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Aaron Burr
Benjamin Franklin was the oldest member of the Founding Fathers. Aside from serving as a politician, Franklin was also an author, publisher, scientist, and activist. In the period that the book covers, Franklin was already old and frail. He mainly appears through his involvement with the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, which delivered a petition to Congress calling for the immediate abolition of slavery. The fact that Franklin signed the petition gave it significantly more authority than it otherwise would have had. He died in 1790.
Benjamin Franklin Quotes in Founding Brothers
The Founding Brothers quotes below are all either spoken by Benjamin Franklin or refer to Benjamin Franklin. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
What Voltaire was to France, Franklin was to America, the symbol of mankind’s triumphal arrival at modernity. When the two great philosopher-kings embraced amid the assembled throngs of Paris, the scene created a sensation, as if the gods had landed on earth and declared the dawning of the Enlightenment. The greatest American scientist, the most deft diplomat, the most accomplished prose stylist, the sharpest wit, Franklin defied all the categories by inhabiting them all with such distinction and nonchalant grace.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Founding Brothers LitChart as a printable PDF.
Benjamin Franklin Quotes in Founding Brothers
The Founding Brothers quotes below are all either spoken by Benjamin Franklin or refer to Benjamin Franklin. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
What Voltaire was to France, Franklin was to America, the symbol of mankind’s triumphal arrival at modernity. When the two great philosopher-kings embraced amid the assembled throngs of Paris, the scene created a sensation, as if the gods had landed on earth and declared the dawning of the Enlightenment. The greatest American scientist, the most deft diplomat, the most accomplished prose stylist, the sharpest wit, Franklin defied all the categories by inhabiting them all with such distinction and nonchalant grace.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
