from Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
by B. Franklin
(informational)
From a child I was fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever laid out in books. . . . There was also a book of DeFoe's called an Essay on Projects, and another of Dr. Mather's, called Essays to do Good, which perhaps gave me a turn of thinking that had an influence on some of the principal future events of my life.
This bookish inclination at length determined my father to make me a printer, though he had already one son of that profession. In 1717, my brother James returned from England with a press and letters to set up his business in Boston. I liked it much better than that of my father, but still had a hankering for the sea. To prevent the apprehended effect of such an inclination, my father was impatient to have me bound1 to my brother. I stood out some time, but at last was persuaded, and signed the indentures when I was yet but twelve years old. I was to serve as an apprentice till I was twenty-one years of age, only I was to be allowed journeyman's wages during the last year. In a little time, I made great proficiency in the business and became a useful hand to my brother. I now had access to better books. An acquaintance with the apprentices of booksellers enabled me sometimes to borrow a small one, which I was careful to return soon and clean. Often I sat up in my room reading the greatest part of the night, when the book was borrowed in the evening and to be returned early in the morning, lest it should be missed or wanted.
1. apprenticed
Passage 2
from The Story of Benjamin Franklin
by Mary Hazelton Wade
(fiction)
Bennie was now twelve years old. He did not like the idea of working for his brother or of learning to be a printer. But, at least, printing was better than making candles. So, with the best heart he could muster, he began to set type in James's printing shop. He was faithful and hardworking, and when the long day came to an end, he comforted himself by reading all the good books he could borrow. Pretty serious these books might seem to you, for they contained little story telling or amusement of any kind.
But Bennie, you must remember, loved to learn better than anything else. Night after night he studied away at the deep books, when perhaps he should have been getting sleep, and all the time he was doing a great deal of thinking about what he had read. In his school days he had disliked mathematics, and had made little progress with it. But now, making up his mind that "Where there's a will there's a way," he set to work to master even this study.
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How is Passage 1 different than Passage 2?
A.
Passage 1 presents Franklin's opinions about learning, while Passage 2 does not mention Franklin's thoughts or feelings.
B.
Passage 1 is a narrative about Franklin's childhood, while Passage 2 describes Franklin's career.
C.
Passage 1 is written from Franklin's point of view, while Passage 2 tells of Franklin's life from a third person point of view.
D.
Passage 1 is about Franklin's interest in learning, while Passage 2 is about Franklin's family and childhood.
1 answer
1 answer