Thomas Paine

Common Sense

First published January 9, 1776; excerpted from The Spirit of Seventy-Six, 1995

"Everything that is right or reasonable pleads for separation. The blood of the slain, the weeping voice of nature cries, ' 'Tis time to part.'"

Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine (1737–1809) first arrived in the American colonies from England in November 1774. This was the same year the Intolerable Acts were passed by Parliament to punish Boston and all of Massachusetts for dumping British tea into Boston Harbor (the Boston Tea Party, December 1773). The Intolerable Acts closed the Port of Boston, gave the British-appointed governor of Massachusetts complete control of town meetings, ordered that British officials who committed major crimes in the colonies would be tried in Great Britain, and required that the colonists house British soldiers in dwellings belonging to private citizens. Boston was suffering from the closure of its port, and the colonies were in an uproar. Colonists wondered who would be next to feel the wrath of Parliament. To show their support and sympathy for Massachusetts, in September 1774, twelve of the thirteen colonies had sent delegates to the First Continental Congress to discuss what to do about deteriorating relations with Great Britain.

In 1774–75, Americans were more or less divided into three groups on the issue of America's relationship with Great Britain. There were Loyalists, who wished to remain within the British Empire and be governed by Parliament and King George III (1738–1820). There were moderates, who saw that Parliament and the king were trying to exercise more control over America than ever before but hoped a compromise could be reached. And there were Patriots, who mostly still professed allegiance to King George but insisted that he recognize their rights to control their own government. Even though Paine was a newcomer and could not really call himself an American, he became a Patriot. However, Paine aligned himself with the very small group of Patriots who at that time wanted America to proclaim complete independence from Great Britain.

Born and raised in grinding poverty, Paine was a champion of the poor and downtrodden. One of his first published American essays was entitled "African Slavery in America." It established a reputation for him in a small way. Urged to use his talents in the cause of independence, he wrote perhaps his most famous work, Common Sense, and published it on January 9, 1776, a little over two months after America received the news that King George considered the colonies to be in a state of rebellion. By the time Paine's pamphlet was published, America and Great Britain had already been fighting for eight months. They would fight another six months before America was able to make a final break and declare its independence. Paine's Common Sense gave the more moderate Americans a strong push toward declaring independence.

Common Sense was a history of the dispute between America and Great Britain. It called for American colonists to rise up in rebellion against the British king who was attempting to enslave them and to proclaim their independence. The following excerpt shows that Paine criticized the very idea of a government of the aristocracy—a government run by people of a privileged class. Some historians say that Common Sense is not only the most brilliant pamphlet to come out of the American Revolution, it is one of the most brilliant ever written in English. Where other Revolutionary-era writers addressed the most educated people of the day, Paine spoke to ordinary men and women.

Things to remember while reading an excerpt from Common Sense:

• In Common Sense, Paine addressed those who still thought King George meant well toward the colonies but was being misled by his advisers into adopting harsh laws. Not true, according to Paine; the king was no better than his advisers and probably worse.
• Six months before Paine published Common Sense, in July 1775, the Continental Congress had appointed George Washington (1732–1799) commander in chief of a new Continental Army. Although hoping for peace, the Congress was preparing for war. Washington's army was made up of men whose terms of duty were to expire at the end of December 1775. He hoped for something dramatic that would inspire his men to reenlist. Common Sense would prove to be the drama Washington was looking for.

Excerpt from Common Sense

But there is another and greater distinction for which no truly natural or religious reason can be assigned, and that is the distinction of men into kings and subjects. Male and female are the distinctions of nature, good and bad the distinctions of heaven; but how a race of men came into the world so exalted above the rest, and distinguished like some new species, is worth inquiring into, and whether they are the means of happiness or of misery to mankind.

In the early ages of the world, according to the Scripture chronology there were no kings; the consequence of which was there were no wars; it is the pride of kings which throws mankind into confusion. Holland without a king hath enjoyed more peace for this last century than any of the monarchical governments in Europe….

Government by kings was first introduced into the world by the heathens, from whom the children of Israel copied the custom. It was the most prosperous invention the Devil ever set on foot for the promotion of idolatry. The heathens paid divine honors to their deceased kings, and the Christian world has improved on the plan by doing thesame to the living ones. How impious is the title of sacred Majesty applied to a worm, who in the midst of his splendor is crumbling into dust!

As the exalting one man so greatly above the rest cannot be justified on the equal rights of nature, so neither can it be defended on the authority of Scripture; for the will of the Almighty … expressly disapproves of government by kings….

[Paine then continues to speak about the evils of monarchy in general. He proceeds to speak specifically about monarchy in England, saying that while "England … hath known some few good monarchs … [it has] groaned beneath a much larger number of bad ones." He goes on to speak of the noble cause of American revolution, saying: "The sun never shined on a cause of greater worth." Paine then has much to say to those who favored patching things up with Britain. He ends his argument by asking and answering the question, Why is reconciliation good for America?]

I have heard it asserted by some, that as America has flourished under her former connection with Great Britain, the same connection is necessary towards her future happiness, and will always have the same effect. Nothing can be more fallacious than this kind of argument. We may as well assert that because a child has thrived upon milk, it is never to have meat, or that the first twenty years of our lives is to become a precedent for the next twenty. But even this is admitting more than is true; for I answer roundly that America would have flourished as much, and probably much more, had no European power taken any notice of her. The commerce by which she hath enriched herself are the necessaries of life, and will always have a market while eating is the custom of Europe….

But Britain is the parent country, some say. Then the more shame upon her conduct. Even brutes do not devour their young, nor savages make war upon their families; wherefore, the assertion, if true, turns to her reproach; but it happens not to be true, or only partly so, and the phrase parent or mother country hath been jesuitically adopted by the king and his parasites, with a low … design of gaining an unfair bias on the credulous weakness of our minds. Europe, and not England, is the parent country of America. This new world hath been the asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty from every part of Europe. Hither hath they fled, not from the tender embraces of the mother, but from the cruelty of the monster; and it is so far true of England, that the same tyranny which drove the first emigrants from home pursues their descendants still….

I challenge the warmest advocate for reconciliation to show a single advantage that this continent can reap by being connected with Great Britain. I repeat the challenge, not a single advantage is derived. Our corn will fetch its price in any market in Europe, and our imported goods must be paid for, buy them where we will.

But the injuries and disadvantages which we sustain by that connection are without number; and our duty to mankind at large, as well as to ourselves, instruct us to renounce the alliance: because any submission to, or dependence on, Great Britain, tends directly to involve this continent in European wars and quarrels, and set us at variance with nations who would otherwise seek our friendship, and against whom we have neither anger nor complaint. As Europe is our market for trade, we ought to form no partial connection with any part of it. 'Tis the true interest of America to steer clear of European contentions, which she can never do while by her dependence on Britain she is made the makeweight on the scale of British politics.

Europe is too thickly planted with kingdoms to be long at peace, and whenever a war breaks out between England and any foreign power, the trade of America goes to ruin, because of her connection with Britain. The next war may not turn out like the last, and should it not, the advocates for reconciliation now will be wishing for a separation then, because neutrality in that case would be a safer convoy than a man of war. Everything that is right or reasonable pleads for separation. The blood of the slain, the weeping voice of nature cries, "'Tis time to part." Even the distance at which the Almighty hath placed England and America is a strong and natural proof that the authority of the one over the other was never the design of heaven…. (Commager and Morris, pp. 286, 288–89)

What happened next …

According to Paine, Common Sense sold more than one hundred thousand copies in a few weeks (the total population of the colonies was about three million). Eventually, five hundred thousand copies were sold. In no time, nearly everyone had either read Paine's pamphlet or heard of it, and it was the topic of discussion everywhere. Public opinion in favor of a rebellion against Great Britain was given a huge boost by the publication of Common Sense.

Many men joined General Washington's army or reenlisted after hearing what Paine had to say. Washington noted: "I find Common Sense is working a powerful change in the minds of men." On January 14, 1776, Washington had 8,212 soldiers in his army. In June 1776, the British prepared to capture New York City and General Washington moved to block them. By that time, Washington had nineteen thousand soldiers, and by the end of August, he had twenty-seven thousand soldiers. (Writer Paul Johnson estimated that "at no point did [Washington's] total forces number more than sixty thousand soldiers.")

In England, reactions to Common Sense were favorable among those who already sympathized with the colonists. One such sympathizer was Edmund Burke (1729–1797; author of "On Conciliation," described earlier). Burke called Common Sense "that celebrated pamphlet, which prepared the minds of the people for independence." A London newspaper reported that even some Englishmen who had been violently opposed to the idea of American independence were converted by Paine's pamphlet. However, it did not deter King George and Parliament from their goal of putting down the rebellion in America.

Paine had concluded Common Sense with the bold suggestion that if America were an independent nation, it could seek help from foreign countries (who would be unwilling to help a country that was a dependent of Great Britain). In February 1776, even before American independence was declared, the Continental Congress sent Congressman Silas Deane (1737–1789) of Connecticut to ask France for help. Thus, Deane became America's first diplomat abroad.

Did you know …

• Paine's Common Sense was first published anonymously (without his name on it). Immediately a guessing game began. Could it have been written by Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) or Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)? John Adams (1735–1826) was another guess. Adams, a Boston lawyer and early leader of the Revolutionary movement, never liked Thomas Paine; he thought Paine was a troublemaker. About Common Sense, Adams wrote: "The Arguments in favour of Independence I liked very well." But Adams thought some of Paine's comments were "ridiculous," especially his arguments, based on the Old Testament of the Bible, that a monarchy was unlawful.
• Paine never accepted any payment for his published works because he said it would cheapen their value. But it hurt his vanity that no one knew who had written Common Sense, so when the second edition was published in January 1776, Paine signed it "by an Englishman."
• Thomas Paine was a self-educated Englishman, a rebel, and an inventor (a smokeless candle, an iron bridge). Historians say his sympathy for the poor and oppressed sprang from his Quaker upbringing. Quakers are members of the Society of Friends. The Society had a great deal of influence in colonial America. Members believed in peace, justice, charity, spiritual equality, and liberty for all.
• Thomas Paine was a great admirer of most Quaker beliefs, but he objected to their pacifism (pronounced PASS-uh-fizum), the belief that disputes between nations should and can be settled peacefully. In fact, he served as a soldier in George Washington's army for a short time before being appointed to a government post by a Continental Congress grateful for his writings on America's behalf.
• Thomas Paine was hugely successful in using the media to change people's minds. Today, the Thomas Paine National Historical Association (TPNHA) annually presents the Thomas Paine Award to a journalist whose work reflects Paine's ideals and commitment to free expression. As Paine said: "When opinions are free … truth will prevail." Past winners of the award include Mike Wallace (1918–), of the CBS News television program 60 Minutes; "Doonesbury" comic strip cartoonist/satirist Garry Trudeau (1948– ); CNN correspondent Charlayne Hunter Gault (1942– ); and New York Times columnist Anthony Lewis (1927– ).

Where to Learn More

Commager, Henry Steele, and Richard B. Morris, eds. The Spirit of 'Seventy-Six: The Story of the American Revolution as Told by Participants. New York: Da Capo Press, 1995.

Fruchtman, Jack, Jr. Thomas Paine: Apostle of Freedom. New York: Four Walls Eight Windows, 1994.

Meltzer, Milton. Tom Paine: Voice of Revolution. New York: Franklin Watts, 1996.

Paine, Thomas. Paine: Collected Writings. Edited by Eric Foner. New York: Library of America, 1995.

Thomas Paine National Historical Association. [Online] http://www.thomas-paine.com/tpnha (accessed on March 14, 2000).

Thomas Paine, a Lover of Mankind

Thomas Paine (1737–1809) was born in Thetford, England, on January 29, 1737, the son of a poor farmer and corset maker (a corset is a tight-fitting undergarment). He only attended school until age thirteen, then quit to work with his father. Not finding farming to his liking, Paine quit sometime between the ages of sixteen and nineteen and went to work aboard a privateer. A privateer is a privately owned ship authorized by a government during wartime to attack and capture enemy vessels. At that time England was at war with France. Paine had been brought up to believe in pacifism (the belief that disputes between nations should and can be settled peacefully). His service on the privateer marked a permanent break with that tradition of his youth. In those days, the officers of a ship exercised absolute power over crewmen. The cruelty Paine endured during his eighteen months at sea confirmed his early opinion that power corrupted the people who wielded it.

After leaving the privateer job, for the next twenty-four years, Paine worked a variety of jobs and was unhappy with them all. During these years, he lived in terrible poverty. His first wife died in 1760 and his second wife, whom he married in 1771, left him three years later because he could not support her. All the while, he was educating himself by reading books about politics and the natural sciences.

At some point, he met American statesman Benjamin Franklin in London, England, who suggested he go to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and look for work. In 1774, Paine took his advice and sailed for America. Using Franklin's name as a reference, Paine landed a job as a writer. A magazine published his essays attacking slavery and calling for the end of the slave trade. He received widespread recognition for this seventy-nine-page pamphlet Common Sense, published in 1776.

Paine spent the rest of the Revolution serving with George Washington's army and writing The Crisis Papers, thirteen pamphlets describing the progress of the war. The first was published in December 1776, during one of the darkest moments of the Revolution. It was the dead of winter, and Washington's troops were starving, freezing, and without adequate clothing.

Paine's words were stirring and seemed to have a miraculous effect on Washington's troops. They rallied and won surprise victories at Trenton and Princeton, New Jersey. Over the next seven years Paine continued to write and publish. His last Crisis Paper was published on April 19, 1783.

Paine seldom took money for his writings because he said it would cheapen their value. After the war was over, he held a number of political jobs and wrote on

political matters. The issues he embraced included the injustice of slavery, the inferior status of women in society, and the adoption of a strong central government. He also devoted some time to science and his inventions, including the smokeless candle and an iron bridge.

In the 1790s, Paine found himself caught up in quarrels over the French Revolution (1789–99), when the people of France revolted against their king, Louis XVI (1754–1793). Paine was enraged when British politician Edmund Burke wrote a book criticizing the people of France for their revolution. In response, Paine published The Rights of Man on March 13,1791. The book immediately created a sensation both in England and America.

Paine's book defended the French Revolution. The book offered an explanation of the reasons why Europeans were miserable, living as they did in desperate poverty, with no education. As he had done before the American Revolution, Paine spoke out against monarchy (absolute power of a nation by one person). He offered a plan for popular education, relief of the poor, pensions for aged people, and public work for the unemployed. England's leaders felt threatened by his proposals and feared his words would lead to a revolution. The British government ordered Paine's book banned and the publisher jailed. Paine himself was charged with treason, and an order went out for his arrest. But by then he was on his way to France. Paine was tried anyway, found guilty, and declared an outlaw.

In France, Paine was imprisoned for expressing his opinions but was rescued by James Monroe (1758–1831), the American minister to France.

During his last years, Paine continued to write. In one pamphlet, he criticized George Washington, by then a national idol. Many Americans were disgusted by that and he lost his popularity. He died in New Rochelle, New York, on June 8, 1809.