Benjamin Franklin & # 8217 ; s Autobiography: The Role Of Keimer Essay, Research Paper

In Benjamin Franklin? s Autobiography, Samuel Keimer is a character who represents the antithesis of Franklin. The development of Keimer non merely improves the reader? s apprehension of the minor character, but besides of Franklin, the major character. Franklin makes a point of demoing the reader each of Keimer? s mistakes and contrasting them with his ain virtues.

When Keimer is foremost introduced to the reader, he is in really much the same fortunes as Franklin ; they are two immature work forces seeking to do a fresh start in a new town, the lone difference being Keimer? s economic, and thereby societal, advantage. In comparing to Franklin, nevertheless, Keimer is a blemished and immoral adult male ; this difference is what makes him the ideal theoretical account for Franklin to size up. As Benjamin Franklin systematically moves up the societal and economic ladders, more than exceling Keimer? s accomplishments, Keimer rapidly falls into poorness and loses everything. “ With the remainder I ( Benjamin Franklin ) began to populate really pleasantly ; for they all respected me, the more as they found Keimer incapable of teaching them, and that from me they learned something daily. “ 1 Franklin goes into great item to learn the reader how one should populate one? s life in order to avoid the same destiny as Keimer. In Franklin? s sentiment, many factors attribute to his rise to glorification and Keimer? s autumn to shame ; these elements help to supply the foundation for some of Benjamin Franklin? s 13 virtuousnesss. The virtuousnesss are designed to demo how a individual can take a morally unflawed life, which is why the morally corrupt Keimer is the perfect counter-example for Franklin.

The first of these virtuousnesss is Temperance. The sum of Keimer? s moderation can be summed up in the undermentioned quotation mark: “ He was normally a great Glutton ” ( BFA 29 ) ; he is unable to last through the ordeal of abstaining from meat and finally orders and chows an full joint hog before his invitees can get. This scenario besides shows an illustration of Keimer? s lacking of the 4th virtuousness, Resolution, and of the 9th virtuousness, Moderation. The deficiency of Resolution can be named as one of the chief causes of Keimer? s ruin in society ; Franklin points out that it is virtually impossible to achieve economic success without thrust and doggedness. Franklin, nevertheless, chows and drinks small and frequently goes on vegetarian diets ; he has been quoted as stating, “ Eat to populate, and non unrecorded to eat. “ 2 Besides, when Franklin resolves to make something, he ever follows up and does it, including his declarations to get down his ain printing house, to go a morally perfect individual, and to rectify his misprint.

The 2nd virtuousness is Silence ; Franklin has many chances to talk libelously against others, particularly against Keimer, but frequently chooses non to, except against certain political issues published anonymously. Keimer chooses to utilize the scene outside of the courthouse as a medium to stress his superior place in their relationship ; it is Keimer? s complete neglect for this value that leads to Franklin? s surrender. Keimer besides has problem with the 3rd of Franklin? s virtuousnesss, Order, as Hugh Meredith reminds Franklin “ that Keimer was in debt for all he possess? vitamin D, that his Creditors began to be uneasy, that he kept his Shop miserably, sold frequently without Profit for ready Money, and frequently trusted without maintaining Account. That he must therefor

vitamin E fail ” ( BFA 44 ) .

The 6th virtuousness, Industry, is of enormous importance to Franklin? s success ; he states repeatedly that clip should ne’er be wasted: “ I ne’er went out a-fishing or shot ” ( BFA 54 ) . Franklin is credited with many quotation marks refering lost clip including “ Lost clip is ne’er found once more ” ( BFQ 310 ) and “ Time is money ” ( BFQ 310 ) . Keimer, even though he is in enormous debt at one point, takes both Saturday and Sunday off from work at a clip when the six-day workweek is standard pattern. Besides, as he is disconnected from the inner-workings of the printing house, Keimer is unable to maintain his underpaid, unmotivated staff working diligently. Franklin comments that portion of his occupation is to “ set his Printing-House in Order, which had been in great Confusion, and brought his Handss by grades to mind their Business and to make it better ” ( BFA 42 ) . An illustration of Franklin? s sentiment of one of Keimer? s workers is that he is “ idle, thoughtless and imprudent to the last Degree & # 8221 ; ( BFA 43 ) . Merely the short clip that Ben Franklin works for Keimer is the printing house well run. Finally, Keimer has a job with the ten percent virtuousness, Cleanliness, as he is described by Franklin as “ slovenly to extreme uncleanness ” ( BFA 45 ) . Franklin, nevertheless, takes pride in his visual aspect as shown by his embarrassment of his “ awkward pathetic Appearance ” ( BFA 20 ) on his original reaching in Philadelphia. Ben besides takes the clip to note on his frock when returning to Boston: “ I was better frock? vitamin D than of all time while in [ Keimer? s ] Service, holding a civilized new Suit from Head to pes ” ( BFA 24 ) . The deficiency of these seven virtuousnesss? Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Industry, Moderation, and Cleanliness? helps to convey about Keimer? s failure and forces him to sell the printing-house and travel off.

Franklin uses the illustration of Keimer to supply grounds for some of his other theories as good. Soon after Keimer employs Franklin, Ben makes a measure towards turn outing that cognition is power when the Governor of the Province, impressed with Franklin? s missive to Ben? s brother-in-law, becomes an familiarity of his. Though at the clip Keimer is the maestro, Franklin? s mind and instruction aid him to achieve a societal measure up on Keimer. At one point in his autobiography, Franklin gives the reader a lesson on the value of rhetoric and the usage of the Socratic Method. Franklin so uses the illustration of Keimer and their frequent arguments to demo how, by utilizing the Socratic Method, he is able to wholly confuse Keimer to the point that Keimer becomes “ laughably cautious, and would barely reply me the most common Question, without inquiring foremost, What make you mean to deduce from that? ” ( BFA 28 ) .

Franklin attributes Keimer? s failure to all of these features, and attributes his ain successes to the opposite traits. Keimer is a function theoretical account for Franklin, and for the reader, of what non to go. As Franklin is reminded, “ Keimer was in debt for all he possess? vitamin D, that his Creditors began to be uneasy, that he kept his Shop miserably, sold frequently without Profit for ready Money, and frequently trusted without maintaining Account. That he must therefore fail ; which would do a Vacancy I might gain of ” ( BFA 44 ) . Therefore Keimer, though a minor character, is of great importance to the reader, for without him, Franklin would non acquire his points of morality across as clearly or as exactly.