...My name is Bird Wohampack I’m 12 years old. I was born a slave but I never knew it till six years of happy childhood. I had no name so my name is Bird because when I was sold my owner thought I sounded like a bird so my name was Bird. I didn’t know who were my parents because when I was 5-year old I was locked up and chained. I was useless and hit most of the time because I’m a girl. I was being resold because I’m a useless person for my owner and I’m now 13 and I’m getting resold for $100. When I became 14 I was sold to a rich family it was the Jam family and they also had another slave called Hippo, they were white folks. During that time I became friends with Hippo Delhip, she was more like a sister to me because we talk a lot together...
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...Founding Fathers. Franklin also discovered electricity, and invented bifocals, the lightning rod, Franklin stove, glass harmonica, odometer, and jokingly, daylight savings time. Franklin, living in Paris at the time, joked that the French slept in too late, that they wasted all the daylight. In Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography, Franklin displays a subtle sense of humor throughout different forms of set pieces in the book, including his father’s religious devotion, using an alias, and his probable pride in humility. In Part One of the Autobiography, Franklin jokes that while all nine of his older brothers became protégés of craft occupations, his father intended “to devote me as the Tithe of his Sons to the Service of the Church” (14). Franklin pokes fun at his father by implying that instead of donating a tenth of his income to the church, he is donating a tenth of his sons. He presents himself as a young man on the road to fame by showing he is different that the rest of his family and the only one of his brothers earning an education. At such a young age, he felt his education gave him superiority with his family, but his older brothers thought differently. Franklin started working as a trainee for his brother’s printing shop, which he thought he should be running. Franklin also uses a confident humor as he makes himself the laughingstock of his own jokes, “I wrote and convey’d in the same Way to the Press several more Papers, which were equally approv’d, and I kept my Secret...
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...begins his Autobiography by stating the reasons for writing it. He wished to share his life story with his son and tell him anecdotes about his ancestors. Since Franklin had grown up in a poor family, he wished to share his rags to riches story with others as they may be inspired to do better. Franklin knew he could not relive his life and in fact would not have changed much of it had he been given the opportunity to live it over, but he wished to relive those memories from his early life through his manuscript. Another reason was that, through writing, he would not bore people as he would have by telling his stories in person. And finally, he wrote it for himself to satisfy his own ego and sense of self-worth. The story of how the Benjamin Franklin Autobiography became published is a story in itself. It was intended as a private collection and not supposed to be made public. However, based on the number of copies made before he died, it is hard to believe that he did not intend for it to be seen by all. As the story is read, different views can be ascertained. This would depend on various reasons but my thoughts are that it is also self-promoting in some ways. As Franklin offers stories of his early life, he is offering evidence that anyone can make it if they strive to improve upon what they have accomplished thus far. The story of his ancestry and early years is an intriguing glimpse into the inner workings of the family during this period. The Autobiography begins with...
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...logistic theories. In his autobiography Historia Calamitatum or The Story of My Misfortunes, Abelard shows that throughout his life, the study of Dialectics and logistical reasoning, play a great role in comprehending the interactions and events of our surroundings. In his youth, Peter Abelard; being the first-born son of three, was educated in the study of letters. His Father had been a soldier whom earlier in his life was graced with the study of letters, and saw to it that each one of his sons were taught in this study prior to them being educated as a soldier. “And so it came about that long afterwards his love thereof was so strong that he saw to it that each son of his should be taught in letters even earlier than in the management of arms.” (Bellows 1) Unlike his other siblings, Abelard was taught extensively in letters because of his first-born status. Interestingly enough, Peter Abelard found the study of philosophy to be so crucial to the advancement of society and the winning of battles in ones life; he even refers to his intellectual skills as “weapons”. Unlike his father, Abelard preferred winning battles in the form of debates and intellectual wars, which he states “…I exchanged all other weapons for these, and to the prizes of victory in war I preferred the battle of minds in disputation.” (Bellows 1) Abelard displayed intense buoyancy in his intellect and philosophical understanding. Abelard demonstrates his thoughts in his autobiography numerous times about...
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...Rhetoric, or the author’s ability to persuade an audience of a claim, has been a strategy used by writers and speakers for centuries. When used accurately, it can be an extremely powerful tool. Rhetoric can be expressed in many different forms. It can be seen in form of appeals to certain aspects such as emotion, authority, or logic. It can also take form in devices (form of sentences, arrangement of words, etc) and in the type of claims that the author selects. A strong example of effective rhetoric in action is found in The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told to Alex Haley by Malcolm X. The book traces the story of Malcolm X’s upbringing and displays how he rose to become the person that he is known for to this present day. Throughout his...
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...fighting in an attempt to extract Iraq from Kuwait and to avert Sudden Hussein from controlling a concentration of the worlds oil supply. Soldiers are faced with deleterious decisions when it comes to war. Even though they hanker to stay at home with their families, their main emphasis is to provide for their family. Over the accumulated years soldiers are in war, they overcome death, hurt, distrust, and terrorist attacks. The role of a soldier is to obey his commanders and fight for the benefit of his nation. Soldiers have to be highly skilled and prepared when it comes to war. This relates to what Timothy Gaestel, journal writer in “Soldiers Stories: Dispatches from Iraq” said in his entry. He asserts, “ I had my M4 rifle at the ready and my trigger finger on the trigger and was just waiting for someone to give me a reason to have me put it from safe to semi.” (329). This quote exemplifies that Gaestel was well prepared for anything coming his way. Even though Gaetel obtained two shrapnel’s in his back from a bomb he was determined to ensure the safety of his convoy and himself. Zeigler 2 The surgeons and nurses at the Combat Support Hospital located in downtown Baghdad,...
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...is a great deal of work to do and it calls for sacrifice and determination on the part of those who are leading.” Colin Powell and President Barack Obama are two African American men who had to overcome much adversity to achieve their elite status in American politics. Both of their journeys varied greatly with Powell serving as Secretary of State under George W. Bush and Obama becoming the first African-American Commander-in-Chief. They also chronicle their journeys with autobiographies, with Obama recording this passage of his life in his 1995 independently written autobiography Dreams from My Father, while Powell recollects stories from his life with the assistance of Joseph E. Persico in the 1995 book My American Journey. On an important side note, both of these books were written before they have reached their respective positions in politics. Obama wrote Dreams from My Father when he was still only a state Senator in Illinois, awhile before he even considered running for President. While Powell wrote My American Journey where at the time he was already Powell was already a 4-star general which preceded the events that led to his appointment as Secretary of State, where he was the first African-American to hold the position and gave his notorious speech in front on the United Nations dealing with the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, which dramatically changed the public’s perception about him. Each story instead focuses on how they were brought up. While each book contains...
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...Reading autobiographies can bring a sense of dread to a number of people within the reading community. Although to some, they are the only style of book to read. Autobiographies have a connotation of being a chronological retelling of the author’s life, full of intimate details of the struggles they encountered and they share the commonality of upbeat undertones suggesting that they are in fact successful, which is why they are writing this autobiography. Our brain has been trained to associate these assumptions with autobiographies. When we examine a novel like Autobiography of Red by Anne Carson, our assumptions of what an autobiography is becomes challenged. Autobiography of Red by Anne Carson is not typical life-writing story using opening...
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...deep into the mind of the child laborer to try and establish how the child perceived his role. Did the child see the work as only a means to survive or was it a type of escape into a new adventure, or possibly as a stepping stone to life’s career (Humphries, 263)? The author found that many of the children employed continued with the same work when they grew older. The autobiography excerpts included are both heart-wrenching and matter of fact. Reading the memoirs in the article, it seems that each boy had different ideas regarding the work. The one feeling that all convey is that they worked hard and were too young to take on such responsibilities. The author shows this when she cites a journal from a small boy who is made to leave home and work in the mines. In recalling his first night there, he states "I had no shoes, food or light and spent the night crying because I missed my Mum" (Humphries, 397). One factor setting the scene for the boom in child labor was the fact that families depended on the male head. Once peasant agriculture declined, wage labor dominated. The family became dependent on fathers...
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...Rousseau’s Confessions is one of the first notable autobiographies and has influenced many forms of narratives. It inaugurated modern day autobiography and inspired a narrative technic used in many great novels. Rousseau wrote this autobiography in order to tell the world about himself and express the nature of man. He did not want to be known by how people thought of him, but rather be able to tell people exactly what happened in his life and let them be the judge. Rousseau begins Confessions by stating, “this is the only portrait of a man, painted exactly according to nature and in all of its truth, that exists and will probably ever exist” (57). He included embarrassing experiences and personal thoughts from throughout his life to show every possible virtue of his life. He portrays what every boy encounters from mischievous trickery to entering sexual adulthood. The events that change his life and himself become a consistent theme while he describes his childhood, sexual cravings, and natural thoughts of a boy’s life. One of the most common subjects in Rousseau autobiography is the story of his childhood and the nature of a boy. Rousseau’s mother passed away during his birth, which strained the relation between him and his father. When they tried to speak of her the conversation would end with tears because his father saw Rousseau’s mother through Rousseau. Losing one’s mother is a very heartbreaking occurrence to a young boy. His father never forgave him for taking his mother’s...
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...THE GLENCOE LITERATURE LIBRARY Study Guide for The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin i Meet Benjamin Franklin Benjamin thought that his older brother James was too hard on him, and they often fought. When his apprenticeship ended, Franklin went to Philadelphia. This city, far more than his birthplace of Boston, became Franklin’s home. In Philadelphia he established his own business and raised his family. After Franklin retired from business in 1748, he embarked on a new career as a civil servant. He served in the Pennsylvania Assembly and became deputy postmaster-general. Sent to England as a representative of the Assembly, he spent five years there. During that time, he made the acquaintance of statesmen and scientists alike. Years later, he returned to England and found himself caught up in the growing tension between the thirteen colonies and the British government. Franklin’s loyalties were divided. He felt affinities to the colonies and to King George II of England. When he could tolerate the British government’s policies toward the American colonies no longer, he sailed back to the colonies. By the time his ship arrived, the first battles of the American Revolution had already been fought. Franklin was chosen to serve on the Second Continental Congress, which, acting as the government for the colonies, declared independence from Britain and appointed George Washington as commander in chief of the American army. Franklin was one of five...
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...i Study Guide for The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin T H E G L E N C O E L I T E R A T U R E L I B R A R Y The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin Study Guide 9 Copyright © by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Benjamin thought that his older brother James was too hard on him, and they often fought. When his apprenticeship ended, Franklin went to Philadelphia. This city, far more than his birthplace of Boston, became Franklin’s home. In Philadelphia he established his own business and raised his family. After Franklin retired from business in 1748, he embarked on a new career as a civil servant. He served in the Pennsylvania Assembly and became deputy postmaster-general. Sent to England as a representative of the Assembly, he spent five years there. During that time, he made the acquaintance of statesmen and scientists alike. Years later, he returned to England and found himself caught up in the growing tension between the thirteen colonies and the British government. Franklin’s loyalties were divided. He felt affinities to the colonies and to King George II of England. When he could tolerate the British government’s policies toward the American colonies no longer, he sailed back to the colonies. By the time his ship arrived, the first battles of the American Revolution had already been fought. Franklin was chosen to serve on the Second Continental Congress, which, acting as the government for the colonies, declared independence...
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...Intro Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, alias APJ Abdul Kalam, was born in Dhanushkodi, Rameswaran, India on October 15, 1931. The son of a little-educated boat-owner in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, he had an unparalleled career as a defence scientist, culminating in the highest civilian award of India, the Bharat Ratna. As chief of the country's defence research and development programme, Kalam demonstrated the great potential for dynamism and innovation that existed in seemingly moribund research establishments. A lifelong scientist, engineer and world leader, Kalam's prominent role in India's 1998 nuclear weapons tests established him as a national hero. Kalam is popularly known as the Missile Man of India for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology. In 2002, India's ruling National Democratic Alliance helped him win election against the country's former president, Kocheril Raman Narayanan; Kalam became India's 11th president on 25th July 2002 and completed his term in 2007. APJ Abdul Kalam is a man of vision, who is always full of ideas aimed at the development of the country. He firmly believes that India needs to play a more assertive role in international relations. He was the first scientist and bachelor to occupy the seat of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Dr. Kalam is one of the most distinguished scientists of India with the unique honour of receiving honorary doctorates from 30 universities and institutions. He has been awarded the coveted...
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...THE GLENCOE LITERATURE LIBRARY Study Guide for The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin i Meet Benjamin Franklin Benjamin thought that his older brother James was too hard on him, and they often fought. When his apprenticeship ended, Franklin went to Philadelphia. This city, far more than his birthplace of Boston, became Franklin’s home. In Philadelphia he established his own business and raised his family. After Franklin retired from business in 1748, he embarked on a new career as a civil servant. He served in the Pennsylvania Assembly and became deputy postmaster-general. Sent to England as a representative of the Assembly, he spent five years there. During that time, he made the acquaintance of statesmen and scientists alike. Years later, he returned to England and found himself caught up in the growing tension between the thirteen colonies and the British government. Franklin’s loyalties were divided. He felt affinities to the colonies and to King George II of England. When he could tolerate the British government’s policies toward the American colonies no longer, he sailed back to the colonies. By the time his ship arrived, the first battles of the American Revolution had already been fought. Franklin was chosen to serve on the Second Continental Congress, which, acting as the government for the colonies, declared independence from Britain and appointed George Washington as commander in chief of the American army. Franklin was one of five...
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...National Anthem”. Johnson became a U.S. consul to Venezuela in 1906 and published his first novel, “The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man”, in 1912. Johnson had a talent for persuading people of different ideologies to work together towards a common goal. Because of this talent, Johnson became the national organizer for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1920. He also edited “The Book of American Negro Poetry” which was a major contribution to the history of African-American...
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