Saralee Says
If I had a magic wand and I had to select some of our country's early citizens to bring back to life and see what their opinions were about the United States of America today, Ben Franklin would definitely be at the top of the list. What a charming and puzzling character. This is a man who went without food in order to buy books, invented a library, and wrote while using many different pseudonyms to create provoking columns - and in many of those he pretended to be a woman. I would easily spend an afternoon drinking coffee and soliciting his thoughts on everything from running a small business and increasing voter registration to solving the continuing crisis in the Middle East.
Walter Isaacson, former chairman of CNN and manager of Time magazine and the author of Kissinger: A Biography has undertaken the formidable task of documenting the life of Ben Franklin. Can you tell what Isaacson's political beliefs are (conservative or liberal, progressive or not) as you read this biography?
I particularly enjoyed Franklin's unabashed social climbing. I think he continued to be true to his middle class roots and proud of them while smoozing the upper class to get what he wanted. Like many colonists, he was intrigued with Europeans and the idea of marrying off his children to those with titles. He had a lot of progressive ideas for women and wanted his own daughter to learn reading, writing and arithmetic, but she did not get the opportunity to attend college. Franklin's relationship with his son, the result of a liaison outside of marriage, was frustrating and sad. Do you think his failings as a father were because Franklin spent so much time and energy as a public citizen and inventor? I have heard many people compare former President Bill Clinton to some of our founding fathers including Thomas Jefferson and Franklin. Do you agree that Clinton is a brilliant man with major personal character flaws?
How does Isaacson's book, Benjamin Franklin - An American Life (Simon & Schuster) compare with The Autobiography of Ben Franklin written by Franklin himself? What did Franklin leave out that Isaacson did not and do you think Franklin would like or dislike this most recent biography? What about Edmund Morgan's book, Benjamin Franklin (Yale University Press) that came out in October of 2002? If you read it, will you read Isaacson's book? Does the length of this book intimidate you? Most publishers do not try to sell anything longer than 300 pages and it's almost 500 pages with an additional 100 pages of references.
If you are planning a vacation or business trip by car while you see the beautiful fall foliage, this is the kind of book that is perfect for listening to on an audio tape or compact disc.
Larry's Language
Benjamin Franklin - An American Life by Walter Isaacson is a fascinating account of the life and times of a true renaissance man who helped define the meaning of being an American.
Franklin was born the eighth child of English colonists and grew up in Boston. Due to poverty he received no formal education and most of his learning came as an apprentice at his older brother's newspaper. At age 17 he ran away to Philadelphia and a year later lived in England for almost two years. Returning to Philadelphia, Franklin started a newspaper, was a clerk for the colonial legislature, owned a bookstore, was postmaster of Philadelphia and worked as a printer. Through his industry, Franklin became rich and retired in his early forties and lived a life of discovery, science, writing, and politics and for 15 years served as a spokesman for the colonies in England.
During this time he invented the Franklin stove and a printing press, conducted his electrical experiments, and invented lightning rods. In 1751 he was elected to the colonial legislature and in the first years of his political life was an ardent supporter of the British Empire. During his diplomatic posting to England he unsuccessfully tried to persuade the King to limit royal power in the colonies while enjoying the social, intellectual, and romantic life at the royal court.
By age 70 he had become a revolutionary, serving in the Continental Congress, helping draft the Declaration of Independence, and promptly signing it. Then he was Ambassador to France during that critical time.
After the Revolution he was President of Pennsylvania, then a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and then led the fight to abolish slavery.
Franklin's life raises many questions for our Book Club. Should a genius be forgiven his personal problems ranging from infidelity to family discord? Should Franklin have had a firmer and bolder attitude toward the French? Should Franklin have fought earlier and sooner on the issues of American revolution and the abolition of slavery?
Author Walter Isaacson uses an engaging writing style to swiftly move the reader from childhood to the "Poor Richard" days to the entrepreneur interests to politics and diplomacy. While Isaacson's book is not quite as extensive as some earlier Franklin biographies, it is informative and highly readable. You learn about both Franklin's private life and public life.
This unique individual had enough accomplishments for several lives. We have not seen very many leaders in our history as smart, as aggressive, and as diverse as Ben Franklin.
Join us for our next Book Club discussion, which will feature Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs.
