《美国文学教学课件》The Autobiography （Excerpt）.pptVIP

Some comments: The fifth reason is not a reason in itself. Its function here is to serve as a kind of “antidote” to the self-complacent style in the previous part, which may make the author vulnerable to possible attack or criticisms when the occasion should arise, since the best maneuver in defending oneself against any assault launched by pen and ink is more often than not to keep oneself low, and hide behind the strong trench of self-mocking humor. And now I speak of thanking God, I desire, with all humility, to acknowledge that I attribute the mentioned happiness of my past life to His divine providence, which led me to the means I used, and gave the success. My belief of this induces me to hope, though I must not presume, that the same goodness will still be exercised towards me in continuing that happiness, or enabling me to bear a fatal reverse, which I may experience as others have done; the complexion of my future fortune being known to Him only in whose power it is to bless us, even in our afflictions. The Synopsis Franklin nonetheless gave the work a structural unity, dividing it into three parts. The first Part portrays Franklin as a young man in Boston and Philadelphia. The first part of the manuscript was written in 1771 in Twyford, a village about fifty miles outside of London. Franklin composed it for the benefit of his son, William, who was governor ofNew Jersey at the time. The second part is the controversial “art of virtue” section. Part Two, the shorter section, was written almost thirteen years later when Franklin was living in France as a representative for the United States. Franklin devotes this part to his plan for self-improvement—moral perfection, as he calls it. The third part reveals how the adult Franklin uses his principles of conduct (as discussed in Parts One and Two) in order to perform his roles as a scientist, phi`lanthropist and a politician. The final sections were written in Philadelphia in 1788 and during the winter of 178