I have only a few years to live and I am resolved to devote them to the work that my fellow citizens deem proper for me; or speaking as old-clothes dealers do of a remnant of goods, ‘You shall have me for what you please.’ —
Benjamin Franklin to Benjamin Rush, before leaving for France in 1776
Ben Franklin was born on this day in 1706. His accomplishments have a way of making me feel like a little teeny homunculit with no contribution made to the betterment of the planet. I read his lifestory and just think: But … but … how … how … how does one man do so much? What a mind. What curiosity. What humor. Of all of the Founding Fathers, he seems the most human to me. Even though what he managed to do in his life is almost super-human. And any ONE of those things (the almanac, the kite, the Declaration of Independence, his sojourn in Paris) would have been enough to put him in the history books forever. But all of it? It’s unbelievable. But still – even with all of that – somehow he seems the most … accessible. Perhaps because he wrote a pamphlet about farts. Because of his almanac, and how funny it is. Perhaps because beneath all of it – you sense a man who LIVED. He was brilliant, of course – but … he also seemed to be very much of this earth. He liked to drink, play cards, read, flirt … His intelligence was of a wide scope. He inquired about everything. That is a mark of true intelligence: can you admit how much you DON’T know?
Every year I commemorate the day that the Library Company opened – which is one of my favorite stories of Franklin’s life – the creation of that library, still a library today. Awe-inspiring.
Things he invented, investigated, developed – electricity, bifocals, the fire department in Philadelphia, the glass armonica, the list goes on and on.
I love this – I found this on the Library of Congress website. In response to the Stamp Act – which impacted Franklin’s newspaper (and all newspapers) because it had to be printed on stamped paper – Franklin printed the following, on November 7, 1765. No date, no masthead, no page numbers.
Ben Franklin said, “A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle.” Indeed. Reminds me of Henry Miller’s great quote: “Develop interest in life as you see it, in people, things, literature, music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.”
That, to me, describes Benjamin Franklin.
Happy birthday, Ben!
Update: I knew Alex had written a fun tribute to him last year. Just tracked it down!
Happy Birthday Ben!
Fart Proudly!
(but not too close to the cake; with all those candles…)
My brother gave me a pocket version of Poor Richard’s Almanac for Christmas – I love having it!
He also invented a safer wood-burning stove (named after him), the lightning rod, and I believe he was the first postmaster of Philadelphia as well.
Truly incredible!
I think, too, he windsurfed LONG before we even had a name for what that was. He surfed across a pond, using his flying kite to pull him across.
The thought of that makes me laugh. he was like 13 years old or something.
Also that he was a vegetarian. And also his little “morality chart” that he kept, as an experiment. Trying to see, as an experiment, if he could be perfect. hahaha
Oh – and here’s my favorite Ben Franklin quip.
Even if he didn’t really say it, he ought to have.
It’s a great line. The man was truly a bon vivant.
Happy Birthday Ben! I hadn’t properly thought about it before but I agree with you, he is accessible and probably one of my favorite founding fathers. Didn’t know he wrote a fart pamphlet. Gonna have to get ahold of that! ;)
Aw, YAY! Ben Franklin, your house is cool, but the privy pits creep me out a bit. Love yer work!
I gotta go ahead and agree with Carl that he’s the most accessible of the founding fathers. It seems like he was quite the firecracker, and it’s hard not to like him.
Odd bit o’trivia: I read in an interview that Jack Coleman (from Dynasty and now Heroes) is Ben Franklin’s great great great (etc) grand-nephew or some such. If only Mr. F. was around today, I’d love to know what he thought of popular culture today. He’d probably be shocked and appalled, but you never know.
Happy Birthday, Mr. Franklin…
…and don’t sell yourself short, red. You’ve kept busy, and you make a contribution–not just with what you’ve written here over the years, but also by giving Hamiltonians and Jeffersonians a place to be Hamiltonians and Jeffersonians without the pretentious atmosphere, without the feeling that you’ve got to try to impress or one-up somebody.
Founding history, the acting craft, literary study, insane RUHTs, pig havoc, and Kung Food Guy. You don’t find a salon like that every day.
ken – pig havoc … hahahahaha
Franklin, as a vegetarian, would be very bummed out about the pig havoc.
I personally love the anecdote about Franklin comforting Jefferson during the session when the delegates edited his draft of the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson was at his wits end – he just sat there, writhing, as everyone picked apart his prose – and Franklin talked him down. But he did it in an anecdotal way which is so amusing – let me find the anecdote, I think I posted it here as an excerpt once.
Here it is! It’s from Joseph Ellis’ book about Jefferson:
hahahahaha
And I also adore the story of John Adams and Ben Franklin sharing a bed and bickering about whether or not night air is good for you. John Adams fell asleep as Ben Franklin rambled on and on and on with his theories about fresh air.
What an image.
Ken is right – what’s being accomplished here is no small feat. What made the founding fathers the founding fathers was a combination of ability, enthusiasm and opportunity. The author of this blog is not lacking in the first two qualities, only the latter condition. If similar exigent circumstances were ever to arise, I have no doubt she would acquit herself in highly admirable fashion.
The evolution of our society has led to highly refined specialization as the general rule. The world has far too few competent generalists these days, at a time when the generalist’s viewpoint is becoming more and more critical for managing the human impact of the extremely sophisticated technologies we’re creating.
It’s very comforting to me to know that there are people like red out there. ;-)
Of the founding fathers Franklin is not only the most human but the one that I personally believe would enjoy life in 21st century the most. And would be just as successful with his writing, his politics and his inventions now as he was then. Of course we may have been a little behind the times if he didn’t do that kite trick. Well I think any one that firmly believes he does better work naked & still accomplished what he did, is defiantly worth of a look back through the “Greatest Americans” glasses.