Morality: it is a term that is questioned at every corner of every day. The moral idea ranges from something small such as helping an old women cross the street, to the extreme such as the recent actions taken by politicians to limit public union rights in Wisconsin. Dictating the difference between right and wrong has been an issue that dates to the times before Christ, where the idea of moral perfection was used to determine one’s right of passage into heaven. It was not until Benjamin Franklin, who published a guide within of his autobiography, describing thirteen steps to achieving moral perfection. Franklin used these morality milestones to thrive in living a successful life and eventually become one of the founding fathers of the United States.
Great leaders have different characters that are expected from them beyond the average person. One such instance is the ability to admit ones faults when and before they come into context. Franklin’s selected virtues allowed him to see his own faults; in result he seemed rather surprised about the extent of his flaws. This process had become quite the burden to him. As a result, his revolutions through the cycle slowed from several times a year to once a year, down to once every few years, and eventually stopped. The fact that one of the greatest people in American history could not achieve “moral perfection”, raises the question, is accomplishing such a high goal actually possible? Although on the contrary, attempting to be perfect pushed him to be a better person in and outside of the public eye. Benjamin Franklin’s journey starts out with the Temperance moral quality.
Alcohol Awareness, also known as temperance, has been an issue that dates back throughout American ...
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...lity, Franklin found his conversations to be more peaceful, and had the ability to wage peaceful, yet powerful debates in front of company.
Often it has been assumed that moral perfections are in fact morally impossible, but there was one guy in history who thought otherwise. Benjamin Franklin may not have been successful in becoming perfect himself, but he has inspired millions of people around the world; United States presidents, such as Grant, Lincoln, Nixon, and of course George Washington, are judged based on his virtues; books are still being written on how to achieve the perfect equilibrium between the moral virtues and moral actions being placed into effect in today’s society. So even if Franklin was unable to reach moral perfection, he was still able to inspire millions and made himself better because of it, and in result is known as a founding father.
Gordon S. Wood delves into Benjamin Franklin’s philosophical, political, and personal legacies in the biography, The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin. The book travels through Franklin’s experiments, his travels in Europe, and his role in the American revolution. The book begins when Franklin retires from business and becomes a gentleman. It was when he became a gentleman, it allowed him to analyze the world around him. “Indeed, he could not drink a cup of tea without wondering why the tea leaves at the bottom gathered in way rather than another,” a quote from Edmund S. Morgan’s book, Benjamin Franklin. Franklin spent a great deal of time in Britain before returning to America. When he returned, he threw himself into the American revolution, which sent him to France. After he accomplished his duties in France, he returned back home to America where he ran for public office.
Prohibition not only failed in its promise to curb the social problem created by alcohol. It actually promoted s...
Franklin was remembered for stating "the longer I live, the more convincing proof I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men." Franklin 's ideas that contributed to the Enlightenment is found in his Autobiography. His idea of a perfect person has 13 virtues and claims that a practical and scientific man is based on combining their values and economic values. Franklin preferred voluntarily societies over government control, all his thoughts can lead back to free opinion. In his, Almanac is reflected on his scientific interests and was popular within the
Benjamin Franklin and Henry David Thoreau have been thought of as two powerful philosophers in history. Both men were alive centuries ago, but their unique ways of life and ideas still exist in some of history’s most admirable figures. Each man had a judgment that went beyond the era they existed in, but is still obvious in today’s culture. Even though both men are credited for their wise principles, their beliefs do not always coincide with one another. However, one thing they do have in common is that they both revolutionized America through their thoughts, actions, and distinctive opinions on how to improve the world around them.
Alcohol Prohibition was supposed to improve the country’s social problems but it only led to the rise of powerful criminals. Prohibition was the first of the many culture wars that would divide the United States in the twentieth century. For centuries alcohol has been part of the American life; the prevalence of alcohol in daily life was plainly visible. According to Lerner, “the Americans can fix nothing, without a drink. If you meet, you drink; if you part, you drink; if you make acquaintance, you drink … you start it early in life, and you continue it, until you soon drop into the grave” (1). As the consumption rate of distilled spirits increased, American’s love for drinks caused problems: domestic violence, crime, neglected families, economic ruin, disease, and death. It was these combined effects that led reformers to warn against alcohol. Waves of temperance reformers, and temperance groups like the Washingtonians had tried to change drinkers through voluntary abstinence, but those who believed that moral courage and personal resolve could conquer alcoholism were quickly disappointed (Lerner 2).
Benjamin Franklin was a very prominent figure in shaping our nation. Many people look at him as a role model or just as an amazing individual. He had his faults just like every human being had, and he shouldn’t be discredited because of a few minor glitches to his character. As being the only person that had signed The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and the Treaty of Paris, this immediately separates him from all others. One of the things that he wrote about in Benjamin Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings, was trying to be the ideal person, and even made a list of virtues to live by. His virtues were very important to his lifestyle, and he followed them to a great extent.
Our world is filled with many successful leaders. The gift of being a leader can be learned; however some individuals have a natural born talent to be a leader. Each leader has his or her own unique leadership style. The gift of being a leader can be learned. Certain individuals are born with a charismatic style and can easily be a leader. A successful leader is one who can inspire and motivate people towards a goal. Martin Luther King Jr. was an individual with a born gift to lead people. The following paper will discuss how Martin Luther King Jr. was able to inspire and motivate people with his effective leadership style.
Many Americans, religious leaders, and political leaders saw alcohol as the key to all that was evil, a curse on the nation. Significant numbers of people believed that the consumption of alcoholic beverages presented a serious threat to the integrity of their most vital foundations, especially the family (“Prohibition” 846).
Continuing on, Lincoln was unobtrusive. Despite what might be expected, he was wildly yearning and strived to increase open office. The object of his desire was never to win praise for himself or to appreciate the trappings of office. It has been just to advance people positively, as well as can be
America's earliest colonists believed liquor was a “good gift of nature” (Prohibition). Rum was usually present at community gatherings. Even so, it was considered a sin to drink more alcohol than necessary. Unfortunately more and more people began to misuse rum, and campaigns sprang up to stop this misuse. One of the earliest recorded temperance newspapers came out in 1840. This newspaper, called the Wisconsin Temperance Journal, contained a pledge which readers would take before continuing. The pledge reads, “We, the undersigned, do agree, that we will not use intoxicating liquors as a beverage, nor traffic in them--that we will not provide them as an article of entertainment, or for persons in our employment--and that, in all suitable ways we will discountenance their use throughout community.” (Wisconsin Temperance Journal). These campaigns to stop people from drinking were called temperance movements. It was these movements that ultimately led to the theory of National Prohibition.
In conclusion, we can assert that the paths to aristocracy of the two leaders as we have seen were an uphill task. These paths are in one way or another similar with Franklin pioneering and Douglas following after his steps. It is also evident that Douglas through his actions fighting against slavery came to be regarded as a representative man. This owes to the fact that he not only represented slaves in America but in the entire world. The lives of Fredrick Douglas and Benjamin Franklin are indeed worth examining.
James Rachels expresses his thoughts on what a satisfactory moral theory would be like. Rachels says a “satisfactory theory would be realistic about where human beings fit in the grand scheme of things” (Rachels, 173). Even though there is an existing theory on how humans came into this world there is not enough evidence to prove the theory to be correct. In addition to his belief of knowing how our existence came into play, he also has a view on the way we treat people and the consequences of our actions. My idea of a satisfactory moral theory would be treating people the way we wish to be treated, thinking of what results from our doings, as well as living according to the best plan.
Fairy tales portray wonderful, elaborate, and colorful worlds as well as chilling, frightening, dark worlds in which ugly beasts are transformed into princes and evil persons are turned to stones and good persons back to flesh (Guroian). Fairytales have long been a part of our world and have taken several forms ranging from simple bedtime stories to intricate plays, musicals, and movies. However, these seemingly simple stories are about much more than pixie dust and poisoned apples. One could compare fairytales to the new Chef Boyardee; Chef Boyardee hides vegetables in its ravioli while fairytales hide society’s morals and many life lessons in these outwardly simple children stories. Because of this fairytales have long been instruments used to instruct children on the morals of their culture. They use stories to teach children that the rude and cruel do not succeed in life in the long run. They teach children that they should strive to be kind, caring, and giving like the longsuffering protagonists of the fairytale stories. Also, they teach that good does ultimately defeat evil. Fairy tales are not just simple bedtime stories; they have long been introducing cultural moral values into young children.
Prohibition had become an issue long before its eventual induction as the 18th amendment in 1920. Organizations came about for the sole purpose of an alcohol free America. In 1833, an estimated one million Americans belonged to some type of temperance association (Behr 12). Many believed the absence of alcohol would help the poor as well as big business. Lower class people would put more money into savings accounts and productivity would increase among workers (Hanson 27). More importantly the “noble experiment”—was undertaken to reduce crime and corruption, solve social problems, and improve the health and hygiene in America” (Thorton 1).
In the second paragraph, he questions that with an assembly of men, can a perfect production be expected to be made. Not being firm in his own opinion only combats the statements made about the faults. Readers would base their opinions off of his which may be misleading. Although he believes that the Constitution needs changes, he also presumes that it is at the highest state of perfection it will ever be able to achieve. Although, Ben Franklin wants people to see the faults through the exploitation of revealing the benefits of having the Constitution.