Benjamin Franklin - a Multitalented Personality - Research Paper Example

 Benjamin Franklin: An Epitome Of A ‘Complete’ Life Introduction Benjamin Franklin is the name that is synonymous with genius and a ‘complete’ life. He was a multidimensional, multifaceted and multitalented personality. Due to his contributions to the field of science, politics and writing, he is considered one of the most important people who contributed in the formation and development of the United States of America (Nettleton, 2004, p. 8). He has shown that to live the life to the fullest, what one needs is not just education but a curious mind, courageous heart and a lively attitude. Ben Franklin’s life shows that only those people who dare to risk securities of home, have a strong desire to learn continuously and have a great sense of humor, can lead a happy, content and meaningful life. Hence, for anyone who desires to lead a meaningful and joyful life, and desires to live every moment of life to the fullest, the characters and life of Ben Franklin can be great inspiration, as he is an epitome of qualities that lead to success and happiness in both, the personal and the professional life. Early Years Ben Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1706 (Glass, 2004, p. 4). Franklin had sixteen siblings and he was the fifteenth child of his parents (Glass, 2004, p. 4). He went to school at the age of eight but left the school at the age of 10 to become an apprentice to his father (Glass, 2004, p. 4). He was exposed to work life very early. However, he was very fond of reading books and never stopped learning new things (Glass, 2004, p. 5). His mind was active, sharp and curious. Ben learned how to make soaps and candles in his father’s shop (Nettleton, 2004, p. 5). However, he never liked making it and enjoyed reading better (Glass, 2004, p. 6). Even though he was able to attend the school only for two years, his interest in reading books remained intact (Nettleton, 2004, p. 6). His passion for reading and his curiosity were paving a way for him to become one of the most successful and respected man in the history of America. Ben was excellent in grammar but was weak in arithmetic (Russell, 1926, p.4). However, reading helped him to learn math, writing and science on his own (Nettleton, 2004, p. 6). The interest in reading and gaining knowledge from books developed his skills and business acumen. Moreover, he learnt how to be “good, just and prudent in the conduct of life” from his father (Russell, 1926, p.5). While working under his father, Ben developed interest in different tools of making artifacts by watching “joiners, bricklayers, turners, braziers and other artificers at work” (Russell, 1926, p.5). This helped him later in life in making his own tools to conduct different experiments in his laboratory (Russell, 1926, p.5). However, Ben never liked his father’s business and also did not intend to become a clergy, as his father wanted him to be (Russell, 1926, p.7). After some time, he joined his brother in printing shop (Glass, 2004, p. 6). However, Ben soon realized that he will have to make a separate way for himself, as his relationship with his brother was not going smooth. Independent Path Benjamin Franklin’s brother James was a printer (Glass, 2004, p. 6). Ben joined his brother as an apprentice and started learning how to make new papers at his printing shop (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). At the time he joined his brother as apprentice, Ben was just 12 years old (Russell, 1926, p.4). James used to print newspaper articles written by Ben without knowing that Ben had written them as Ben used to write them under female name (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). When he learnt that it was Ben who was writing it, he stopped publishing them (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). Ben was not able to carry on working with James as he argued with him a lot (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). James was abusive (American Physics Society, n.d., para. 3) and never showed appreciation towards what Ben did. Hence, Ben ran away to Philadelphia when he was 17 years old (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). Ben’s hard work and his people skills paid and by the age of 24, he had his own shop (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). He became a successful printer (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). However, what really made him famous was not his success in printing business but his inventions which contributed in making life easier for people. Passion of Science Franklin’s curious mind always used to wonder about different happenings in his surrounding (Nettleton, 2004, p. 13). He used to wonder about the nature of wind, origin of electricity, temperature of the ocean etc (Nettleton, 2004, p. 13). At the same time, the knowledge he gained from reading hundreds of books and the observation of people working in his father’s shop, helped him in developing awe and interest in nature and its elements. His thorough observations and reflection on problems around him would drive him to find solutions for it. Hence, he was not only knowledgeable, but also creative and inventive by nature. This helped him in utilizing different aspects of nature to invent and create useful things for humanity. The interesting thing is that Ben demonstrated his natural bent towards invention right in his childhood. When Ben was working in James’s printing shop, his older brother John was suffering from kidney stone (APS, n.d., para. 3). Ben could not bear to see his pain and his curious mind started thinking about a solution to his problem. His thinking led him to develop a urinary catheter (APS, n.d., para. 3) which eased his brother’s pain. It “appears to have been the first one produced in America” (APS, n.d., para. 3). It is quiet surprising to know that without any sort of formal education and training in science, Ben had developed such a strong interest in science and scientific experiments. However, this interest can be attributed to Ben’s habit of reading good books. One book that made great impression on his mind was ‘Boyle’s lectures’ (Russell, 1926, p. 150). In his book Boyle, who “was a naturalist philosopher and writer on religious topics”, had discussed the scientific experiments that can be done at home with the help of observations of natural phenomena (Russell, 1926, p.150). Boyle was of opinion that man can learn a lot from nature and the scientific observations that he discussed in the book showed that he was sharp and practical in his observations (Russell, 1926, p.150). Ben was completely engrossed in the book and his dormant zeal and curiosity towards science was awakened again (Russell, 1926, p.150). Hence, Boyle’s book gave a right direction to Ben’s inventive bent of mind. Benjamin Franklin’s passion gave birth to lots of interesting inventions that helped human beings in making their lives easier, efficient and smooth. Experiments and Inventions Benjamin Franklin has invented many amazing things which became useful to humanity. Interestingly, his inventions resulted from reflecting on problems that he and his fellow beings experienced during their day to day life. Hence, many of his inventions are aimed at making the mundane work and activities easier for every human being. The interesting and useful things that he invented are discussed below. 1) Bifocals: Ben used glasses to read as his vision was not good (The Franklin Institute, n.d., para.2). However, the change in his eyesight with his growing age needed him to use two different glasses to see things at close distance and far away (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.12). To solve the problem of changing glasses often, Franklin made a single pair of glass by horizontally cutting the lenses of two pairs of glasses and attached it in such a way that the top half was focused on long distance view and lower half focused on close up things (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.12). 2) Franklin Stove: In colonial America, fireplace was used by people to warm their homes (TFI, n.d., para.6). However, it was quite dangerous as the sparks that flew out of fireplace caused many fire accidents, and it also used lot of wood (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.13). Ben reformed the idea of fireplace in such a way that 99% of the heat that escaped through the chimney in old fireplaces was saved and was utilized to heat the air in the room (Russell, 1926, p.151). In this way, the Franklin’s stove was born. 3) Odometer: Being a postmaster, Ben needed to keep track of the distance of routes as he had to deliver mails (TFI, n.d., para.6). Ben invented an odometer and attached it to the wheels so that it can measure the distance (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.13). 4) Ladder chair and book shelf tool: Ben invented a chair that converted into ladder by forming steps so that it can be used to retrieve books from high shelf (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.12). To clasp the books while taking books out from high shelf, he also invented an extension arm with two fingers (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.12). In this way, he invented many useful objects and tools which were aimed at making things easier for human beings. He has also invented a musical instrument called ‘glass armonica’ and swimming paddles (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.13).However, what was instrumental in making him famous and well known was his kite experiment. He created a wave of excitement in the field of physics with his experiment of kite and lightening. The Lightening Experiment The story related to Benjamin’s discovery of lightening rod has become very famous throughout the world. Benjamin was interested in the field of ‘electricity’ and to devote more time to experiments related to it, he retired from all his business duties at the age of 42 (Russell, 1926, p.157). Although Franklin conducted the kite experiment in 1752, the events that led to the experiment began in late 1740’s (Russell, 1926, p.159). Ben spent the winters of 1747-1748 in tests and speculations about lightening and thundering as its mystery attracted his attention a lot (Russell, 1926, p.159). His first paper on the subject of lightening appeared in 1749 but the suggestion of experiments to draw electrical fire through lightening with the help of lightening rods was given in his second paper (Russell, 1926, p.159). However, it was in 1752 that he conducted the kite experiment in which a silk handkerchief was used as a kite, and to catch the lightening, a pointed wire was attached on the top of the kite (Russell, 1926, p.160). A string of sleazy twine attached to the kite acted as conductor and a silk ribbon held in Ben’s hand acted as a non-conductor to keep the current from passing through his body (Russell, 1926, p.161). A key fastened at the joint of ribbon and twine acted as a circuit breaker (Russell, 1926, p.161). After waiting for some time in the shed as it had started raining, there was a lightening (Russell, 1926, p.161). Ben was successful in drawing lightening through the clouds with the help of kite as he found that the twines stood straight, the filaments waved to and fro when he ran his fingers parallel to it and the sparks leapt out of his knuckles when he held his fist near it (Russell, 1926, p.161). However, it is important to know that Benjamin Franklin did not ‘invent’ or discover electricity (TFI, n.d., para.6). He only dramatized the experiment to show that it was electricity that manifested lightening (Russell, 1926, p.161). However, the experiment helped him to invent lightening rod which was used to protect homes and barns from getting damaged due to lightening (Kubesh, McNeil, & Bellotto, 2007, p.12). At the same time, the kite experiment proved significant in more than one way. Significance Of Franklin’s Lightening Experiment In 18th century, when the field of science was not yet developed, it was Franklin’s experiment with lightening that revealed many important aspects of electricity (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Firstly, it revealed that electrical phenomena is not just a part of laboratory experiments but is a part of nature (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Also, it occurs in a large scale and is not limited to small spark discharges that are produced in the laboratory experiments (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Most importantly, it is natural phenomena and not artificial and hence, the powerful operations of nature can be understood through lightening (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Secondly, Bacon’s prediction that studying and understanding the essence of nature can help man to innovate and discover many things in life, was proved true by Franklin’s experiment with lightening (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Bacon’s statement that “knowledge of nature can help human beings solve many problems related to nature”, was considered sensible in the field of science but was never proved practically before Franklin’s lightening experiment (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Thirdly, Franklin’s experiment helped in removing the superstitious belief that lightening is God’s fury and he creates it to destroy human beings (Cohen, 1990, p.6). Lightening was considered a warning for people who commit sins (Cohen, 1990, p.6). However, Franklin’s experiment proved that lightening is not God’s fury but is a natural phenomenon. In this way, Franklin’s experiment with lightening contributed immensely in getting an insight into the functioning of nature. Sadly, at that time, it did not receive as much appreciation as it should have (Cohen, 1990, p.6). However, nearly two hundred years later, the discoverer of electron, J.J.Thomson, revealed that most of the facts of electrostatics that Franklin proposed are still applicable and valid (Cohen, 1990, p.9). This shows that Ben Franklin’s experiment was scientifically valid and had a vision. However, the most striking thing about Benjamin Franklin was his generous and philanthropic nature. Ben never used his experiments in science and his inventions to make money (Russell, 1926, p.151). He was very generous person and said that his inventions were his way of paying back to those people, who, by invented different things, have made his life easier and enjoyable (Russell, 1926, p.152). He also helped in drafting historically significant documents of ‘The Declaration of Independence’ and ‘Treaty of Paris’ (Russell, 1926, p.11). He was successful and efficient in every job that he did. However, despite of being a successful writer, publisher, diplomat and inventor, he never developed pride or arrogance (Russell, 1926, p.9). Conclusion Benjamin Franklin’s achievements are so great and so many, that only a man of exceptional talent, determination, passion and wisdom can achieve it. Franklin’s life shows that he was a man of genius. By achieving remarkable success in everything that he did, he showed that human being can live a multidimensional life to the fullest. Hence, there is a lot to learn from Ben’s life as he is an epitome of great character, wisdom, success and a ‘complete’ life. References Cohen, B. (1990). Benjamin Franklin’s Science. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP. Glass, M. (2004). Benjamin Franklin: Early American Genius. New York, NY: Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. Kubesh, K., McNeil, N. & Bellotto,K. (2007). Benjamin Franklin. Coloma, MI: In the Hands of a Child. Nettleton, P.H. (2004). Benjamin Franklin: Writer, Inventor, Statesman. Minneapolis, MN: Picture Windows Books. Russell, P. (1926). Benjamin Franklin: The First Civilized American. Cornwall, NY: Brentano’s Inc. American Physics Society. (n.d.). “Benjamin Franklin: The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, PA. Retrieved from http://www.aps.org/programs/outreach/history/historicsites/franklin.cfm The Franklin Institute. (n.d.). ““Benjamin Franklin: Inventor”. Retrieved from http://www.fi.edu/franklin/inventor/inventor.html Read More