Why Benjamin’s father didn’t set him up for a career in church, like he intended to, Which crucial piece of every modern house he invented (and what nickname that got him with his enemies), Which key line of the Declaration of Independence he changed, How he helped make sure the US would actually become a country. Benjamin Franklin: An American Life - Chapter One and Chapter Two Summary & Analysis Walter Isaacson This Study Guide consists of approximately 32 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin: An American Life is a must read! So who was right, and why? In bestselling author Walter Isaacson's vivid and witty full-scale biography, we discover why Franklin seems to turn to us from history's stage with eyes that twinkle from behind his new-fangled spectacles.

You could say that Benjamin Franklin was one of the first This fascinating insight on page 82 was the last straw, "For the last 17 years of Deborah's life, Franklin would be away, including when she died. A major figure in the American Revolution, Franklin devoted his considerable abilities in support of the new nation. Something else I never learned in school, France's involvement. Though 85 is not altogether abnormally old, Franklin's life was subjectively twice that, full and productive as it was. I may read it again now. In other words, maybe the books I read act as my own autobiography. Ben Franklin is an especially interesting example, because he changed not one, but many fields in his lifetime. Americans, scientists, business people, history buffs.

If you really want to learn, you’ll find a way.

A chairman of CNN and managing editor of Time magazine, Isaacson's 2003 biography of Franklin is balanced and tremendously readable, but somewhat facile; the reader doesn't really get to know the man under the myths, though he or she will learn an awful lot about this complicated Founding Father's activities and relationships. wanted to do was write. It is lengthy (over 600 pages) and one feels obligated to read the footnotes because they further the work.

Pro book tip: When you see a biography of an iconic, I adopted some of his ideas because they fit me. If I'd known, you could have kept it.

The kind that acknowledges other views and controversies and with extensive notes and sources in the back. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Another view reminding us that all people are human with both strengths and weaknesses. So instead, he created a female alter ego, Mrs. Silence Dogood, in whose name he published his Now, the one misgiving I have is that Mr. Isaacson preaches to these so-called American values on nearly every other paragraph. It highlights Franklin’s achievements and lasting influence on America.

Lesson 3: Don’t let being ahead of your time get to you. Wonderfully put. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Insightful and complete, we get an good appreciation for this mythical patriot of American values. By the end, I felt like Franklin was mine, like he somehow belonged to me. From Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, I believe it’s about innovation, deliberate practice and money, just to name a few. In broad terms, Isaacson describes Franklin as a quintessential figure of the Age of Enlightenment as well as one seen as a prototypical American by those to which the very concept was new. More than that, it's the rare biography that can inspire smiles and even giggles--I'd mark this up to five stars if I could credit Isaacson for that--but the source of the humor is the frequent quotes from Benjamin Franklin himself. I love biographies. If you really want to learn something, you’ll find a way. Using these themes and Isaacson's strong narrative, the reader learns so much in this one tome, all of which helps better shape the view of this most varied of the early men who shaped America.

"[2], Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky, Presentation by Isaacson on Benjamin Franklin's legacy, May 11, 2016, The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made, The Innovators: How a Group of Inventors, Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benjamin_Franklin:_An_American_Life&oldid=981817483, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 4 October 2020, at 15:52. Completing the CAPTCHA proves you are a human and gives you temporary access to the web property.

In bestselling author Walter Isaacson's vivid and witty full-scale biography, we discover why Franklin seems to turn to us from history's stage with eyes. The review of this Book prepared by David Fletcher. “I don’t have a publisher/agent/film school education” Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. They’re always worth it. In Isaac. America was created by 10s of thousands of patriots, no merely old Ben important as he was nonetheless. But of course you also know him for being a great businessman, writer, shaping the founding of the United States and oh, discovering electricity. he even created a 5-hour rule for himself. The book provides insight into colonial life before, during, and after the American Revolution. This means you’ll often feel like you know something to be They’re always worth

He was so dispassionate about his common law wife of 44 years, he chose not to return to see her on her deathbed after 10 years abroad in Europe. At just ten years old, speaking ability). putting all of your money into a new technology, sticking with your opinion, This most eclectic of men, the fifth generation of the youngest son of the youngest son, dazzled many he met and Isaacson's presentation surely will pull in many readers as well. Isaacson describes the business achievements in depth and goes on to note the complexities of Franklin's political viewpoints. I read his Autobiography as a high school student, and it inspired me to be a better person. He is credited with unlocking many of the mysteries of electricity and coining the terminology positive and negative, battery, neutral, conductor and others. Benjamin Franklin: An American Life Summary 5 min read.

We could still be a British colony without him - or even a French one! If you really want to learn something, you’ll find a way. a 5-hour rule for himself, spending one hour each weekday on reading, writing,
He also had mostly poor or at best cool relations with his own family, carried on oral and epistolary flirtations with a number of younger women, and changed his mind about a number of significant issues (mostly for the better).

I bought this highly anticipated book only a short time after getting a new job as a store manager with FranklinCovey. I resolved then to learn a bit more. To integrate learning into every single day, he even created a 5-hour rule for himself, spending one hour each weekday on reading, writing, setting goals, coming up with ideas, talking with like-minded people and reflecting. For example he not only discovered electricity with his However, Isaacson's book is definitely an engaging read and fairly exhaustive. See all 17 questions about Benjamin Franklin…, Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin, Ashley Poston on Writing a Different Kind of Fairy Tale Retelling. Lesson 1: Above all, Benjamin Franklin embraced learning.

created a female alter ego, Mrs. biographies?
online, free for the world to see – whether that’s a video, a song or something But of