Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine

Biography• January 29, 1737• Thetford, England• Poor family• Short, basic education• Age 13 apprenticed to his father= corset-maker• Went to sea-age 19• Customs collector in London- discharged twice• First wife dies• Second wife legally separate• No children• Unemployed and poor • Socially connected

• 1774-Met Benjamin Franklin in London• Franklin advises Paine to emigrate to America• Paine goes to Philadelphia

Writings

• The Case of the Officers of Excise– Higher wages

• Co-editor of the Pennsylvania Magazine– African Slavery in America

• Common Sense• American Crisis• Rights of Man• Age of Reason

Common Sense

• Propaganda• Pamphlet-unbound printed booklet• Independence from Britain• Strong federal united country• Attacked monarchy and inherited privilege• Widely circulated • Urged colonists to support the American

Revolution

“Now is the seedtime of continental union, faith and honor. The least fracture now, will be like a name engraved with the point of a pin on the tender rind of a young oak; the wound would enlarge with the tree, and posterity read in it full grown characters. “

Simile

“This new world hath been the asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty from every part of Europe. Hither have 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. “

PersonificationMetaphor

American Crisis

• Series of pamphlets• Encouraged the Continental Army during the

worst parts of the war• George Washington reads to soldiers• Bold and clearly written

American Crisis

• Attacked the faint-hearted• More efficient federal and state tax system to

pay for war• Declared Britain would eventually recognize

American independence

Life after the American Revolution

• Once American gains independence, Paine leaves for Europe

• Spends time trying to invent smokeless candle and building an iron bridge

• Spends time in Britain and France• Works as a revolutionary propagandist for

France and Britain in 1790’s

Rights of Man• Most influential work• In reply to Edmund Burke’s attack on the French Revolution• Urges political rights for all men because of their natural

equality in the sight of God• Only a democratic republic could be trusted to protect

equal political rights for all men• Argued for a whole program of legislation to deal with the

condition of the poor• Forced to leave Britain• Condemned and declared an outlaw

Rights of Man

• 1792- becomes French citizen• Elected to the National Convention• Not influential to the National Convention

(could not speak French)• Victim to the Reign of Terror and spent time in

jail

The Age of Reason• Wrote while in prison• Declared that nature was the only form of divine revelation• Says God exists independently from the world and has no

interest in it• Rejected Christianity• Denied that the Bible was the word of God• Condemned many of the Old Testament stories as immoral• Verbally attacked Christian churches• Preaches deism• Makes him have many enemies• Called the Atheist’s Bible by those who disagreed with him

The Age of Reason

• First sentence:– “I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for

happiness beyond this life.”• Not considered very radical ideals today

• 1802- President Thomas Jefferson arranges for Paine to return to the United States

• Americans resent him for his opinion on religion• Not considered a hero for his role in the American Revolution

when he returns• During last years of life Paine is poor, sick, an alcoholic, and a

social outcast• Dies on June 8, 1809• Buried on his farm in New Rochelle, New York• 10 years later his remains moved to England• Location of his grave unknown

• All of his achievements made through his writings

• Political influence was greatest in England (Rights of Man)

• Caused Britain to:– eventually allow all men have an equal claim to

political rights – Allow the government to rest on the ultimate

sovereignty of the people

Other Achievements

• Soldier in 1776• Helped create a democratic constitution for

Pennsylvania• Secretary to the Congressional Committee of

Foreign Affairs

Study Guide Questions

Synecdoche

• A figure of speech when say a part meant to represent a whole

• Crown= monarchy

Hero of the American Revolution?

• Urges Americans to support the American Revolution (Common Sense

• Encourages Continental Army during the American Revolution (American Crisis)

Writing Style• Use opinion • Sounds reasonable• Makes ideas more appealing by adding emotion• Takes a reasonable idea and convincingly exaggerates that idea:“The Sun never shined on a cause of greater worth.” Common

Sense• Revolution=great importance“We have it in our power to begin the world over again.” Common

Sense• Seems personal