Choose either or both:
1. Analyse (close read) this passage, decomposing and relating its elements as best you can:
"Now imagining it may be equally agreeable to you to know the Circumstances of my Life, many of which you are yet unacquainted with; and expecting a Week’s uninterrupted Leisure in my present Country Retirement, I sit down to write them for you. To which I have besides some other Inducements. Having emerg'd from the Poverty and Obscurity in which I was born and bred, to a State of Affluence and some Degree of Reputation in the World, and having gone so far thro' Life with a considerable Share of Felicity, the conducing Means I made use of, which, with the Blessing of God, so well succeeded, my Posterity may like to know, as they may find some of them suitable to their own Situations, and therefore fit to be imitated. That Felicity, when I reflected on it, has induc'd me sometimes to say, that were it offer'd to my Choice, I should have no Objection to a Repetition of the same Life from its Beginning, only asking the Advantage Authors have in a second Edition to correct some Faults of the first. So would I if I might, besides corr[ectin]g the Faults, change some sinister Accidents and Events of it for others more favourable, but tho' this were deny'd, I should still accept the Offer."
2. In what ways is Ben Franklin's "coming of age" relatable to what you have read so far in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?
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2. Some similarities can be found between the coming of age of Huck Finn and Benjamin Franklin based on his Autobiography. Both find themselves with a desire for freedom and autonomy at a young age. Franklin recounts being brought up in “poverty and obscurity,” but describes his relationship to his father and brother, aside from some indifferences, in a mostly positive manner. Similar in the poor upbringing and attitude, Huck Finn recognizes the good caring nature of the Widow Douglas, but still feels “cramped up” and lonely in her house, yearning freedom and new experiences. Following this desire for independence, Franklin describes his secret running away from home: “in three days I found myself in New York near 30 Miles from home, a boy of but 17, without the least Recommendation to or Knowledge of any Person in the Place, and with very little Money in my Pocket.” Huck Finn straightforwardly expresses his wish to run away from home saying that [all he] wanted was to go somewheres; all [he] wanted was a change.” Another similarity is an exploration of morals, in particular connected to “foolish” behaviour with friends. Franklin retails a story of one of his “Scrapes,” leading other boys to stealing stones from a construction site, which can be compared to Huck Finn’s trouble making with Tom Swayer and the band of robbers. Franklin describes being lectured about dishonesty by his father, and recounts several other situations where he questions morality and ethical behaviour: “and this, I reckon one of the first Errata of my life;” “It was about this time that I conceiv’d the bold and arduous Project of arriving at moral Perfection.” From Huck Finn’s storytelling, especially when recounting his actions with Tom Swayer, considerations about ethics and values can be derived as well. Next to the exploration of morality, a questioning of religion is also evident in both texts, with Franklin stating “my indiscreet disputations about Religion began to make me pointed at with Horror by good People,” and Huck Finn questioning the Widow’s perspectives of “the good place.” In conclusion, the most striking similarity that can be drawn between Franklin’s autobiography and the first two chapters of Huckleberry Finn is the wish for freedom, and an escape from control and demand, or from being “civilized” in a certain way.
2 - Benjamin Franklin’s “Autobiography” and Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” share resemblances which tighten the connection between both pieces, especially taking in consideration specific key traits from the “coming of age”genre — in essence, a narrative focused on the growth of a character (although Franklin was a real life figure), his identity, etc. From instance, the most obvious mark is the use of the 1st person P.O.V, nonetheless very important, since its tone gives out clues about the character in question. From what I’ve read so far, Finn’s and Franklin’s most striking similarity relies on the fact that both experienced a struggling upbringing and lacked economic resources; Benjamin Franklin “emerg'd from the Poverty and Obscurity in which [he] was born and bred, to a State of Affluence and some Degree of Reputation in the World”, meanwhile Pap, Huck’s father, encourages his son to quit school and asks him for money to “get some whiskey” downtown. From what I’ve read so far, I speculate Finn might overcome this situation thoroughly his adventures on the river with Jim, through a more… hands on approach, in contrast with Franklin.
1.
By analyzing this passage closely, I could see the author's invitation to his autobiography as a reflection of his motivations and experiences. As I went through, I was able to decompose the text into several parts and topics. At the beginning of this passage ("Now imagining it may be equally agreeable to you to know the Circumstances of my Life, many of which you are yet unacquainted with...") we see Franklin's statement assuming that the reader might be interested in knowing more about his life events. Next, when he says: "...expecting a Week’s uninterrupted Leisure in my present Country Retirement, I sit down to write them for you.". He gives the reader the context and why he decided to write on that current occasion. And finally: "To which I have besides some other Inducements". This might mean that his environment (the countryside) could be inspiring him to write such work. Later on, I could say that this might be the key sentence to the whole author's autobiography and a summary of his journey, which is "Having emerg'd from the Poverty and Obscurity in which I was born and bred, to a State of Affluence and some Degree of Reputation in the World...". This shows the transformation he could reach through his efforts in life, from an unknown boy to a successful and well-recognized man. Next, in this part: "...and having gone so far thro' Life with a considerable Share of Felicity, the conducing Means I made use of, which, with the Blessing of God, so well succeeded, my Posterity may like to know...", we see that the author was able to reach a reasonable amount of happiness and delight in his life through his personal and professional growth, adding the divine help in his journey and life achievements. We notice he would like to share it with his "Posterity", meaning the generations to come. Franklin also says next, "...as they may find some of them suitable for their own Situations, and therefore fit to be imitated", this emphasizes his desire to be an inspiration to the reader and an example to be followed, a legacy. "That Felicity, when I reflected on it, has induc'd me sometimes to say, that were it offer'd to my Choice, I should have no Objection to a Repetition of the same Life from its Beginning..." When we reflect on this phrase in the passage we face the author's philosophy of life, which could be living with no regrets, showing that if he had to live that life again he would. By this, he is appealing to the reader to have satisfaction ("Felicity") in life decisions, despite all adversities that might come along the way. Last but not least, we have this final statement "...only asking the Advantage Authors have in a second Edition to correct some Faults of the first. So would if I might, besides correcting the Faults, change some sinister Accidents and Events of it for others more favorable, but tho' this were deny'd, I should still accept the Offer." In this last phrase, we notice the metaphor of "second edition" which could mean the human's desire to improve and to turn themselves into a new person, erasing any past errors, as they do in second-edition books. Then he recognizes that, in fact, there are some mistakes in his life ("sinister Accidents and Events) that he would like to erase. However, he states, contrary to what is done with the books that contain errors, it is not possible to do that with life events; therefore he denies that possibility by accepting all imperfections and by living with satisfaction. With that said, I conclude that this passage has a strong statement about the author's view of life and the real message he wants to pass to the reader with his autobiography. He doesn't want to write about himself and his life to show his superiority or feed his pride. In fact, he seems very humble through his text. I can tell he only means to leave a legacy and a lesson to those who want to follow his steps.
Ana Beatriz Gonçalves
Cecília Vaz F. Marques, Prompt 2-
Benjamin Franklin's description of his adventure with "the Boys" in his childhood, building the little wharf and then being scolded by his father (p.17) could very well have happened in Huckleberry Finn's novel. Despite this similar youthful eagerness for adventures, Benjamin Franklin, even as a child, was particularly fond of reading “[...] I read, and have since often regretted, that at a time when I had such a Thirst for Knowledge, more proper Books had not fallen in my way[...]” (p.18). By contrast, Huckleberry Finn, in the first chapter of the novel, seems to be barely able to contain himself, he fidgets in his chair, anxiously waiting for his alphabetization lesson to end.
Besides, it might also be worthwhile to take into account the common features in the structures, for instance, an autodiegetic narrator and an implied reader are present in both the autobiography and in the novel. Since Benjamin Franklin was writing a recollection of his life in a letter for his son, the latter could be considered the implied reader to which the retelling is addressed. Meanwhile, Huckleberry Finn, in his own quite peculiar way, attempts to befriend the implied readers of the book, directly making conversation with statements such as “You don’t know about me,[...] ” from the very first sentence of the novel.
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Cecília Vaz
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