The Effects of Thomas Paine's Common Sense

How important was it for America to gain its independence from England? Thomas Paine, an English radicalist, thought that it was extremely important. Important enough to write a pamphlet on why American Colonist should have independence. At the time, 1776, many Americans felt the same way about Paine's view on independence, but never took any action on it. Common Sense was published in 1776 as a way to engage people in certain political issues at hand. It was written by Thomas Paine to show that a break with England was only inevitable but justified. In Common Sense, Paine tries to convince people that the time for debate was over and that it was now time for American Colonists to raise …show more content…

Paine says that America's trade will always be a protection, and its barrenness of gold and silver secure it from invaders. Paine establishes that the king is the enemy, and that there is no advantages derived from bring connected with Great Britain. Paine argues that connection with Great Britain only involves America in wars with nations that would otherwise seeks its friendship. All of these things that Paine argues for independence are important, but not quite as important than the way he presents them, which in my mind is the reason why Common Sense was so influential. Paine uses such a bold style of writing that it is inspirational to the reader. He picks and chooses words that make the reader feel like he is involved in a way that induces the reader to feel obligated to do something about what is going on. This is a very persuasive style of writing that gives the American Colonists, as well as others, a feeling of anger and oppression. Educating this feeling, Paine is able to lead the reader to this raising of arms against Great Britain. Paine does this so well that he is able to criticize the king. No one had criticized the king publicly before. This gave people the feeling that they are not alone. If the information that Paine provided the American Colonists with was presented as just fact, then it would not have been enough to get people to join the uprising. Paine wrote Common Sense believing that he could