How Did Thomas Paine Write Common Sense Revolutionary

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Common Sense was considered by some to be one of the most influential works of the revolutionary time period. The fifty page pamphlet was written by Thomas Paine, an English immigrant, who moved to America recovering from failure, was a non-pacifist Quaker, became a newspaper editor, and possessed what some considered to be radical ideas and values. Just one of these ideals was the inhumanity of slavery. He wrote Common Sense to express an idea to those common colonists who were rebelling against or were frustrated with the tyrannyof the British government. Paine also wished to reach those who were still on the fence and undecided about rebelling against the government. Paine did not write Common Sense to provide reasoning and justification …show more content…
While most of the major themes of Common Sense had already been introduced through writers and philosophers, such as Locke and Montesquieu, Paine saw that the common man would find it difficult to grasp the concepts these men spoke of unless they were expressed in simpler terms. The more average people that supported the idea of independence from Britain the more likely it was that it would become a reality. However, Paine not only wanted to use simpler terms but also forceful and persuasive language. He wanted people to know, from the beginning, where he stood on the issues, “Arms as the last resource decide the contest; the appeal was the choice of the King, and the Continent has accepted the challenge”meaning there is no other choice besides the colonies versus the …show more content…
A Native American may have been quite anxious to read Common Sense. The British government had limited colonial expansion, forbidding colonist from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. Free colonies would mean more white settlers encroaching on land that they had already fought twice for. In contrast, a Frenchman, who may have read the article, might have been excited at the idea of a war between Britain and the colonies. A war would further weaken the British Empire and as Paine states, “it is the interest of all Europe to have America a free port,” meaning a free America would mean the ability to trade freely with other nations and not just Britain. The ethical issue of whether or not to reconcile with Britain is the major theme of Common Sense. The document presents arguments both for, albeit used rhetorically, and against the issue of reconciliation. Obviously, Paine is soundly for the separation of the colonies from the British Empire. He presents many arguments which include Britain causing the wars the colonists have fought and specific examples of why the government the people are under cannot be trusted. The city of Boston is but one of these specific
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