Benjamin Franklin was intrinsically motivated I found in this writing. Specifically as a young man during his teen years when he served as an apprentice with his father at a printing shop. During this time Franklin was quite intrigued with writing, he seemed to be rather fascinated with The Spectator, a magazine that discussed political issues. (Franklin, 2016, p. 21) From what I gathered, it appeared that he taught himself how to write by reading The Spectator magazine. A particular segment taken from this writing in the autobiography that read intrinsic motivation, “by comparing my work afterwards with the original, I discovered many faults and amended them; but I sometimes had the pleasure of fancying that, in certain particulars of small import, I had been lucky enough to improve the method of the language, and this encouraged me to think I might possibly in time come to be a tolerable English writer, of which I was extremely ambitious. My time for these exercises and for reading was at night, after work or before it began in the morning, or on Sundays, when I contrived to be in the printing-house alone.” (Franklin, 2016, p. 21) Here as mentioned, he was determined to become and better his writing, so every opportunity he made, he worked on it.
As for Franklin being extrinsically motivated, I didn’t get that impression, but that is my opinion, I could be wrong. I felt that what mattered to him was his drive to always be learning and improving himself.
The only creative characteristic to be true of him was that he took many risks. He seemed like he was always venturing off to learn or try something new. An example of one of the many things, having to do with electricity, during the time when he was in Boston he met with a doctor to discuss his electricity experiments. “I eagerly seized the opportunity of repeating what I had seen at Boston; and, by much practice, acquired great readiness in performing those, also, which we had an account of from England, adding a number of new ones. I say much practice, for my house was continually full, for some time, with people who came to see these new wonders.” (Franklin, 2016, p. 171) Other than that, he grew up with two loving parents, who appeared to be involved and active in his life. Even though it read that as a child his father had a plan for him to be a man of the church, it never happened. Franklin’s childhood wasn’t broken. However, this didn’t seem to matter, he was an incredible, creative individual with a tremendous drive.
As for the systems model of creativity, he was a genius. He acquired his knowledge through the books he read, the various people around him, and he was a hard worker too. An example of this, and I don’t know if it is correct, but his invention of the Franklin Stove. He came up with a better design for the ability to heat up a room. He proposed his plan to a friend. “An Account of the new-invented Pennsylvania Fireplaces; wherein their Construction and Manner of Operation is particularly explained; their Advantages above every other Method of warming Rooms demonstrated.” (Franklin, 2016, p. 126)
Benjamin Franklin Pictures
Citation
Franklin, B. (2016). The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin : The Complete Illustrated History. Minneapolis, MN: Voyageur Press.
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