"Autobiography" Part I

Upon reading Franklin's "Autobiography," I found that one centralized topic of Part I, was the creation of the "American dream." Franklin never refers to his hard work and continuous search for happiness as the "American dream;" however, he describes everything we have presently come to know as such. Throughout this section of "Autobiography," Franklin continuously informs his son of his hard work, acquired skills, sacrifices to achieve his goals, and, most importantly, self improvement. It is clear what a hardworking youth, and man, Benjamin Franklin was. He tells his son of his first jobs with his father and brother and then with other publishing companies and literary businesses. At the young age of twelve, Franklin even signed an eight year contract to work for his brother. During this time, it is also evident that he traveled around quite a bit while pursuing his dream. From Philadelphia, to London, to New York, and everywhere in between, Franklin moved in hopes of finding steady and secure employment within the literary industry.
What intrigued me most about Mr. Franklin was his undauntable nature. He experienced numerous disappointments and false information; nonetheless, he continued in the pursuit of his goal. It is mentioned how he was supposed to be able to find a job with Bradford in Philadelphia; yet, when he reaches the Pennsylvania city, there is no job available. Whereas I would have been extremely discouraged by this, Franklin simply moves on until he crosses paths with Governor Keith who initially proves to be promising. However, Keith is just another let down for Franklin when he doesn't write a letter of recommendation as he had promised. Franklin continues to push forward.
Another key element of the first part of "Autobiography" was his dedication to bettering his skill and his continued dedication to self improvement. This appears to be a theme that will continue throughout the remainder of Franklin's piece. The American dream consists of equal opportunities at work, at home, and throughout the community, and such ideals are laced with the notion that achieving such will take hard work and dedication. Franklin refuses to be deterred by any "road blocks" and the audience is led to believe that he eventually achieves the "American Dream." In the first paragraph, he tells his son that he led a good life with minimal things that he would change, and this obviously implies that he was very pleased with what he had gained.

Query 11 -- Notes on the State of Virginia

Upon reading Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia, I was most intrigued by his Query 11 regarding the Native Americans. From the beginning of this selection, he makes it quite evident that he holds Native Americans in a higher regard than others such as Byrd. Byrd doesn't necessarily speak harshly of the Indians; however, he takes it upon himself to mock them and attempt to change, or "Americanize" them. On the other hand, I was under the impression that Jefferson didn't form an opinion, at least from an author's stance, of the Natives. There are no harsh, or derogatory, words such as "heathen" within Jefferson's text; and, in his opening he even provides for the assumption of Indians being civilized individuals capable of alliances. From what I understand, it was a popular belief in Jefferson's day that Indians were solely war-faring savages. Jefferson contradicts this with his listing of various tribes and then mentioning their "amity with one another" (219). Not to be mistaken, he doesn't take a favorable tone in his writing; nonetheless, it is not commonly perceived that he begrudges the Native Americans.
When I reached page 220 I was initially confused, prior to being extremely intrigued. At this point, Jefferson refers to the warfare of tribes such as Monacans and the Powhatans. He also mentions their lack of "laws, coercive power, and any shadow of government," (220). He continued with his neutral tone, but I was left questioning this change of view. I contribute this to being part of his scheme to prove his ultimate point. "Imperfect as this species of coercion may seem, crimes are very rare among them: insomuch that were it made a question, whether no law, as among the savage Americans, or too much law, as among the civilized Europeans, submits man to the greatest evil," (220). Although this was a mere sentence in the entire Query, it spoke volumes. Jefferson possessed the gall to not only compare the Colonists to the Indians, but to go so far as to say that the Colonists faltered in light to their Native counterparts. Notes on the State of Virginia was originally written for a Frenchman inquiring about the colonies; and, I think it is a subtle, yet obvious, hint that "too much law" would do worse things to a society than a lack of law. With only this one sentence Jefferson manages to inform the Frenchman that even though they had no common language, no American mannerisms, and no laws or government, they still managed to control their peoples better than the European nations. I love Jefferson for this one point that he makes while chastising his own governing body.

Johnathon Edwards

This is actually my second time reading this particular sermon by Edwards, and, as with most second readings, I gained a lot more from it than I did the first time. One of the first things I noticed this second time around, is how Edwards, more or less, prefaces the text with a foreshadowing of what the sermon is going to be centered around. The first time I read "A Divine and Supernatural Light..." I did not connect Edwards' opening about Peter and his Godly favor with the achievement of the divine light. It all "clicked" this time around.
I am also one of high Christian faith so this was more than just an assigned reading. I am sad to say that when I first read this my Junior year of high school I made the mistake of approaching it as any text, and not a sermon that was preached. After reading it this time, I found a reading of the sermon on the internet and listened to it. It was amazing the difference it made and really opened my eyes to what a "poet" Edwards was. It is evident how intouch with his faith and with God he really was... a visionary, so to speak.
I also found Edwards "doctorine" to be effective because he speaks to his congregation as a well educated group of individuals. I percieved some of the earlier text of the period to be written by authors who seemed to consider their audience uneducated. He makes it very easy to follow, comprehend, and most importantly, adhere to, by aligning his sermon in step-by-step "instructions." Furthermore, quoting so many verses adds to the credibility of his sermon and his career. Overall, this sermon was amazing, from a Christian standpoint, as well as an educated individual's standpoint.

Hi Guys!

Hey Guys!
My name's Jennifer and I'm a Journalism / Mass Comm. major. I'm a freshman and so far I am loving it at UNC. I'm on a dance team here (Star Heels) and this will be my 16th year of dance. I'm also a part of the UNC Dance Marathon and other than that schoolwork keeps me pretty busy. I'm originally from Elizabeth City, NC, which is a small town in the (very) northeast corner of North Carolina... it's about three hours from here. I'll see all of you guys tomorrow =)