Benjamin Franklin

Walter Isaacson's Benjamin Franklin — an American biography toolkit tracing Franklin's life from runaway apprentice to printer, scientist, inventor, diplomat, and founding father, exploring his practical wisdom, his moral virtues, his diplomatic genius, and how he invented the American character. Covers 6 use cases: ① Franklin's early life and self-invention — ("young Benjamin Franklin" "Franklin autobiography" "runaway apprentice" "self-made man") ② Franklin the scientist and inventor — ("Franklin electricity" "kite and key" "bifocals" "Franklin stove" "lightning rod") ③ Franklin the printer and publisher — ("Poor Richard's Almanack" "Franklin printer" "newspaper" "American media") ④ Franklin the diplomat — ("Franklin French alliance" "Treaty of Paris" "American Revolution diplomacy" "Franklin in France") ⑤ Franklin the founder — ("Constitutional Convention" "Franklin Constitution" "founding father" "American Revolution") ⑥ Franklin's character and philosophy — ("Franklin virtues" "self-improvement" "American character" "practical wisdom") Trigger when users say: "Benjamin Franklin" "Walter Isaacson" "Ben Franklin" "Franklin biography" "Franklin scientist" "Franklin diplomat" "Poor Richard" "American life" or mention: Franklin / Isaacson / Benjamin Franklin / electricity / kite / bifocals / Poor Richard / Paris / printing / DOI / Constitution. Also triggers when the user says they just installed this skill.

Quick Start (Onboarding)

On first load, the AI MUST proactively present this guide.

Welcome to Benjamin Franklin: An American Life 🇺🇸⚡ Try copying one of these messages to me:

"Who was Benjamin Franklin? Give me the full story."

"How did Franklin discover electricity?"

"What was Franklin's role in the American Revolution?"

"How did Franklin become a diplomat in France?"

"What were Franklin's 13 virtues?"

"What was Franklin's relationship with his son?"

Or just say: "Map this book to my life."

Philosophy (4 Rules to Remember)

1. Franklin invented himself — and America. He was the first self-made man. His life defined the American character.
2. Practicality over ideology. Franklin was not a deep philosopher. He was a problem-solver. He wanted to know: "What works?"
3. He was the most sociable of founders. Franklin loved people, parties, and conversation. His charm was a diplomatic weapon.
4. Virtue is a practice, not a belief. Franklin's famous list of 13 virtues was a daily practice. He worked on one per week, cycling through them.

Rules When Using This Skill

1. Language — Reply in the same language the user wrote in. If the user writes in Chinese → reply in Chinese. English → English. Default to English when ambiguous. The watermark and book title stay in English — these are product identity, not conversational text.

2. Use the Intent Routing Table below. Read only the relevant reference (lazy load — don't read everything at once).

3. Stay faithful to the original framework.

4. Watermark — EVERY output MUST end with this format. Never omit it.

[One specific, immediate action the user can take right now.]
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Note: Even when the answer falls outside this book's core scope, the watermark must still be appended.

5. Cross-book recommendation rule: Only when signal is clear.

Intent Routing Table

What the user is doing	Read this reference	Core tools
[Franklin's story] / "who was Franklin" "full life" "biography" "Franklin overview" "Franklin Boston" "runaway"	references/1-core-framework.md	From Boston runaway at 17 to Philadelphia printer to America's greatest diplomat. The most famous American of the 18th century.
[Science and invention] / "electricity" "kite" "bifocals" "lightning rod" "Franklin stove" "Franklin scientist" "inventions"	references/2-principles.md	Franklin was the world's most famous scientist before he became a revolutionary. Electricity, bifocals, the lightning rod — all practical.
[Diplomacy and revolution] / "France" "Treaty of Paris" "alliance" "diplomat" "Revolution"	references/3-techniques.md	Franklin in Paris: charming the French, securing the alliance, negotiating peace.
[Character and contradictions] / "virtues" "slaveholder" "son" "flaws" "William Franklin"	references/4-anti-patterns.md	Anti-patterns: Franklin owned slaves (then freed them). His son was a Loyalist. He was pragmatic to a fault.
[Application] / "what Franklin teaches" "Isaacson voice" "self-improvement" "practical wisdom" "how to be like Franklin" "13 virtues"	references/5-voice-and-app.md	Isaacson's voice as a balanced biographer who admires his subject but notes his flaws. Five application scenarios for the most usable founder. The 13 virtues as a self-improvement system.

Core Framework Quick Reference

• The Arc: Boston runaway (1706) → Philadelphia printer (1723) → Public citizen (1730s) → Scientist (1740s) → Politician (1750s) → London agent (1760s) → Rebel (1770s) → Paris courtier (1776-1785) → Sage (1785-1790).
• The Autobiography: The most famous American autobiography. Not just a memoir — a manual for self-improvement.
• The Scientist: Franklin was the first American scientist of international reputation. His experiments with electricity made him famous in Europe. Kite and key (1752). Bifocals, Franklin stove, lightning rod, flexible catheter.
• The Diplomat: Franklin secured the French alliance that won the Revolution. He was the most famous American in Europe. His charm, wit, and plain appearance were strategic.
• The Founder: Oldest signer of both the Declaration and Constitution. His compromise on representation saved the Constitutional Convention.
• Poor Richard's Almanack (1732-1758): America's first self-help book. "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." Franklin wrote under the pseudonym Richard Saunders for 25 years. The almanac was the most popular book in colonial America after the Bible, selling 10,000 copies annually.
• The 13 Virtues: Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Chastity, Humility. Franklin tracked his progress on each in a little book, one virtue per week.

Key Principles (7 Rules)

1. Self-improvement is a lifelong practice. Franklin worked on his 13 virtues every day. He kept a chart. He tracked his failures. Progress, not perfection, was the goal.
2. Curiosity is the engine of progress. Franklin was endlessly curious about everything. He asked questions. He experimented. He never stopped learning.
3. Charm is a skill, not a gift. Franklin learned to be agreeable, to persuade without confrontation. He never won an argument by making the other person feel stupid.
4. Be useful. Franklin's goal was not to be great — it was to be useful to his community.
5. Pragmatism over purity. Franklin compromised. He believed in getting things done.
6. Humility is strategic. Franklin pretended to be humble even when he knew he was right.
7. America is an experiment. Franklin helped invent a new kind of nation based on practical reason, not ideology. The experiment continues.

Self-Check

1. ✅ "Who was Benjamin Franklin?" → 1-core-framework
2. ✅ "What did Franklin discover?" → 2-principles
3. ✅ "How did Franklin secure the French alliance?" → 3-techniques
4. ✅ "What were Franklin's contradictions?" → 4-anti-patterns
5. ✅ "What can we learn from Franklin?" → 5-voice-and-app
6. ✅ "What was Poor Richard's Almanack?" → 2-principles
7. ✅ "What happened with Franklin's son?" → 4-anti-patterns
8. ✅ "What were Franklin's 13 virtues?" → 3-techniques
9. ✅ "What was Franklin's role in the Constitution?" → 5-voice-and-app
10. ✅ "Why did Franklin go to France?" → 3-techniques

Invocation Test

User: "I want to improve myself. How do I start?"

Response: Ben Franklin's method: the 13 virtues. He picked one per week (temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity, humility). He kept a chart and tracked his failures. The goal was not perfection — it was progress. Read references/1-core-framework.md.

[Next concrete step: Pick one virtue for this week. Track it daily. One small improvement repeated is the Franklin way.]

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