"Dr. Franklin's school of politics": Community and "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin"
Item
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Title
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"Dr. Franklin's school of politics": Community and "The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin"
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Identifier
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AAI3144086
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identifier
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3144086
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Creator
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Casale, Frank D.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Marc Dolan
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Date
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2004
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Literature, American | Biography
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Abstract
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This dissertation argues that in The Autobiography , Franklin provides his model for constructing the American community. Fundamentally, Franklin's model of community is informed by his understanding of models of communication, which are themselves inscribed in The Autobiography. The different parts of The Autobiography were written at different times, and, although he attempted to connect them, Franklin's understanding of communication and community changed from part to part of the text.;Franklin's model of communication can be termed a republican or dialogic model, which he opposed to an aristocratic or monologic model. Franklin's conception of the republican/dialogic model of communication grew out of his lifelong participation two emergent Enlightenment discourses: the republic of letters and the community of science. His aristocratic/monologic model was informed by his interactions with British society, especially the aristocratic elite of England, which is primarily explored through his involvement in the Hutchinson letter affair.;The Autobiography is read as Franklin's final argument for the shape of a free, republican American community. Franklin's text is read as proposing that a community based on a republican/dialogic model of communication will produce republican citizens, capable of maintaining and expanding a republican community.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
