Thomas Paine And The American Revolution Essay

Thomas Paine and the American Revolution It would be difficult to imagine the world today, without having had the influence of the United States of America. At a time in history, where there is much discourse about the ills that the American society has wrought upon the world, perhaps it would be of benefit to take a moment to reflect upon the positive. This young country, the birthplace of liberty, may have ugly scars on its history, but it also has been the most influential force for freedom and peace that the world has ever known. Had the colonists not rallied behind the idea of independence from British rule, the world as we know it would be a very different place. Perhaps, one of the single-most important pieces of American literature, a fifty page pamphlet called “Common Sense,” written by Thomas Paine, an English-born immigrant, who had no formal schooling past the age of twelve, created a turning point in the American Revolution, by eliciting a response from its readers that stoked the fires of independence, and gave birth to this great nation.
Thomas Paine (1737-1809) was an English-American, political philosopher, and activist who helped shape many of the ideas that marked the Age of Revolution. Born in Thetford, in the county of Norfolk, he attended the Thetford Grammar School until the age of 13, when he became the
The colonists that gave voice to the idea of independence were mostly muted, as dissenters were considered traitors to the crown, and many of them, upon being captured, were tortured and hanged. Paine published his pamphlet, “Common Sense,” in January of 1776, while working as an editor for the “Pennsylvania Magazine.” It was in this pamphlet that he was able to crystallize sentiment among the colonists, for independence from Britain. (Editors,