From reading about Ben and Will in Skemp, it seemed to me that their relationship started off rough. It's sad that Will might have felt ignored by his dad; considering all the achievements he is known for and how much of his time and effort he must of put into them. Even though Will was given many great educational and career opportunities by his father, it seemed like Ben was mapping out how he wanted his son to be, even at a young age. Not being accepted for who you are or who you want to be can affect a person. Maybe Will just wanted to make his dad proud but by doing it on his own standards, like when he joined the forces. Ultimately they seemed to find a common ground, like their interests in electricity and the whole kite experiment. After that, long leisurely trips to England also bonded them closer. How would have Will and all of us turned out if Ben gave up some of the things that we still benefit from today, if he would have concentrated more on his needy son and hovered over him after his run away attempt? What would we be missing out on if Ben dropped out of the spotlight to tend to his family affairs (like after his baby boy died)? Thankfully he was too ambious of a person to do so.
In Henretta, the thing that got me the most was the Great Awakening. I can imagine going to church before this happened and falling to sleep during every sermon. People finally realized how to not be so uptight and structured. They needed to spice things up a bit! Sure, go ahead and get a theater performer to speak the word of god to you, as long as it works and keep you AWAKE that's all that matters. It was also a good thing for the kids back then too. I'm sure they were stoked to go to church now! If this would not of taken place would there be as many people attending church today? Or better yet, would Methodist and Baptist be major parts of religion, after all this new style is what made the two so big?
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6 comments:
I agree with you about the Skemp reading. Will obviously was not interested in the printing business, just as Ben wasn't interested in his dad's candle-making. Will sought out to find his own interests. Thankfully, Ben allowed Will to do this and continued to concentrate on his own life. Ben would not have made the great accomplishments he did if he would have turned his focus to his struggling son.
It didn't help Will make a name for himself when he was labeled a "bastard" by everyone including his stepmom. He was just like his father in the perspective of not wanting to do the same trade as his father suggested he should do.
I thought it most interesting about the good fortune of Will to land his governorship position in New Jersey. Only with the king removing Josiah Hardy and Hardy's replacement, Thomas Pownall, refusing the position, not to mention the ability of Benjamin to keep the negotiations a secret so as to avoid the Penn's gaining knowledge of the situation, allowed William to gain governorship. By being refused the governorship, would William have viewed England differently? Would William have continued to shadow Benjamin had he not been granted the position?
I agree with you about the Skemp reading as well. Will was quite a bit like his father was at that age, which is not much deifferent than any other father and son. Ben did map out Wills future pretty much which may be a little leading of him, instead of letting Will do his own thing, but he dad a very good job at making sure the Franklin name in general was changed from how it was when Will was younger.
I agree with you on both readings. Ben tried to almost force Will into the printing business. This put a strain on their relationship, but once Will found his passion in politics his father was key in his success. If it wasn't for Ben's relationships with powerfull men Will never would have had the advantages that he did.
I like what you were talking about with the Great Awakening. I couldn't imagine what church would be like without it. It was hard enough as a young kid to sit through sermon after sermon, I don't even want to imagine what they would have been like prior to the Awakening.
Also in response to the whole Benjamin Franklin's role in America: I think that if he would not have played as large of a role as he did, I don't think we would be as advanced of a society right now. I feel as though someone at some point would have stepped up and accomplished what he accomplished, but it would have taken much longer.
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