Question 1
The youngest children in any family often have to go an extra mile to compete with their elder siblings since they are more mature and experienced at most things. Benjamin Franklin was the not any exception; he was the youngest son in the family. Therefore, he always tried to stand out from the rest of the siblings.
Firstly, Benjamin Franklin was more eager to read and learn compared to his brothers. He started reading at a very age. As he says “my early readiness in learning to read (which must have been very early, as I do not remember when I could not read) ” . Consequently, his father saw scholarly potential in him and decided to dedicate to the church where he could learn and read after being encouraged by his friends and his brother. At school, Benjamin Franklin also outperformed his peers and progressed through the classes rapidly. He completed most classes ahead of the scheduled time. At the age of ten, he had learnt to write very well before he left to assist his father in his business.
Secondly, being the youngest son, Benjamin, had to stay and assist his father in his business as all his elder brother had moved out. However, Benjamin did not like the business. He had a liking for the sea and went at great length to learn the skills needed for the sea to try and convince his father to allow him to pursue a profession that will allow him at the sea. He learnt how to swim and manage boats. Benjamin Franklin says that when he was in a canoe or a boat with his peers, he would be in charge and he would take the lead in solving any difficulties that may arise in the sea.
Lastly, Benjamin Franklin developed personal ideologies based on the ideas that he read from books that made him stand out from his peers. When he was 16 years old, he decided to become a vegetarian after reading a book Tryon. He even went ahead to learn how to cook various vegetarian dishes that were described by Tryon in his book. He was the only vegetarian in the family and they always made fun of him.
The position of Benjamin in his family shaped his life in various ways. Firstly, he developed a love for reading and writing at a young age. The fact that he was exposed to formal education at an early age and he was able to write by the time he was 10 years made shaped much of his latter impact in life. It shaped the way he wrote and his perceptions later on in life. The fact that he was the youngest and he had to assist his father at his business also meant that he could not go to the sea as he preferred. His elder brother already went to the sea and his father become more eager not to allow anybody else to follow in his footsteps. If Benjamin had gone to pursue a career at the sea, he probably would not have shaped history the way he did.
Question 2
One of the characteristics of great leaders is selflessness. They always look out to providing service to other people. It is that trait that drives them to leadership as they want to make the living conditions of other people that it is. They are eager to see change. Benjamin Franklin loved being of service to other people which partly explain why he portrayed selfless leadership. There are examples in the life of Benjamin that we can see his selfless devotion at helping other people in society.
Firstly, when Benjamin was young he mastered the skills of how to handle boats and canoes better than his friends. Therefore, whenever he was on a boat with his peers, he assumed responsibility to ensure the safety of everyone in the boat. In case of any difficultly, he took it upon himself to solve it. Although he was not tasked with the duty of taking charge, he took it upon himself to be of service to his peers.
Secondly, Benjamin was also generous with his friends. He would host his friends at his expense even at times when he had little or no money to sustain himself. At one point, one of his friends, Collins, was unemployed and was looking for a job in Philadelphia. Benjamin hosted him at his expense since he did not have any money. He even borrowed him money which belonged to someone else promising to pay in the future. Benjamin knew very well that he had little chances of recovering the money since Collins had no success in the application he made. However, he went ahead to loan him money on several occasions. However, they later disagreed with Collins because of his excessive drinking habits. In fact, the disagreements often arose because Benjamin tried to dissuade him from drinking because he was mindful of his friend’s wellbeing.
Benjamin was always eager to teach his friends something that they did not know. Benjamin also took his own time to teach some of his friends. For instance, he taught Wygate and one of his friends how to swim at a river when they went to the river occasionally. The two friends learnt to swim and become great swimmers. It was not his responsibility to teach they to swim. However, he took pride in teaching and making them great swimmers.
Works Cited
Franklin, Benjamin. The Autobiogrpahy of Benjamin Franklin. 1973. Print.
