Part 3/8:
Franklin’s pragmatic perspective questioned the supernatural attribution to natural phenomena. He expressed that the thunder of heaven should not be treated as distinct from rain or wind, processes we already protected ourselves against. As time passed and the efficacy of the lightning rod became evident, even the most stalwart opponents reluctantly accepted its place in the world.
Yet Franklin's understanding of electricity was limited. He mistakenly believed in a positively charged fluid, predating our modern conception of electrons or electromagnetism, established by James Maxwell. Nonetheless, Franklin's story illustrates a larger pattern: what was once viewed through the lens of metaphysics could eventually be explained through the framework of physics.