Literature Appreciation: How To Read Biographies

[Music] on this Gate built in ancient Persia about 500 BC we can find one of the earliest autobiographies ever written inscribed in the stone above the winged Bullman are a Monarch's own words extoling himself I am Xerxes the great king King of Kings King of the countries possessing many kinds of people king of this great Earth far and wide the son of duras the king since ancient time men have written about their own lives in autobiographies and about the lives of others in biographies plutar a Greek biographer wrote parallel lives of the noble Greeks and Romans plutarch's biographies vividly portray personalities with narrative charm and psychological insight Plutarch wrote the biographies in pairs Greek lives are compared with Roman lives Plutarch takes us behind the scenes of History to show us how great people lived plutar is considered the father of classical biography in the 19th centuries since he wrote his lives biography has become a major literary form the life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell is considered one of the finest examples of English biographic writing examples of American biographies almost always include this book The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin it is an intimate and delightful account of the first 50 years of Franklin's life a contemporary of this American Patriot was George Washington whose life inspired many biographies one of the earliest Washington biographies was one by Parson Mason weams this book is the source of many incidents which we now know are fictitious in creating the boy who would not lie about the cherry tree and the young Washington who threw a silver dollar across the rapan river weams was portraying a highly idealized person this hero worshipping account helped to create a legendary figure of Washington a symbol rather than a human being a balanced accurate biography of the first president can be found in marus kliff's book Washington man and monument in it conliff describes the proud Virginia planter who loved his estate on the pomac and personally supervised all aspects of his Plantation we read in conliff how Washington refer to Mount Vernon as his Cottage and his Villa after years of serving his country as General Washington he returned to Mount Vernon as a private citizen in one of his letters Washington wrote I Am Not only retired from all public Employments but I am retiring Within Myself he longed for the Peace of private life and and yet his Fame would not permit this the Virginia platter would be called out of retirement to serve his country again as its first president in judging kliff's biography we can see evidence of the author's careful research he used information from letters newspapers of the period Washington's diary and other sources in the evaluation of any biography we should consider not only the subject matter but how the author has interpreted it some men have interpreted their own lives allowing us to share their feelings and innermost thoughts Henry David thoro did this in Walden a collection of autobiographical notes at Walden Pond near con Massachusetts thorough built a cabin and here more than a century ago he lived a solitary life for 2 years observing the pond in its seasons and recording his impressions in language that evokes the world of natural beauty the sumac grew luxuriantly about the house in August the berries which when in flower had attracted Ed many wild bees gradually assumed their bright velvety Crimson Hue already by the 1 of September I had seen two or three small Maples turn Scarlet across the pond in the fall The Loon came as usual to Mt and bathe in the pond to thoro a simple life in harmony with nature was more satisfactory than money or fame as we read Walden we can gain an insight into Thor's philosophy of life he rebelled against the evils of materialism and mechanization and advocated Harmony between man and nature so some biographies May challenge us to examine the philosophies of life in our own time another highly individual approach to life is revealed in this biography of Abraham Lincoln by Carl Sandberg this volume the Prairie years covers Abraham Lincoln's formative period in it we discover some of the things which molded Lincoln the boy and helped make him the man he was the hard work he did as a boy on his father's Farm the profound influence of his stepmother Sarah Bush Lincoln and his persistence in getting the education available to him reading about the early influences that help shape a life can help us understand our own lives and accomplishments many biographies have been written about men who achieved success despite adversity one such life is portrayed in The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone it is a fictionalized biography of Michelangelo bonotti the Renaissance Genius of art a painter Michelangelo created this version of the Holy Family An Architect Michelangelo designed the Dome of St Peters in Rome in the cathedral is the P the morning of Christ by the Virgin [Music] Mary this masterpiece was carved by Michelangelo when he was 24 years old the men who moved this glorious work of art from Michelangelo Studio to St peters's refused to accept money for their job as told by Irving Stone one of the workmen said we take our pay in heaven the author Stone goes on to say it was the best tribute Michelangelo could receive the author uses another Masterpiece the biblical hero David to comment on Michelangelo's superb Mastery of anatomy so in Reading The Agony and the Ecstasy we learn what artists universally give of themselves in creating a work of art but ordinary men too go through struggles in trying to succeed a humorous version of a success story of modern times is Anything Can Happen by George and Helen papash it is an autobiographical account of George as a Russian immigrant who tries to make good in America having just arrived in New York City in the early 1930s George papash is is directed to an employment agency at the agency George is fortunate to find an interviewer who can speak Russian George explains that he is a skilled Craftsman and shows him his certificate of apprenticeship as a sword maker a sword maker the interviewer is stumped in America there is not much use for this ancient craft but he does suggest a job for the sword [Music] maker it's not the best job but it's a start [Music] George becomes a dishwasher in a restaurant and he's now on the road which will bring him eventual success in his adopted land this story of an immigrant struggling for a new and better life is typical of many people whose biographies are vivid proof of success stories in real life Helen Keller wrote about her triumph over physical handicaps in The Story of My Life Charles Lindberg in his book we described his spectacular achievement of flying across the Atlantic in a small plane Babe Ruth is one of many famous figures whose achievements lie in the field of sports Babe Ruth's story is that of a boy who was raised in a Baltimore orphanage and learned to play baseball there it was baseball which was to lift bab Bruth from the underprivileged childhood he had known to a life of Fame and Fortune despite personal problems Babe Ruth became an American Idol but he never forgot that he was an inspiration to millions of youngsters throughout the world so biographical works on Babe Ruth give us insights into one of America's great sports figures reading biographies can give us insights into the lives of a variety of people scientists who are extending our knowledge of ourselves and of the world teachers who are imparting knowledge to others adventurers who can show us the romance of far away places and even the lives of people in ordinary situations can help us understand our own behavior how we think and act and so when we read autobiographies and biographies we are reading the records of human lives a vital form of literature that can enrich our own lives [Music]