STUDY QUESTIONS FOR BENJAMIN FRANKLIN:

1. Why is Ben Franklin considered the most important personality of the Age of Reason? 2. Discuss several permanent contri utions Franklin has made to American life! ranging from the practical to the ideological. ". #$plain %hy the eighteenth century %as called the Age of #$periment and consider the relevance of this term as a description of Franklin&s %riting. '. What is the (religion( Franklin (preaches( to his readers? )o% do you e$plain Franklin&s use of religious metaphors in his %riting? *. What is the significance of his choice to address the ook to his son? +. Discuss Franklin&s various practical attempts to alter his moral character? ,. -uggest the similarities and the differences et%een Franklin and his .uritan predecessors. /. Franklin often struggles to strike a alance et%een promoting humility and promoting his accomplishments. )o% successful is he in maintaining this alance? 0. Discuss his pro1ect for moral perfection? What is his motivation 2 religious or secular? )o% does he implement in practice the plan?

STUDY QUESTIONS FOR WASHINGTON IRVING:

1. Discuss 3rving&s use of the historical situation as the su 1ect of imaginative literature. 2. Where did (4he 5egend of -leepy )ollo%( first appear? ". What is the genre of the te$t? 6ompare the 7 literary sketch8 to a 7short story8. '. What main #uropean influences do you discover in the te$t? Discuss ho% they are incorporated and transformed in the story? *. Where does the legend come from originally? )o% is it changed y 3rving and %hy? +. Descri e the main conflict in the story? ,. What literary techni9ues does 3rving use to descri e the t%o main characters of 74he 5egend8 2 3cha od 6rane and his nemesis! Brom Bones? /. 6ompare the social frame 3rving sets around the t%o main characters %hen they are introduced in the story? 0. Who does 3cha od 6rane personify? 1:. ;n the asis of character description dra% a conclusion as to the author<s attitude to%ards 6rane. 11. What is the author<s attitude to%ards the Dutch? 12. #$plore the contrasting values the Dutch and 6rane represent.

1". What is the role of nature and its description in the story? 1'. What is the role of the supernatural in the story? Discuss the %ay the )eadless )orseman is presented in 3rving<s tale and in the )olly%ood version. #valuate the impact of these presentations on the story. 1*. )o% does the story address the American dream? 1+. 3s this a humorous story or a horror story? 6ompare the proportions of humor and terror in the story and the )olly%ood adaptation. 1,. 6ompare the story %hich appeared in 1/2: %ith the )olly%ood film adaptation y 4im Burton. 1/. 4here is a mystery left unsolved in the end of the story= %hat happened to 3cha od 6rane?

4he proportions of humor and terror in 3rving&s telling. 4he (5egend( has gained a reputation as a ghost story over the years! ut 3rving shaped it as a comic tale of self>delusion leading to its o%n do%nfall. Ask students to point out (the scary parts( of the story. )o% scary are they in 3rving&s hands? 4he prominence of the )eadless )orseman in the original story. )olly%ood has made this frightening apparition the signature image of the tale! yet 3rving presents him as a creature of hearsay and foolish superstition %ho remains indistinct even %hen he finally appears. Ask students to point out descriptions of the )eadless )orseman and evaluate his impact on the narrative. 4he underlying dynamics of 3rving&s plot. At its core! the (5egend( is a fa liau$>like tale of rival suitors! %ith a suggestion that their affections are eing manipulated y the lovely %hom they oth desire. And as in a fa liau$! appetite is the driving force ehind the plot! in this case the appetites of 3cha od 6rane >> for food! %ealth! admiration! and romance. Ask students to summari?e the story&s plot from this point of vie%! as a chain of events set in motion y the am itions of 3cha od 6rane. 4hen e$amine the part suspense plays in the narrative. 4o %hat e$tent does this indispensa le ingredient for a mystery advance the plot?

4he t%o main characters of (4he 5egend of -leepy )ollo%!( 3cha od 6rane and his nemesis! Brom Bones! are often assumed to e figures of American folklore! although they are in fact 3rving&s original creations. )ave students e$amine the techni9ues 3rving uses to create the impression that these characters have a life of their o%n outside his story.

6ompare 3rving&s descriptions of the t%o characters& physical appearance @6rane in paragraph /! Brom Bones in paragraph 2+A. 6all students& attention to the %ay 3rving assem les a picture of 3cha od 6rane out of separate elements! enhancing his ungainliness! %hile he presents Brom Bones in roader strokes! conveying an impression of energy and strength. Ask students to illustrate these passages to help them analy?e 3rving&s literary techni9ue! %hich produces a sharply dra%n portrait on the one hand and a catalog of personal 9ualities on the other. 6ompare the social frame 3rving sets around his t%o main characters %hen they are introduced into the story. We see 3cha od 6rane lording it over his pupils! accommodating the rustic families that take him in! sho%ing off his singing talents and education for impressiona le ladies! and trading superstitious tales %ith the local gossips @paragraphs 0>10A. By contrast! Brom Bones comes into the story as the chief candidate for Batrina&s love! the dominating figure in the community! and the leader of a pack of fun>loving friends @paragraph 2+A. Ask students ho% these associations play on our pre1udices and color our opinions a out the t%o characters.

#$plore the contrasting values these t%o characters represent. -tudents might recogni?e them as those arch>rivals of youth culture! the nerd and the 1ock! ut 3cha od and Brom can also e interpreted in terms of city culture and country life! the virtues of art and the vitality of nature! imagination and reality! %ish and %ill! rains and ra%n! or the outsider and the native son. )ave students generate further points of contrast et%een these t%o characters in order to see ho% 3rving has set them up as almost archetypal opposites across a range of value systems. Finally! e$plore the students& response to these t%o characters. .oint out that to some degree (4he 5egend of -leepy )ollo%( is the story of an underdog %ho goes up against the local hero. Do %e pull for the underdog in this contest or en1oy the spectacle of his defeat? Do %e side %ith the local hero or find ourselves dra%n to the comical figure %ho %ill e his victim? 4alk a out the %ays 3rving manipulates our sympathies in his story! shading from ridicule of 3cha od to%ard a more affectionate point of vie% y letting us see more and more of the story through his eyes @for e$ample! in paragraph 22! paragraphs "/ and *+! and at the story&s clima$ in paragraphs +1>+*A. 3rving ends (4he 5egend of -leepy )ollo%( %ith an air of mystery! leaving us to %onder if the )eadless )orseman really did carry a%ay 3cha od 6rane. Fe% students! ho%ever! %ill dou t that the )eadless )orseman %as Brom Bones in disguise! and might consider 3rving&s conclusion an e$ercise in empty atmospherics. Cet there is a real mystery left unsolved at the end of the story= What happened to 3cha od 6rane?

Ben1amin Franklin %as one of the Founding Fathers of the Dnited -tates. )e is often thought of as the revolutionary figure %ho led protests against the -tamp Act! helped draft the Declaration of 3ndependence! coordinated the peace treaty ending the American Revolution! and co>%rote and signed the D.-. 6onstitution. 3t is ironic! ho%ever! that Franklin is remem ered more as the civic figure>>the man on the E1:: ill>>than as the man %ho invented the stove or the man %ho formulated his o%n theories a out lightning and electricity. 4he irony stems from the fact that Franklin often thought of himself as more of a scientist than a political thinker. 4his self>identification comes through in the Auto iography! %hich does not discuss the Revolution in any capacity and hardly even refers to events after 1,*,. 3ndeed! in the Auto iography! %e get a full picture of Franklin as the Renaissance scholar! fascinated y all types of learning and interested in doing %hatever he could to make life a little it etter for mankind! ased on the notion that the %ay to please Fod %as y doing good to other men. 4his interest manifested itself in pu lic service and scientific progress. 4he pu lication of the Auto iography is an interesting story into itself. Franklin actually stated several times that he did not %ish the %ork to e made totally pu lic. )o%ever! ased on the num er of manuscripts sent out to his various friends efore his death! it is very difficult to elieve that Franklin died elieving that the general pu lic %ould never see his %ork! %hich he never had the chance to revise. -ome parts of the Auto iography %ere printed as early as a month after Franklin&s death. 4here are a num er of (firsts( associated %ith the Auto iography. 3t is considered the first popular self>help ook ever pu lished. 3t %as the

first and only %ork %ritten in American efore the 10th century that has retained estseller popularity since its release. 3t %as the first ma1or secular American auto iography. 3t is also the first real account of the American Dream in action as told from a man %ho e$perienced it firsthand. 4his form %ould e copied numerous times throughout American history! most nota ly y such %riters as )oratio Alger. Gevertheless! despite its ground reaking accomplishments! the Auto iography has een attacked y numerous critics throughout the 10th and 2:th centuries. 4he most nota le of these attacks %as delivered y D.). 5a%rence in 102"! %ho accused Franklin of eing lost in his o%n 9uirky optimismH 5a%rence argues that Franklin should have concerned himself %ith the darker aspects of humanity. 5a%rence even proposed an alternate list of the 1" virtues as a means of oth parodying and critici?ing Franklin. 4he Ferman sociologist Ia$ We er also condemned Franklin&s %ork on sociological grounds as eing lindly capitalistic. 3n modern times! many critics have found fault %ith Franklin&s arrogance versus his commitment to humility. Gevertheless! the Auto iography remains an important look into the history and sociology of 1/th century America. Franklin in many %ays em odies the #nlightenment spirit! and may even e thought of as the first prototypical (American.( A natural 9uestion to ask! then! is! (Why are %e still reading this tangled! sometimes difficult and fre9uently esoteric %ork over 2:: years after it %as %ritten?( 4here are several reasons! one of %hich is ecause it esta lishes in literary form the first e$ample of the fulfillment of the American Dream. Franklin demonstrates the possi ilities of life in the Ge% World through his o%n rise from the lo%er middle class as a youth to one of the most admired men in the %orld as an adult. Furthermore! he asserts that he achieved his success through a solid %ork ethic. )e proved that even undistinguished persons in Boston can! through industry! ecome great figures of importance in America. When %e think of the American Dream today>>the a ility to rise from rags to riches through hard %ork>>%e are usually thinking of the model set forth y Franklin in this auto iography. A second reason %hy the Auto iography remains a classic is for historical reasons. 4he %ork %as one of the premier auto iographies in the #nglish language. While they a ound today all over the %orld! the auto iography as a literary form had not emerged at the time Franklin lived! at least not in non>religious format. )is auto iography defined a secular literary traditionH he esta lished the auto iography as a %ork that is meant to not only tell a out a person&s o%n life ut also to educate the reader in %ays to etter live life. 4his format has een modified throughout American history! ut it is safe to say that such

classics as Frederick Douglass& Garrative and )enry Adams& 4he #ducation of )enry Adams o%e much of their style and format to the tradition esta lished y Franklin. .art 4%o of the Auto iography! complete %ith its list of virtues and %ays in %hich one can achieve them! has influenced millions of readers over the last t%o centuries. 3t also helped spa%n the genre of the mainstream self>help ook. Also! the Auto iography tells us today %hat life %as like in 1/th century America. Gaturally! the story is told from the perspective of only one person! ut in an age %hen literacy %as lo% and %riting not %idespread! any surviving documents are of value to historians %ho %ish to learn ho% people lived from day to day. -pecifics of life in colonial America a ound in the ook! and this is invalua le information to anyone %ishing to learn more a out that time period. ;f course! one must al%ays keep in mind that life for Franklin %as not like life for everyone elseH he represents only one person out of many thousands. Franklin&s Auto iography is also a reflection of 1/th century idealism. ;ften called the Age of Reason! the 1/th century %as the age of men such as John 5ocke and 3saac Ge%ton. 3ntellectualism flourished along %ith scientific inventions and advances in political thought. Iany people held to the optimistic elief that man could e perfected through scientific and political progress. Franklin ascri es to these eliefs partially! and .art 4%o of the Auto iography sho%s him trying to live them out. .erhaps the Auto iography has most endured ecause! despite its muddled nature! it is the preeminent %ork that mythologi?es a hero of the American Revolution. Franklin is often introduced to elementary school children as a Renaissance man! someone %ho seemed to master all fields of kno%ledge>>he %as! among other things! scientist! inventor! statesman and %riter. 4he Auto iography is the only enduring token that enshrines all the facets of his diverse natureH it presents Americans today %ith a great hero from the past %ho helped esta lish the tradition of the American Dream. Gumerous critics have often called Franklin the (first American(H his auto iography provides a good e$ample of %hy.