Get your own Free Home PageBenjamin Franklin decided to replace metaphysical arguments with pragmatic and moral arguments.
"and I doubted whether some error had not insinuated itself unperceiv'd into my argument, so as to infect all that follow'd, as is common in metaphysical reasonings."Benjamin Franklin, from his Autobiography
Benjamin Franklin's precepts:
These names of virtues, with their precepts, were:
1. TEMPERANCE.
Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
2. SILENCE.
Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling
conversation.
3. ORDER.
Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its
time.
4. RESOLUTION.
Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you
resolve.
5. FRUGALITY.
Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
6. INDUSTRY.
Lose no time; be always employ'd in something useful; cut off all
unnecessary actions.
7. SINCERITY.
Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak
accordingly.
8. JUSTICE.
Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
9. MODERATION.
Avoid extreams; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they
deserve.
10. CLEANLINESS.
Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
11. TRANQUILLITY.
Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
12. CHASTITY.
Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dulness, weakness,
or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.
13. HUMILITY.
Imitate Jesus and Socrates.
My intention being to acquire the habitude of all these virtues, I
judg'd it would be well not to distract my attention by attempting the whole
at once, but to fix it on one of them at a time; and, when I should be
master of that, then to proceed to another, and so on, till I should have
gone thro' the thirteen; and, as the previous acquisition of some might
facilitate the acquisition of certain others, I arrang'd them with that view,
as they stand above. Temperance first, as it tends to procure that coolness
and clearness of head, which is so necessary where constant vigilance was
to be kept up, and guard maintained against the unremitting attraction of
ancient habits, and the force of perpetual temptations. This being acquir'd
and establish'd, Silence would be more easy; and my desire being to gain
knowledge at the same time that I improv'd in virtue, and considering that
in conversation it was obtain'd rather by the use of the ears than of the
tongue, and therefore wishing to break a habit I was getting into of
prattling, punning, and joking, which only made me acceptable to trifling
company, I gave Silence the second place. This and the next, Order, I
expected would allow me more time for attending to my project and my
studies. Resolution, once become habitual, would keep me firm in my
endeavors to obtain all the subsequent virtues; Frugality and Industry
freeing me from my remaining debt, and producing affluence and
independence, would make more easy the practice of Sincerity and Justice,
etc., etc. Conceiving then, that, agreeably to the advice of Pythagoras in
his Golden Verses, daily examination would be necessary, I contrived the
following method for conducting that examination.
Franklin's Autobiography.The whole thing is on the net.
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