Common Sense Paper Project

Angel Petrossian
History 1010
The common Sense
Thomas Paines, in his Pamphlet, speaks of Society and
Government. He describes Society and Government as, Society is
produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former
promotes our happiness positively by uniting our affections, the latter
negatively by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse,
the other creates distinctions. The first is a patron, the last a punisher.
He moves on to talk about monarch and hereditary succession.
He believed that people were born in the state of equality and having
kings and rules was unnatural. Paine talks about how we were born
without kings and our own evil doings has made the Gods angry to put
us in a situation to be governed by kings. He supports that by evidence
in the Bible.
He also disagrees just because this nation stated by the help of
the Britain that we have to forever stay loyal and under their rulings.
He believed that Britain protected America only out of economical
interest to its own nation.

Many believe that the essay written by Thomas Paine, Common

Sense, had considerable effects on accelerating the American
Revolution. This pamphlet was written at a time that majority of the

people had a positive and negative feelings towards fighting to become

independent and separated from Great Britain. Thomas Paine argued
in favor and made statements in favor of independence.
He wanted the people of America to feel and to reason the
importance of rejecting the king and becoming a democratic
government with officials elected by its own people. A very powerful
point that Paine tries to help the colonists understand is But there is
another and great 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. He tells us that we were born free
and there were not distinction amongst humans that made one more
superior than the other. The only distinction was gender, Good and bad
by Heaven; nowhere in the scriptures it talks about one race of people
being so much more superior to empower over another race.
He mentions in his writings that in the beginning of times there
were no kings, no wars, and it is the evil of man the pride of us all that
creates confusion and takes away the peace that people could enjoy.
Paine tries to help people understand that just because one nation help

the rise of another, does not give them the right to rule unjustly over
the new nation.
Paine also brings to people attention that their ties to the Great
Britain, also brings enemies to America that are tied to Great Britain.
The result of cutting the ties with Britain is going to free the colonist
from the enemies that Britain has and we would no longer need the
protection from them. Being a part of Great Britain is what brought the
need of Protection in the first place.
The key themes in pains writings are:
1: Government is an unnecessary evil, Paine believed but
government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; He
brings to our attention that in the beginning according to the scriptures
there were no kings, and the government by kings was introduced by
the heathens and that it was the most prosperous invention the Devil
ever set on foot for the promotion of idolatry.
2. Our State of Nature, Paine talks about all men being equal, that no
one was give the right by God to rule over another being. The fact that
there is a distinction between Kings and subject is not one of nature.
3. The Problems with Monarchy; Paine attack Monarchy in Biblical
terms by saying Monarchy was originated in sin , He also mentions
that if people decide to practice the law of Monarchy that does not give
birth to hereditary succession. He believed that even if we had kings to

rule over us for a period of time does not give right to the son or heirs
of the king to succeed in their place and rule over the people.
4. American relationships with other countries, Paine believed that our
relationship with Great Britain also brought us the enemies they had,
and in separating ourselves from Britain, these enemies could become
allies. He believed our separation from Britain would bring us more
prosperity in conducting commerce with the rest of Europe.
Paines writings had a significant influence on the start of
independence of America from Britain. He believed as America breaks
their ties with Britain it will create more respect with the rest of Europe
and more allies, as well as unity within ourselves now since we are still
a small nation. This unity could be very difficult to achieve, as the
American nations grow bigger. He describes that a government should
be to promotes our happiness positively. He wanted to have the
American people to practice the Democratic Government principles to
protect our people, lives, property and happiness.
At the time that Paine wrote his paper the colonist were divided in
three main groups, on group that wanted their independence form
Britain, one group that felt because of the help from Britain they
needed to stay loyal to them, one group that were no decided which
way they wanted to turn. Paines explanations and reasons help people
to see the importance and urgency of their independence from Great
Britain.

Work cited
Paine, Thomas. Common Sense. Trieft ed. Dover Publication,
1997. Print.