns to it in 1784 and again in 1788. The book is unfinished, funny and full of small scenes. It shows how reading, steady habits and honest dealing can build a life. It begins in Boston, with a candle maker's youngest son.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1A candle maker's youngest son in BostonFree
- 2Learn to write, then leave your master
- 3Arrival in Philadelphia and the lesson of London
- 4Building a business and a circle of friends
- 5The plan to become morally perfect
- 6Doing good for the town, one project at a time
- 7Electricity, the stove and a surprising duty
- 8What Franklin really believes about success
- 9How the book was made and how it has lasted
Punkt 1 von 9
A candle maker's youngest son in Boston
Franklin writes to his son William and sets down what he knows of his family. They were farmers and blacksmiths in an English village. His father Josiah crosses the Atlantic to Boston and makes soap and candles. Benjamin is born there in 1706, the youngest son in a very large family.
At ten he is put to work in the candle shop, cutting wicks and filling molds. He dislikes it and talks of going to sea. His father walks him around Boston to watch joiners and bricklayers at work, hoping to find a trade that suits him.
Books are his great pleasure. He spends every penny on them and sometimes sells one to buy the next. One boyhood prank with stones taken from a building site teaches him that nothing is useful which is not honest. That link between honesty and usefulness runs through the whole book.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
- Nothing to pay today · Renews every year
- We email you before you pay
- Cancel online in two clicks
Who’s who
- Benjamin Franklin
- Franklin is the printer and writer recounting his family, apprenticeship, friendships, and efforts to cultivate useful habits.
- William
- William is Franklin's son, whom he addresses while explaining his ancestry and the course of his early life.
- James
- James is Franklin's older brother, a printer who becomes his master during his apprenticeship in Boston.
- Deborah Read
- Deborah Read is the young Philadelphia woman who sees Franklin passing her house during his awkward arrival.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 74,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 4 h 55 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 12 other languages
Questions about Autobiographie von Benjamin Franklin
What is the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin about?
It tells of Franklin's early life, from his Boston childhood and printing apprenticeship to his rise in Philadelphia as a printer, civic organizer and scientist. It is also a guide to the habits he thought led to a useful life.
Why did Benjamin Franklin write his autobiography?
He began it as a letter to his son William, wanting to record his family history and the way he rose from humble beginnings. Later he saw that his story could also teach others practical habits.
What are Franklin's thirteen virtues?
They are temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity and humility. He practised one each week and tracked his faults in a small book, hoping to build lasting good habits.
Is the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin a complete life story?
It does not cover his later role in the Revolution and the new nation.
Is Franklin's Autobiography hard to read?
No. The language is plain, the chapters are short, and the tone is humorous and direct. Most readers follow it easily.