Passage Identification and Explication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Passage Identification and Explication - Essay Example What reverses may attend the remainder is in the hand of Providence; but, if they arrive, the reflection on past happiness enjoy'd ought to help his bearing them with more resignation. To Temperance he ascribes his long-continued health, and what is still left to him of a good constitution; to Industry and Frugality, the early easiness of his circumstances and acquisition of his fortune, with all that knowledge that enabled him to be a useful citizen, and obtained for him some degree of reputation among the learned; to Sincerity and Justice, the confidence of his country, and the honorable employs it conferred upon him; and to the joint influence of the whole mass of the virtues, even in the imperfect state he was able to acquire them, all that evenness of temper, and that cheerfulness in conversation, which makes his company still sought for, and agreeable even to his younger acquaintance.†Ã‚  Telling the story of his life, Franklin desired to share the precious lessons he gai ned in his journey from being a hard-working man to the simplicity of his life amidst his many achievements. Being one among the founding fathers of the United States, Franklin influenced the nation which until this time reflects the virtues he taught his countrymen, loving the luxuries of freedom, being able to improve oneself in proportion to an individual’s efforts and determination. Writing his autobiography was not merely telling his achievements but was directed to the learning of his biological son as well as his American sons from the virtues he himself learned from other people as he dealt with them, disciplining himself to embrace what he considers are virtuous, becoming an example to his people. As to virtue, this could be a... The researcher states that Thoreau presented his ideas strongly first, by getting the attention of his audience through questions just as he did in the verse that was extracted from his controversial essay, founded from a fact that is equally or even more controversial. Though all forms of government one way or another prove to have unjust laws, the essayist particularly spoke about the democratic United States of America which presented to him the absurdity of human laws. Through his questions, he thus then encourages his audiences to think about how they should react, whether they obey the laws, change them or violate them all at once because if the laws were right. These questions, though rude they may appear to an individual, should be reconsidered as to how one should react. Thoreau sought the meaning of life in this adventure he imposed upon himself, fearing to die and find out that he never lived but that he wanted all of what life could offer, enjoy them all and in the end, s ay to himself, he lived life to the fullest. He considered himself a god in his own Olympus that he found in Walden Pond, able to reign in his small world and not dictated by other people, their laws and other influences that could hinder the life he considers effectual. It is then concluded that the personality of the philosopher reflects the freedom one enjoys in the land of the free, enabling a person to live as he desires as long as he is not going against any law and endanger others in the process.