The popularity of the movie National Treasure taught millions of Ben Franklin’s pseudonym, Silence Dogood. He used it to publish anonymous letters to his brother’s newspaper, the New-England Courant. What is less well known is that it was quite common for writers to publish under false names at the time. It was a common belief that it was better to separate yourself as an individual from the ideas you present to the public. It was a way to avoid critics criticizing your work just because they hold a personal grudge against you. Perhaps we should we should return to this being the norm. I can’t say I hate the idea.
Citations
- Isaacson, W. (2006) Benjamin Franklin: An american life. New York etc.: Simon and Schuster.
- Brown, M. and Sussex, L. (2025) Outrageous fortunes: The adventures of Mary Fortune, crime-writer, and her criminal son. Collingwood, VIC: La Trobe University Press in conjunction with Black Inc.