Ben Franklin: The Iconic American

2027 Words9 Pages
Ben Franklin: The Iconic American Ben Franklin was possibly the most “American” person that ever lived. He portrayed everything that an American should be. Although Franklin had many secret aliases such as “the Busy-Body,” “Obadiah Plainman,” and “Robin Good-fellow” for his writings, everyone knew that he was a diligent, intelligent, hard-working, and innovative man (Donovan 72). Born in Boston to a poor family of eleven, Ben Franklin was expected to have a low-paying job and to not receive any education. Instead of doing what his father wanted, Franklin decided to educated himself and also went to work at The New England Courant. Franklin was a printer at this newspaper that was also run by his older brother (Donovan 73). At the age…show more content…
It was in Philadelphia that he found work as an apprentice printer. After many years of working as an apprentice printer, Ben Franklin decided to establish his own printing business in Philadelphia (Donovan 76). Although he was young, Ben was working all of the time. The citizens noticed his great work ethic. Shortly after that, Franklin married his childhood sweetheart, Deborah Reed. In the autobiography, called The Autobiography and Short Writings, Ben Franklin mentioned that he and his wife became well-known in their community by owning and operating a print shop, general store, and book store (55). An enterprising man, Franklin bought the Pennsylvania Gazette after having much success in the colonies with his other family-owned businesses. Franklin was in charge of printing the paper and also writing articles (The Electric Ben Franklin 5). Once again, Franklin used different names other than his own when submitting the articles. Ben Franklin also illustrated the first ever political cartoon (Keyes 98). The Pennsylvania Gazette quickly became the most successful and popular newspaper among the colonist. The Pennsylvania Gazette is now known as the Saturday Evening…show more content…
The heat-efficient stove that Franklin invented is not like the cooking stoves in most households today. The stove that Franklin developed helped to heat houses in the past, but the technology is still used in today’s furnaces. Swim fins are now a necessity for scuba divers all around the world. Bifocals are still used everyday by many people who have a problem with reading and seeing at a distance. One of the most important of Franklin’s experiments was the Kite Experiment. The lightning rod was very important in the past to attract lightning and prevent fires, but the idea is still used in the construction many of today’s houses. The understanding of electricity leading to fires has made it easier to prevent common house-fires. New laws and regulations require specific guidelines to be followed when it comes to homes and
Open Document