Sometimes A Spotted Axe is Best

Benjamin Franklin attempted perfection with his virtues, but found greater wisdom in the journey that all writers can appreciate.

At the golden age of 78 Benjamin Franklin wrote his autobiography and now we have a telling and honest look into the life of a statesman, a humorist and an all-around great American.

We know Ben Franklin from his amazing satire such as “The Speech of Penny Baker”, a critique of infidelity fines of his day, and other well known pieces such as “Poor Richard’s Almanac”, “Experiments and Observations on Electricity” and “Join, Or Die”. What most people don’t know is that he also wrote some quite controversial satire as well, namely his essay about foods consumed for their more aromatic after effects (“Fart Proudly”) or a letter he wrote to a young man entitled “Advice to a Young Man On Choosing a Mistress” (no really) in which he detailed eight reasons why elderly women were best for this choice.

He was indeed a colorful fellow.

Today’s writing lesson comes from the pages of the “Autobiography”, however. The passage itself isn’t about writing, but as a writer I take from it the wisdom it provides. The passage is found in the pages following Franklin’s description of his “virtues” which were thirteen morals by which a person could truly live a virtuous life. He created these virtues because…