Benjamin Franklin Research Paper

The concept of the American dream is not one that has been formed from modern times, but instead is believed to be a creation of one of the founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin. Franklin lived a life in where work ethic and character lead to accomplishments and success which was a modern thought process in comparison to the 18th century’s general ideas. Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography and Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, clearly exemplifies the average life of those who lived in the 18th century including Franklin and his prosperous life.
The average life for the inhabitants of America in the 18th century was not one of great prosperity but it was also not one of great poverty. As described by Ben Franklin in, Information …show more content…
When Franklin worked in a printing press in England, he discovered the reality of the work ethic in this area during the 18th century. Franklin encountered a multitude of situations revolving around inappropriate behavior and practices in by the workers of the Watt’s printing house. As Franklin states in his autobiography, “My companion at the press drank every day a pint before breakfast, a pint at breakfast with his bread and cheese, a pint between breakfast and dinner, a pint at dinner, a pint in the afternoon about six o'clock, and another when he had done his day's work.” This objective finding by Franklin describes how the workers of this printing mill did not have close to the same work ethic as he would wish to see out of the working force. Along with drinking while on the job, Franklin experienced people who took the work day on Monday off in order to recover from the weekend before of drinking. Franklin viewed this type of behavior as a failed attempt at self-improvement. He put emphasis on the importance of improving oneself, being successful, and become a burden on one’s society. When Franklin returned to Philadelphia and began working at an American printing press his personality flourished and he was able to gain a positive reputation for the time and effort that he put into his work. This lead to Franklin moving up in society …show more content…
As previously stated, Franklin held work ethic to a high standard and put a large emphasis of self-improvement. He defined success as exerting oneself to show utmost humility as well as discipline. This definition significantly contributed to Franklin’s success within his life. Franklin was successful not because of the time he lived in but instead his character. He believed that wealth was not based on money but instead about doing something that you like to work as to be, he based the majority of wealth on character. Benjamin Franklin’s mission was to encourage others to improve themselves to become as successful as he did. His character of being industrious and frugal furthered him more efficiently than others’ in the society at the same

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