Franklin Remixed

Ben Behind Closed Doors

Wish not so much to live long as to live well.

- Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1738

Possibly one of the most famous Americans in history, Ben Franklin rocked the worlds of science and politics and changed the colonies with his experiments, innovations, thoughts and advances. But there was a very private side to Franklin, one that was not on display for the public to see. The “Private Ben” was a man of indulgences, self-satisfaction and judgments, both good and bad. Ben was a great man but he was not perfect.

Dialogue between the Gout and Mr. Franklin 

This is a screenshot of an animation illustrating a story Franklin wrote, and is part of the exhibt, “Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World.”. It demonstrates Benjamin Franklin’s knowledge of his own morals, virtues, and spoils. He was wise and knew what healthy foods to eat, yet he himself ate junk food and drank beer. Ben Franklin made a dialogue between himself and the Gout, a disease, in response to Madame Brillon’s poem, Le Sage et la Goutte. He came up with twelve virtues that he would live by, though he broke half of them! 12 Virtues: - temperance (self control) - silence - order - resolution (promise) - frugality (penny pinching) - industry (business) - sincerity (honesty) - justice - moderation (self-control) - cleanliness - peacefulness - faithfulness Illustrated: Ben Franklin talking to the Gout, which resembles him in dress. The Gout is a ghostly looking woman, maybe Madame Brillon.

-Sharell B

Chess set

Benjamin Franklin was an incredible chess player. He was so great a player that he was in the Chess World Hall of Fame. Ben believed that you should live your life like you would play a game of chess. That could be the reason he was so successful in life . He also believed that politics should be played like a game of chess.

Section VI with “Do You See Yourself in Franklin?” giant spectacles

Franklin improved this pair of glasses for his own personal convenience, which shows some of his character. If he didn’t like something, he would not just sit there: He’d do something about it! These glasses represent that there is a little bit of Franklin in everybody. When you walk in front of them, you can see a shadow of yourself in Ben’s glasses. The glasses are a special kind of glasses, called bifocals. That means that they have two different prescriptions in them: one, so the person wearing them can see far when he is looking up and close when he is looking down.

-Tyler A.

Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky

In this picture, we see Franklin depicted as practically a god, with a spark of electricity touching his hand. This was how the public saw Benjamin Franklin — as a brilliant man and revolutionary thinker. Many adored Franklin in his day, from the people of France to the people in the United States (though not the English!). The faults of Franklin are not as well known but not entirely forgotten.

-Veronica S

Autobiography (first English version)

The photograph of this artifact is the title page from the first English edition of Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography. Ben Franklin’s Autobiography is a way for his son and the general public to remember him and his roots. The Autobiography is where he shares his thoughts and beliefs about his family,travel, and jobs.

-Sharell B

Franklin at the Court of France

Franklin was like a celebrity in France, especially to the ladies, with whom he flirted shamelessly. Pictures, prints, busts, and even ceramic dolls in his image were extremely popular at the time. His wife Deborah was dead when he was in France, but she probably wouldn’t have minded that much even if she had been alive. After all, Ben had entered the marriage with one illegitimate son, William. Deborah produced a daughter, Sarah, for Ben, but his thoughts were usually elsewhere and with other women. For example, when he was 48, and still married, he met Catherine Ray, a high spirited 23 year old, and although there is no physical evidence as to an affair taking place, the two were very good friends.

-Veronica S