FRANKLIN'S ALMANAC

“Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man” ― Francis Bacon

Benjamin Franklin (1706 to 1790] was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America. He was called` the most accomplished American of his age and the most influential in inventing the type of society that America would become----”. He helped draft the American Constitution, and was signatory to the Declaration of American Independence. A voracious reader, a prolific writer, an accomplished diplomat, he personified the very values he advocated.

Benjamin Franklin is not a personality well-known India. I don’t remember coming across his name when I was a school student. It was much later, when reading about the American revolution, that I came to learn about him for the first time. In science classes we learned about his experiments on conduction of electricity with the help of a kite and a lightning rod. Even today, it is doubtful, even many of the educated Indians know about him and his contributions in establishing America as a nation.

Early Life   Franklin was born in Boston on January 17, 1706. He was the tenth son of Josiah Franklin. His father wanted Ben to be a clergy man. However, he could not afford  schooling . Young Ben enjoyed reading, as he worked as an apprentice in the press run by his brother. According to A Quick biography of Benjamin Franklin, the young Ben used to help his brother compose pamphlets, and set types which were indeed gruelling work for a child of barely 12 years. After that, he would also sell pamphlets in the streets.

When Ben was 15, his brother started the New England Courant, the first newspaper in Boston. Young Ben wanted to write for the paper, but knew that his brother would not allow him. He, therefore, started writing letters under the pseudonym of an imaginary widow Silence Dogood. ‘Dogood was filled with advice and very critical of the world around her, particularly concerning the issue of how women were treated’. Ben would sneak the letters under the press -cum- shop door at night. The pieces he wrote were instant hit and were the topics of conversation among the locals. Everyone wanted to know who the real Silence Dogood was. After 16 letters, Ben confessed to his brother that he had been writing the letters all along, which indeed made his brother very angry. Thereafter, young Benjamin left his home and took up many odd jobs to support himself.

The Almanac After a life of struggle, he started publishing Poor Richards’ Almanack in 1773. Almanacs were very popular at that time in colonial America. They were published annually covering a variety of topics including weather forecasts, recipes, practical household hints, puzzles and homilies. Franklin published his almanac, adopting the pseudonym Poor Richard

 

or Richard Saunders, a poor man who needed money to take care of his ailing wife. He borrowed the name from the 17th century writer of Appollo Anglicanus -a popular London almanac and the character was based on Jonathan swifts’ “Isaac Bicker Staff”. In later years the original character Richard Saunders was gradually replaced by “Poor Richard’.

 The publication of the Almanac appeared continuously, lasting for 25 long years. It became a bestseller in the Colonies, with the circulation reaching 10,000. ‘His clever and extensive use of word play, poems, witty aphorisms and proverbs, and lively writing made it very popular’. Many of these aphorisms live on in American English. Several of these were borrowed from an earlier writer, Lord Halifax. His book The Way to Wealth, which included them, was popular, both in England and America. ‘He was foundational in defining American ethos as a marriage of practical and democratic values of thrift, hard work, education, community spirit, self- governing institutions and opposition to authoritarianism, both political and religious, with the scientific and tolerant values of the Enlightenment-----In Franklin could be merged the virtues of Puritanism without its defects, the illumination of the Enlightenment, without its heat."

Thus Spoke Poor Richard

Hunger never saw bad bread; Great Talkers Little doers; Fools make feasts and wise men eat them; After three days men go weary, of a wench, a guest and weather raining; You cannot pick roses for the fear of thorns; Without justice courage is weak; No man has ever been glorious who was not laborious; Poverty wants some things, luxury many things and Avarice all things; Marys’ mouth costs her nothing, for she never opens it but at others expense; A good lawyer is a bad neighbour; Well done is better than well said;

 Reading makes a full man, meditation a profound man, discourse a clear man; He who falls in love with himself will have no rivals; An empty bag will not stand upright; Let no pleasure tempt thee, no profit allure thee, no ambition corrupt thee; He who sows thorns should never go bare feet; What you would seem to be, be really; A small leak will sink a great ship; When the wells dry, we know the worth of water; A good example is the best sermon; Lost time is never found again; Being poor is no shame, but being ashamed of it is; Hunger is the best pickle; We may give advice, but we cannot give conduct; He that best understands the world least likes it; Doors of wisdom are never shut; Love your enemies for they will tell you your faults; The way to be safe is never to be secure.

Relevance Although some of his aphorisms/phrases may not be acceptable to people in modern times, the Almanac was indeed a reflexion of the social norms and conventions followed in that period. Further, they reflected Franklin’s own character, values and beliefs. Nevertheless, they influenced the language and cultural ethos of America and left an indelible mark in its history. Napoleon Bonaparte, impressed by the Almanac, got them translated into the French language. The Almanac was reprinted in England. The King of France was believed to have named a ship after Richard.

 

 

A Polymath Franklin was a multi-faceted genius. He was aptly called `the harmonious human multitude’! He was an acclaimed author, editor, printer, publisher, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, political activist and theorist, diplomat and statesman. He became wealthy, publishing the Almanac and the Pennsylvania Gazette, but used the money for many noble purposes. He became famous as a scientist with his experiments with electricity and invention of the lightening rod. He also developed the Franklin stove, a carriage odometer, and the glass harmonica.

He was a tireless campaigner of colonial unity and an author and spokesman in London for several colonies. He became the first US Ambassador to France. He was the US Post Master General, and, later on, became the Governor of Pennsylvania. His testimony before Parliament helped the repeal of the much- hated Stamp Act. He set up the first lending library in US and the first Fire department in Pennsylvania. He played a major role in the setting up of the Pennsylvania University. He was the first president of the American Philosophical Society. He freed his slaves at the end of his life and became one of the most prominent abolitionists.

He earned the title of First American for his invaluable contribution to the cause of American independence. Keeping in view his all- pervading influence in the early history of the nation, Americans jokingly called him "the only president of the United States who was never president of the United States"

Why Franklin Matters Franklin developed his personality by dint of his hard work and merit. He sought to cultivate his own character by having a plan of 13 virtues – temperance, silence, order, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquillity, chastity, and humility. Both as the fictional widow ‘Silence Dogood’ and Poor Richard he reaffirmed these virtues in his writings and are now called the American values. ‘Franklin confessed that he himself did not work on all of them, but one at a time. While he did not live completely by these virtues and by his own admission, fell short of them many times, he believed the attempt made him a better man, contributing greatly to his success and happiness.”

Franklin died on April17, 1790 at the age of 84. “His journey from a boy selling pamphlets printed in his brothers’ print shop in the streets to the exalted position of a statesman and one of the Founding Fathers of America symbolised the very values he propagated. His electric personality still lights up the world’. (Ref: en.wikipedia.org; www.britannica.com; www.biography.com; www.benjamin-franklin-history.org; www.history.com; benjaminfranklin.net)

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(Note: First published by the author as article in Annual Issue of Life Stream 2011 -e-magazine)