The Pros And Cons Of Common Sense

​Thomas Paine's Common Sense is a seminal piece of American literature and American history; arguably it's the most important piece. Paine wrote Common Sense in 1775-1776, and it's theme was to spread his political beliefs. He wanted American independence from the British monarchy. The pamphlet was anonymously released on January 10th, 1776, and it explained to the reader why the colonies needed to rebel against their British oppressors. It was sold far and wide across the colonies, and it was successful; it inspired many of the soldiers during the initial summer of rebellion in 1776. The whole idea of the pamphlet revolves around persuading the reader to side with the rebels in their valiant fight for independence, and he absolutely uses contemporary persuasive techniques in his writing. He uses facts about the present, he looks towards the future, and he uses religion to persuade his readers. In fact, it's a testament to how the act of persuasion has been very similar over the last 238

As the year 1776 began in the American colonies, tension with King George III’s England was at perhaps an all-time high.  Americans were frustrated with the actions of their rulers overseas.  Taxes and trade restrictions had been placed on them, and British and mercenary soldiers occupied their towns and cities.  There had even been fighting at Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill.  As America grew, England’s hold on it tightened, and a few voices began speaking of independence.  The loudest and most convincing of these belonged to Thomas Paine, born in England and living in Philadelphia.  His pamphlet, Common Sense, expressed the argument for American independence in a way no one had before and had a great influence on the Declaration of

Before America was America people fought a war where theoretically they should not have won. After the war ended, they came out victors, but at the price of losing thousands of men. “We are fallen into the most unhappy times, when even innocence itself is nowhere safe!” (Boston Gazette, February 1770). This excerpt shows that the people in the colonies were angry and wanted change. There was sufficient cause for the American colonists to take up arms and rebel against the British government because people have the right to privacy, and Britain was not giving it to them.

On April 19, 1775, the citizens of the british colonies of america started a revolution against Great Britain by signing the Declaration of Independence. The decision to do so was supported by what the american people felt was a severe lack of freedom from the British government. the beginning of the American Revolution, the british colonies in America were very harsh on their citizens in terms of freedom. Citizens of these colonies were not allowed to verbally disparage the government and were forced to share religious beliefs with the Church of England. In rebellion, the american people took a stand against Great Britain, and declared themselves as the United States of America.

Regardless of the weaknesses in Paine’s article, Common Sense is extremely valuable to scholars and students. For both scholars and students Common Sense allows them to learn exactly what was happening during this time in America. This first hand document allows readers to get a better understanding of where America was at and why they needed independence and why they were capable of earning their independence. This pamphlet allowed scholars to see exactly how America came one step closer to declaring its independence, and it allows students to get a glimpse of the thoughts of a first-hand colonist who was going through what they read in their history books.

These enabled the American colonists for desire for independence and a separation from Britain after being repeatedly rejected. Not only did they not have much of a representation, but Britain rarely included the colonies. This was called salutary neglect-where Britain tended to forget about Americca and not focus on them at all. Thomas Jefferson signed the Declaration of Independence in 1778, which was full of statements and reasons that justified why America should be separated- because they were rejected and still not represented properly. In this document it states that they relied on democratic consent of the governed. The imposed

Today we look back at the American Revolution and picture a united people fighting for inalienable rights, but to grasp the impact that Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” had upon his contemporaries we must understand the situation in the American colonies in 1776. When Paine wrote his pamphlet, the colonist and The Parliament in London, were almost 10 years into a debate over the rights of limited self-government by the colonies. In the months preceding the publication of Paine’s pamphlet the situation had steadily worsened until the April 19th, 1775 armed confrontation between Massachusetts colonists and British Army soldiers. By the end of that day, blood had been shed by both sides, and armed colonists placed the British garrison in Boston under siege. Despite this violence, most colonists viewed the events as a part of a struggle between Englishmen that would be resolved with the continued allegiance of the colonies to the Crown, but with more favorable treatment from London. It was with this popular mindset throughout the colonies, that Paine would deliver his “Common Sense” pamphlet arguing for complete independence from England. Paine understood that to make his argument resonate he needed to appeal to the public in a manner that had yet to be done.

Thomas Paine believed that the US needed independence mainly for three reasons. First of all, the US had larger land than Britain. Britain wanted the resources from the US to build the mainland of Britain. Also the Britain government was fighting with the colony people. Thomas Paine thought that it was unfair if the British fight with them and take resources from them at the same time. If they got chance to be fully independent, they can trade their resources with other countries in the world and became powerful. Secondly, he thought if they did not break with Britain, they would not able to get help from other countries in Europe because other countries did not want Britain to be the most powerful country in Europe. If they broke with Britain, other country will help them to fight against Britain. Third reason was they just want to be an independent country. They did not want to be ruled by other people anymore.

Americans desperately fight against the poison of tyranny with their best weapon, the Constitution. During the Colonial Period, King George III, demanded many things from the colonists. These demands were caused by the aftermath of the French and Indian War. England had increasing debts, so the king raised the taxes of both America and England. The increase of taxes caused anger to rise from the Americans, which allowed a roll of events to unfold. After many harsh exchanges between the colonists and King George III, America declared its independence on July 4, 1776. Soon after the declaration, things began to heat up as fight over representation in government began to be more debated.

Enlightenment ideas helped the Americans fight against British rule and create a new nation. With the fight for their new nation came the Declaration of Independence. This document is based on the beliefs of John Locke. John’s teachings mostly focused on self-government and natural rights. John Locke Believed that everyone was created equal with the same three natural rights. The Declaration of Independence argued for natural rights and equality as well. The Declaration of Independence was influenced by Locke’s idea of Equal rights and self-government. They liked the idea of a Democracy, the rule of the people. The United States’ Declaration of Independence states. The American colonist separated from Britain because King George 3rd was not governing the people correctly. For example, he created “Taxation without Representation”. Taxation without Representation is when the American Colonist were being taxed unfairly. John Locke believed the government was there to protect the people, and if they were not being protected they have the right to rebel against the ruler. This is exactly what the American colonist did. The document by the colonies declaring separation from Britain, stated. John Locke’s beliefs of self-government influenced the colonies to rebel and become it’s own

In result of The Seven Years’ War Britain controlled American trade and territory. In order to pay for the expenses of the war several taxation acts and military presence were implemented such as the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Currency Act, Quartering Act and the presence of British troops at the colonies. Consequently, Americans who thought these actions violated their political and constitutional liberties opposed these policies with petitions, boycotts, and resistance strategies known as the Imperial Crisis. In January 1776 Thomas Paine’s Common Sense was composed to convince Americans of the need for independence from British rule and establishment of democracy. This pamphlet

Not all were in favor of the American revolution and becoming fully independent of America. Charles Ingles believed that the Revolution was not worth the cost and that American would not be able to thrive economically with out Britain’s support (Doc. 6). Although there were loyalists who denied that Britain and the Colonies should separate, there were many Patriots who believed America and Britain should split. Thomas Paine was a revolutionary and a patriot. After the Continental army suffered losses, Paine tried to emotionally invest Patriots and colonists to join the Revolution and serve their country. Paine declares that soldiers who serve their country now deserve the love and thanks of all, and, “Britain, with an army to enforce her tyranny, has declared that she has a right (not only to tax) but to ‘bind us in all cases whatsoever’” (Doc. 7). Paine is trying to influence the importance of serving as a Patriot in the American Revolution because of Britain’s control over the colonies. The conflicting viewpoints on the American Revolution made people evolve their idea of American independence because of the different arguments and ideas of other individuals and groups. Although there were those that opposed, the American Revolution brought change to that because people began to recognize themselves as Americans, and more groups of people, such as woman, began getting involved in the effort to push out Britain. The view of American independence began shifting towards full independence from

In attempt for the Americans to prevent any further deaths, they created the Olive Branch Petition. The Olive Branch Petition was written by John Dickinson, a Pennsylvania delegate. He stated the desire to remain loyal to the British crown, King George III, he asked the king to address the colonists complaints and in return the colonists promised to lay down their weapons when their grievances were addressed. King George III rejected the Olive Branch Petition and declared the colonists in rebellion. Parliament then passed the Prohibitory Act which closed American ports to over seas trade, and allowed the Royal Navy to seize American ships at sea. Many colonists still didn't want to break away from Britain. Officers toasted the king's health, merchants were afraid they would lose money, and people were afraid they would be put to death for rebelling against the crown. Thomas Paine published a pamphlet anonymously the title being, Common Sense. This pamphlet argued reasons for America to break away from Britain. This pamphlet rejected the idea of a monarchy and hereditary aristocracy, promoted the idea of a representative government, and called for unity in the struggle for independence. Also in the pamphlet, Paine argued that a monarchy was dangerous, men were born equal so no family had the right to rule over anyone else, and that Britain had taken advantage of Americans and taxed them unfairly. Paine suggested America think of themselves as a separate nation. He believed it was America's destiny to become independent, wanted American people to hold the power, not a distant monarch, and suggested election processes and establishment of a constitution. Common Sense was popular in the colonies; sold around 120,000 copies in a 3 month period, was also read aloud in public places, changed attitudes of Americans about independence, also helped shape the Declaration of Independence.

The American Revolution was not only a battle between the British and the colonists; it was a historical movement that brought about new ways of thinking. The ideas of liberty and equality began to be seen as essential to the growth of the new nation. The separation of the American colonies from the British Empire occurred for a number of reasons. These reasons are illustrated in the Declaration of Independence. Although Thomas Jefferson wrote the document, it expressed the desire of the heart of each colonist to be free of British rule. British rule over the colonies became unbearable in the early months of 1776, making it clear to the colonists that it was time to either give in

“In the following pages I offer nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense…” (Paine, 455), the opening line of a book which changed a nation. The renowned American author Thomas Paine writes this straightforward sentence with one task in mind, persuade the American people to declare independence from Britain. Discussing the controversy between the separation of England and the newly formed America 's, the author conveys that America must not only isolate herself from England, but America must also reject a monarchical government. Emphasizing that “Now is the seed-time of Continental union, faith and honor,” (Paine, 456), Paine stresses the urgency of the topic, that what is written must come to pass in the near