The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Shaneka Sanders 12/14/15
Two uniquely American life stories:
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Although Benjamin Franklin and Fredrick Douglass began their lives on the opposite sides of the black-white divide in America, their personal narratives contain many parallel features. Both suffered a kind of slavery—indentured servitude to his brother in the case of Franklin and actual slavery in the south in the case of Douglass—and both later rose to prominent heights as authors and self-made men.
Both men held work in high esteem. Franklin saw his thrift and industry as the reason for his success. Douglass criticized slavery because it eroded the ability to work hard and to make a profit off of one’s own labor. Both men are shown chafing at the restrictions placed upon them while they were young. Douglass longed to learn how to read and while literacy was not denied to Franklin, the young Franklin had to conceal his authorship of the editorials he published in his brother’s newspaper. Similarly, Douglass had to conceal his urge to learn how to read as a slave. As a young boy, he was fortunate enough to be taught the alphabet and he kept this knowledge within him even in the face of very trying conditions as he was determined to escape the confines of slavery. Both men, in different ways, illustrate a common yearning for freedom.
To establish themselves professionally, both men had to leave their place of origin. Even within America they functioned as ‘immigrants.’ Franklin fled from his brother to Philadelphia. Franklin began his own print shop and his industry and sobriety was in stark contrast with his first associate, who likes to drink. Douglass, of course, must leave the enslaved south and head north. In this sense both men function as ‘self-made’ or enterprising men, deliberately wresting themselves out of their challenging personal circumstances to pursue a new life.
However, because
Two uniquely American life stories:
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Although Benjamin Franklin and Fredrick Douglass began their lives on the opposite sides of the black-white divide in America, their personal narratives contain many parallel features. Both suffered a kind of slavery—indentured servitude to his brother in the case of Franklin and actual slavery in the south in the case of Douglass—and both later rose to prominent heights as authors and self-made men.
Both men held work in high esteem. Franklin saw his thrift and industry as the reason for his success. Douglass criticized slavery because it eroded the ability to work hard and to make a profit off of one’s own labor. Both men are shown chafing at the restrictions placed upon them while they were young. Douglass longed to learn how to read and while literacy was not denied to Franklin, the young Franklin had to conceal his authorship of the editorials he published in his brother’s newspaper. Similarly, Douglass had to conceal his urge to learn how to read as a slave. As a young boy, he was fortunate enough to be taught the alphabet and he kept this knowledge within him even in the face of very trying conditions as he was determined to escape the confines of slavery. Both men, in different ways, illustrate a common yearning for freedom.
To establish themselves professionally, both men had to leave their place of origin. Even within America they functioned as ‘immigrants.’ Franklin fled from his brother to Philadelphia. Franklin began his own print shop and his industry and sobriety was in stark contrast with his first associate, who likes to drink. Douglass, of course, must leave the enslaved south and head north. In this sense both men function as ‘self-made’ or enterprising men, deliberately wresting themselves out of their challenging personal circumstances to pursue a new life.
However, because