Benjamin Franklin Essay

The first thing that comes to someone’s mind about Benjamin Franklin will most likely be that he is the one that is on the 100 dollar bill or he was a president. There is much more about Benjamin than just being on a bill and being a president. Gordon S. Wood wrote a biography on Benjamin and it tells the readers about the events that have happened during his lifetime.

During the time of Benjamin Franklin, there were many events that occurred and Wood describes them in the biography. His curiosity let him to wondering how electricity worked so in 1749, he finally figured out why electricity was such a phenomenon after countless amounts experiments. His findings on how electricity is generated have helped electricians today discover new ways of conserving energy. The Stamp Act of 1765 was a new tax that was imposed on all Americans and required them to pay tax on every single piece of paper that was printed. Many colonists were against this act because they thought it was not necessary and it was ridiculous. People thought that it was unconstitutional to be taxed on something without their consent. I have learned about the Stamp Act but I didn’t know that people specifically blamed Franklin for bringing up the idea of the taxing on printed-paper. Gender roles were important during the 18th century because that was the time when the roles of women began to increase. Women began to fight for their right to be able to do what men were able to do and to be able to speak out on their thoughts. Men were portrayed as the ones who do all the business work while the women had to stay at home and care for the family. There was slavery still happening during the 18th century where Africans were sold into slavery because of a cr...

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...zation,” Wood meant that Benjamin Franklin helped America become a united country with all of his work he has done for the country. With his determination in making the country better, he was also bettering himself in the process. I think if he was not as determined and driven, he would have probably just worked as a candle maker like his father or hold another job that other colonist had. Benjamin Franklin will always be an important icon in America’s history and more people should read more about his life.

Benjamin Franklin was a very successful man who wanted to better his country that he loved and always cared for others before himself. The history of Franklin will continue to grow because it is important for everyone to know how our country became what it is today. If it weren’t for Benjamin Franklin’s hard work, America would not be what it is today.