The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing

In 1783 Abel James and Benjamin Vaughan sent each a letter to Franklin asking him to resume the writing of his life, which he had begun in 1771. In addition to providing Franklin with a legitimate occasion lo continue his truncated self-narration (he is asked to teach other Americans how to live th...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: José María Rodríguez García
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universidad de Zaragoza 1997-12-01
Series:Miscelánea: A Journal of English and American Studies
Online Access:https://papiro.unizar.es/ojs/index.php/misc/article/view/11298
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850064567145594880
author José María Rodríguez García
author_facet José María Rodríguez García
author_sort José María Rodríguez García
collection DOAJ
description In 1783 Abel James and Benjamin Vaughan sent each a letter to Franklin asking him to resume the writing of his life, which he had begun in 1771. In addition to providing Franklin with a legitimate occasion lo continue his truncated self-narration (he is asked to teach other Americans how to live their lives) the two letters consider life writing as a disciplinary technology and a nation-building institution. They also comment upon the competition among rival modes of self-making and self-representation taking place at the time on both sides of the Atlantic, as evinced in the writings of Edwmds, Jefferson, Fielding, and Boswell, among others.
format Article
id doaj-art-0ecb2d3175cf435ca79b0d69ddff06d7
institution DOAJ
issn 1137-6368
2386-4834
language English
publishDate 1997-12-01
publisher Universidad de Zaragoza
record_format Article
series Miscelánea: A Journal of English and American Studies
spelling doaj-art-0ecb2d3175cf435ca79b0d69ddff06d72025-08-20T02:49:16ZengUniversidad de ZaragozaMiscelánea: A Journal of English and American Studies1137-63682386-48341997-12-011810.26754/ojs_misc/mj.199711298The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life WritingJosé María Rodríguez García0Universidade da Coruña In 1783 Abel James and Benjamin Vaughan sent each a letter to Franklin asking him to resume the writing of his life, which he had begun in 1771. In addition to providing Franklin with a legitimate occasion lo continue his truncated self-narration (he is asked to teach other Americans how to live their lives) the two letters consider life writing as a disciplinary technology and a nation-building institution. They also comment upon the competition among rival modes of self-making and self-representation taking place at the time on both sides of the Atlantic, as evinced in the writings of Edwmds, Jefferson, Fielding, and Boswell, among others. https://papiro.unizar.es/ojs/index.php/misc/article/view/11298
spellingShingle José María Rodríguez García
The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
Miscelánea: A Journal of English and American Studies
title The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
title_full The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
title_fullStr The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
title_full_unstemmed The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
title_short The "Memo" Pages of Franklin's Autobiography: On the History of American and English Life Writing
title_sort memo pages of franklin s autobiography on the history of american and english life writing
url https://papiro.unizar.es/ojs/index.php/misc/article/view/11298
work_keys_str_mv AT josemariarodriguezgarcia thememopagesoffranklinsautobiographyonthehistoryofamericanandenglishlifewriting
AT josemariarodriguezgarcia memopagesoffranklinsautobiographyonthehistoryofamericanandenglishlifewriting