In this video, the presenter examines Benjamin Franklin’s 1725 pamphlet A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain, written when Franklin was 19. The pamphlet is divided into two sections: the first argues that free will does not exist, thereby rejecting absolute notions of good and evil; the second claims that all creatures experience equal amounts of pleasure and pain, describing life as a transition from uneasiness to its removal. Franklin frames the universe as a vast, deterministic machine in which humans are merely parts moving in harmony with the whole. The speaker highlights the pamphlet’s controversial reception in the 18th century—Franklin’s printing‑house boss called it “abominable”—and notes that Franklin anticipated widespread objection. The video provides a brief two‑sentence summary, references a John Dryden verse used on the title page, mentions that the full text is freely available online, and reflects on how these ideas resonate (or clash) with modern readers. The presenter personally appreciates the work, contrasting his own enthusiasm with the historical backlash, and urges careful consideration of the pamphlet’s arguments.
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In this video, I'm going to talk about a paper that Ben Franklin wrote at the age of 19 titled A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain. This is my 5th and probably favorite Ben Franklin insight, and How can it not be? This is something that he himself describes as his thoughts on the general state of things in the universe. Let me repeat that: the general state of things in the universe. And he wrote it when he was 19 years old. The reason I love this piece is that it is Ben Franklin at his most general. He's literally describing the state of the universe. If this sounds a little controversial now, imagine how much it bothered people in 1725 when it was published. In the autobiography, he describes how his boss at the time at the printing house where he worked read this pamphlet and thought it was abominable. He writes in the intro to the paper about how he expects it to be liable to many objections from less discerning readers, and he writes in the outro I am sensible that the doctrine here advanced, if it were to be published, would meet with but an indifferent reception. Mankind naturally and generally love to be flattered, and ungrateful truths shall be with the utmost indignation rejected. He expected most people to dislike it, and he was right. Today, 300 years later, I'm wondering how much we've changed. So the pamphlet comes in 2 sections. Section 1 is about liberty and necessity. Section 2 is about pleasure and pain. Ben felt that both sections combined are encapsulated in this verse from a poem by John Dryden, which is why he wrote it on the title page. Whatever is, is right, but purblind man sees but a part of the chain, the nearest links, his eyes not carrying to that equal beam that poises all above. About the pamphlet itself, it's available for free online. Just do a search for it. Or you can read it at the link in the description. I don't think most people in 2023 will get past the first line because it mentions the word God, but I think you'll get past it if you just take the words according to their dictionary definitions. First mover. If you don't want to read and you just want a 2-sentence summary, well, here it is. Let's see what all those people from 300 years ago got upset about. In section 1, he argues that there is no free will, therefore no such thing as good and no such thing as evil. In section two, he explains how all life begins with uneasiness and ends with the removal of uneasiness, and all creatures experience the same amount of pleasure and pain during the course of their lives. I'm going to repeat. In the universe, there is no free will, so no such thing as good and no such thing as evil. All creatures experience the same amount of pain and the same amount of pleasure during the course of their lives. To summarize the whole pamphlet in one sentence: Ben Franklin writes that the universe is like a machine with many intricate parts and wheels in continuous motion, with humans being one part in harmony with the whole. Ben Franklin did not expect everyone to like these ideas. His boss thought it was abominable. I like it. He does mention someone else in the autobiography who seemed to not hate it, but he also says that this is not designed for those who cannot understand it. So I think I need to carefully consider if I understand it.
