As a young man, Benjamin Franklin knew poverty. His family had little
             money, and he helped in his father's candle and soap factory by the time he
             was ten. Young Franklin had little formal schooling. He remembered, "I
             continued, however, at the grammar-school not quite one year, though in
             that time I had risen gradually from the middle of the class of that year
             to be the head of it" (Franklin 3). He loved to read, and this was one of
             the things that led him to eventual success. He wrote, "From a child I was
             fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever
             laid out in books" (Franklin 5). His rise to fame and fortune is quite
             amazing when considering his beginnings, which were quite humble. His
             father apprenticed him to his brother James when Franklin was only twelve;
             so much of his early life was spent laboring, rather than learning. This
             makes his later years even more amazing, when he was known for his wit and
             writings. By the time he was sixteen, he was writing anonymous essays for
             his brother's newspaper, and his writing was already becoming popular with
             readers. One historian wrote, "Virtually all of his writing arose from
             particular circumstances, served an immediate purpose, and had a deliberate
             intent. If we may judge from the abundant written remains, his thought and
             philosophy grew hand in hand with the full life he led" (Ketcham 4).
             Eventually, young Benjamin took over the paper from his brother, but his
             writings were so controversial that it did not succeed. He noted, "During
             my brother's confinement, [â€] notwithstanding our private differences, I
             had the management of the paper; and I made bold to give our rulers some
             rubs in it (Franklin 9). At the age of seventeen, he left Boston and
             traveled to Philadelphia, where he really began to make a name for himself,
             but struggled with poverty and positions. Throughout all hi...