Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

As the subject of the biography, Benjamin Franklin is the most significant individual in the book. Initially destined for the ministry in Puritan Boston, Franklin instead apprenticed at his brother James’s print shop. Isaacson highlights Franklin’s temperament, which poorly suited a life of ministry, and his extraordinary talent as a writer. Isaacson argues that Franklin pioneered a folksy and humorous tone in American literature. Unwilling to tolerate the authority of his brother, Franklin ran away to Philadelphia with virtually nothing. Isaacson identifies a pattern in Franklin’s life—he remained distant with familial relations, in this case literally running away from them. Given Franklin’s social and communicative skills, he quickly found work as a printer in Philadelphia. Characteristically, he chafed under the authority of others and ultimately opened his own print shop. Franklin became a media magnate and earned enough money to retire early and pursue other interests. His rise shaped his commitment to individualism and the belief that anyone can succeed with hard work and virtue.

Isaacson argues that Franklin embodied and helped to shape the outlook of the American middle class. That outlook, he contends, includes not only self-reliant individualism but a community spirit. As a leader in his community, Franklin formed many associations for public and social purposes such as lending libraries and fire brigades. He also made tremendous contributions to the public good through his scientific discoveries, none of which he patented. He pursued them from his sense of curiosity and his desire to benefit mankind.

Throughout the work, Isaacson notes Franklin’s dislike of authority, especially when based on inherited privilege. That instinct of Franklin is part of the American outlook, according to Isaacson. Isaacson chronicles Franklin’s battle with the Penns over the nature of the colony and the relationship of the legislature to the executive. More evidence of Franklin’s resentment of aristocratic privileges emerged during the American struggle for independence. Arguing that Franklin was more comfortable with democracy than the other founders, Isaacson cites Franklin’s hand in the creation of the Pennsylvania government, the most democratic of all the new states, and his support for national representation based on population. Franklin’s individualism and resistance to authority perhaps complicated his personal relationships. He had trouble maintaining long-term friendships with men and was distant from his family but engaged in long-term, though light-hearted, friendships with young women.

Isaacson concludes that Franklin represents one side of the American character. He was a pragmatist and religiously tolerant. Isaacson incorporates an exploration of Franklin’s religious beliefs as they evolved in his life. Although he was born to a Puritan family in Massachusetts, he rejected dogmatism. He believed in God and thought God was best served through good acts toward others. Importantly, Isaacson insists that Franklin was calculating, aware of public relations, and made very significant contributions to American history. He reminds the reader that Franklin was the only one to sign the Declaration of Independence, the French alliance, the treaty with England, and the Constitution.

Franklin’s illegitimate son and his only son to survive, William exposes the complex relationship that Franklin had with his family members. Franklin cut William out of his life and disinherited him because of William’s loyalty to England. Franklin brought William into his home just as he was starting his life with his wife Deborah, who was not William’s mother. When Franklin was sent to England to address the status of the Pennsylvania colony, he brought William with him. Once there, William gravitated toward Tory circles while Franklin was at home with the Whigs and intellectuals. Franklin chided William for taking on airs but to no avail. William enjoyed the lifestyle of the upper class and married into it. William fathered an illegitimate child, Temple, whom Franklin would take into his household. William showed no interest in the child originally but then wanted a relationship with his son, which Franklin severed during the Revolutionary War. Instead of attending his son’s wedding, Franklin set sail for America.

The Revolution would permanently alienate Franklin from his son. As a royal governor, William was arrested and spent time in a Connecticut jail. Franklin did nothing to help him. William later was suspected of ordering attacks on American citizens. Fearing imminent arrest, he fled to England. Franklin made it a priority in the peace negotiations with England that Loyalists not be compensated for the loss of their property. When William reached out after the war, Franklin did not reciprocate. They met briefly when Franklin stopped in England on his way home from France, but the meeting was so painful that neither spoke nor wrote about it. William never spoke poorly of his father. Tellingly, Franklin resumed correspondence with English friends but not with William.

Franklin loved his grandson Temple, William’s illegitimate son. He raised and educated him, bringing him home to America when he returned from England in 1775. Isaacson highlights Franklin’s lack of concern for societal opinion in this case. Though he did not formally use the Franklin name for this illegitimate child at first, the Stevensons had strong suspicions of the connection as others surely did as well. In this case, blood ties mattered more to Franklin.

When Franklin went to Paris to win France’s support in the war against Great Britain, he took Temple with him. Temple served as secretary to him and later to the peace commissioners. Franklin tried in vain to win a governmental appointment for Temple. Isaacson exposes Franklin’s capacity for unconditional love with Temple. Franklin left him a considerable sum in his will and all his papers. Temple published Franklin’s Autobiography but did not do much with the remaining papers. They were rediscovered by historians when Temple brought them back to the US after traveling abroad.

Benny was Sally’s son and Franklin’s grandson. Franklin loved Benny and decided to take him, at the age of seven, with him on his diplomatic mission to Paris. Isaacson explains the difficulty Franklin had with familial love once there. Franklin sent Benny to a boarding school in Geneva, where he was miserable. When contacted by school personnel, Franklin declined to bring Benny home or visit him. What is worse, he wrote him a letter claiming that his love was conditional on Benny being a good boy. Benny adjusted and continued to love his grandfather. Benny spent four years at the Geneva school before he returned to Paris to see Franklin who then kept the boy with him.

Franklin was pleased when Benny became a printer in Philadelphia. Unlike Franklin, Benny was a strong partisan of the Jeffersonians in the 1790s. He had inherited his grandfather’s printing equipment but not his temperament. Unlike Franklin, Benny was confrontational. He was arrested under the Alien and Sedition Act for his writings about President Adams and died of yellow fever at 29 before he was tried.

Franklin’s marriage to Deborah was not based on love or romance, but they got along well and respected one another. Deborah, like Franklin, was hard-working, frugal, and independent. They had two children, one of whom died of smallpox at a young age. Franklin loved that boy and perhaps, some of his distance from William, his illegitimate son, and Sally, his daughter, is explained by the boy’s death. He might not have wanted to experience such pain again.

After Franklin retired from printing, he traveled extensively for years at a time. Deborah never accompanied him on these trips. That was her choice. However, Franklin made the choice not to return home when she needed his help and even when she was dying. It was as though Franklin had outgrown his original mate. Isaacson points to his many relationships with women who were intellectually active and spirited. Franklin did not consummate any of these relationships, but he seemed to have more emotional attachments to these women than to his wife.

Franklin lodged at the home of Margaret Stevenson in the years he lived in London. She, along with her daughter Polly, became a surrogate family for him. Margaret accompanied him to events and kept house for him. Given the strength of the relationship, one of his friends in England wrote to Deborah imploring her to come to England. She declined. As Isaacson details, Franklin treated this surrogate family more warmly than his family in Philadelphia. He enjoyed their company and laughed with them. The relationship also fits a pattern for Franklin, as he formed long-lasting friendships with many women but not his wife.

Franklin befriended Margaret Stevenson’s young daughter, Polly. His relationship with her was flirtatious but not sexual, and he engaged in intellectual discussions with her. She is the most important example of Franklin’s penchant to engage in these types of relationships with young women. He had done so with Katy Ray Greene in Boston as well. Franklin maintained these relationships over his lifetime through correspondence and visits.

Although he did not attend either of his children’s weddings, he acted in the role of the father at Polly’s wedding. She became like a daughter to him. Later in life, after she was widowed, Polly moved to Philadelphia to attend Franklin in his dying days. Despite that devotion and relationship, Franklin did not leave her anything of value in his will.

At one time a friend, Bradford was a competitor in Philadelphia’s printing industry. Bradford’s father had helped Franklin get his first job in Philadelphia in printing, and Franklin lodged with Andrew for a time. Over the years, their competition intensified. Franklin got the best of Bradford, winning governmental printing jobs from him and taking over the role of postmaster. Bradford supported the proprietary elite in Pennsylvania, whom Franklin detested. Bradford tried to associate Franklin with a Freemason scandal but with little effect. Isaacson provides multiple examples of Franklin’s lost friendships with men. He had an easy time making casual acquaintances but great difficulty retaining long-term friendships with men.

Franklin’s only daughter, Sally was devoted to him and craved his approval. Franklin rarely gave it. He more often chastised her, while he delighted in the company of other young women whom he treated like daughters. Yet, Isaacson draws attention to the complexity of his family relations with Sally. There were times when he complimented her and took pride in her. He certainly loved her children, especially Benny. She and her family lived with him in his Market Street home, and he expanded it to fit her growing family. When he died, he left Sally and her husband most of his property.

Franklin’s brother James took him on as an apprentice in printing. From the outset, Franklin plotted means to fool his brother. He submitted essays under a pen name, knowing that his brother would not print stories if he thought Franklin had written them. The Silence Dogood essays were wildly successful, and James increasingly suspected his brother’s authorship. When James got in trouble for criticizing the clergy, Franklin assumed the role of publisher for a short time until James returned. At that point, it was difficult for Franklin to return to the role of James’s apprentice. Feeling humiliated, Franklin decided to run away. He did not speak well of his brother. Even though Isaacson has a favorable opinion of Franklin, he cautions that Franklin’s criticisms were not all deserved. The two brothers remained estranged until James, dying, approached Franklin and asked if he would see to his son’s education. Franklin agreed and concluded that his moral ledger was set straight. He had done wrong to his brother early in life but was now doing a good deed for him. This is also an example of the simple moral code for which Franklin is criticized.

Franklin treated Richard, Sally’s husband, decently despite early concerns about the man’s poor business skills. Sally fell in love with Richard while Franklin was in London. Deborah almost begged Franklin to come home, as she was worried about Richard’s reputation as a poor businessman. Franklin declined and left the matter to Deborah to resolve. When they married, Franklin did not come home for the wedding. While Franklin had concerns about Richard, he treated him kindly on a visit to London. Indeed, Franklin spent time with Richard’s relatives there. Back in Philadelphia, he made Richard the comptroller of the new American postal system of which Franklin was postmaster general. Franklin lived his last years with Richard’s family and took joy from his grandchildren.

A London printer with whom Franklin corresponded, Strahan became a close friend during Franklin’s years in London. As he had done in Philadelphia, Franklin formed a Junto for social purposes with Strahan and Peter Collinson. Franklin also submitted anonymous letters to Strahan’s paper. Strahan provided introductory letters for Franklin when he traveled to Scotland and other places, a common practice at the time. In an example of his failed matchmaking, Franklin hoped his daughter would marry Strahan’s son. That was not meant to be. Strahan was caught in the middle of Franklin’s conflict with his son William. An Englishman, Strahan encouraged William’s loyalty. Franklin used the device of a letter to his friend Strahan, which was never sent, to announce his support for independence. In the letter, he labeled his one-time friend an enemy. After the war, Franklin resumed his correspondence with Strahan.

Thomas Penn, an enemy of Franklin, became the primary proprietor of Pennsylvania in 1746. Penn incorrectly hoped that William’s appointment as royal governor would mellow Franklin. A mob attack on innocent Indigenous people in Pennsylvania in 1763 had enraged Franklin. When Penn did not press charges for political reasons, Franklin held both Penn and his government in utter contempt (213). Franklin tried against all odds, and according to Isaacson, all reason, to get the Pennsylvania colony changed to a royal one. Penn ensured the failure of that and outmaneuvered Franklin politically when the Stamp Act went into effect. Penn knew to disassociate himself from the collection of the tax, while Franklin underestimated the anger and recommended a collections officer. Franklin had to work hard to restore his reputation as an American advocate in the aftermath of that decision. Isaacson explains that Franklin had an ingrained dislike of the Penns for what they represented—inherited status and wealth.

A widow, Helvétius was a “lively, outgoing […] free-spirited bohemian” (363) whom Franklin met during his years in Paris. Unlike his other female acquaintances, Helvétius was older—nearly 60 when Franklin first met her. In 1779, Franklin was so taken with the woman that he proposed marriage. Tellingly, Isaacson notes, his proposal was done in an almost joking manner to enable him to retain detachment in the event of rejection, which was the outcome. In describing this encounter, Isaacson exposes Franklin’s desire for a more intimate relationship but his inability to create one.

Franklin’s father, Josiah, emigrated to Massachusetts for both economic and religious reasons. He was not a religious zealot and found a lucrative trade as a tallow chandler. Once Josiah recognized that Franklin was not suitable for the ministry, he set his son on the path toward his profession of printer. Franklin did not have much to do with his father or family, except for his sister Jane, after he ran away as a young man.

Franklin crossed paths with Adams when serving on the committee to draft the Declaration of Independence and again in France. Adams was sent to France initially to be the sole negotiator with the British when the time to end the war came. The choice of Adams over Franklin, according to Isaacson, caused some irritation with Franklin. When Franklin soon thereafter offered his resignation to the Continental Congress, the body refused to accept it and named Franklin, Adams, and three others as commissioners to negotiate the peace. Adams and Franklin were opposites in personality and therefore clashed at times. Adams was a realist and less of a Francophile than Franklin. Yet the two grudgingly admired one another. Isaacson’s depiction of Adams is perhaps more dour than other historians. Although cantankerous, Adams had a sense of humor and was devoted to his wife Abigail.

Franklin helped sponsor Paine’s emigration to America and edited Common Sense in January 1776. That pamphlet was of enormous significance in turning American public opinion in favor of independence. Isaacson highlights Franklin’s early support for independence and his role in creating public support for it.