Turning the Whole World Over: The Leadership and Legacy of Thomas Paine
Senior Division
Historical Paper
Paper Length: I ,786 words
3 February 2015
Period 6
Turning the Whole World Over: The Leadership and Legacy of Thomas Paine
"We have it in our power to turn the whole world over." (Paine, Common). This quote
from Common Sense was just one ofthe phrases political writer Thomas Paine used to convince
the American colonists to rebel against Great Britain in the 18th century. Though he is largel y
unappreciated by American people today, Thomas Paine's clear language and powerful skills of
persuasion in his piece Common Sense drove the American Revolution and changed political
journalism forever. Although this man could be considered one of the fathers of America, he had
surprisingly humble beginnings.
Thomas Paine was born on January 29, 1737 in Thetford, England. He was from a poor
family who could not afford to give him much formal education, so it was his parents who taught
him to read and write. At the age of thirteen, be became his father's apprentice in the business of
corset making, but he soon tired of this and skipped around from job to job. He married Mary
Lambert in 1759, but then both she and his child died in childbirth in 1760. To make matters
worse, his corset business failed soon after that. He had begun to think of his outlook as bleak,
but this changed when be met and befriended Benjamin Franklin in London, who suggested that
he come to the United States. After he arrived in Philadelphia in November of 1774, he worked
as the editor of the Pennsylvania Magazine and as an independent journalist.
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The tension between the colonies and Great Britain caught Paine's interest, so he began
to follow the attempts of resistance by the American colonies. At first, he thought that the
country was too weak for rebellion, but as the British government became more oppressive and
unjust, he became convinced that the only way for the country to progress was to completely
sever ties with Britain. It was then in January of 1776 that he published Common Sense.In this
revolutionary 49-page pamphlet, Paine suggested complete independence from Britain and a
unique, democratic government which would serve as a model to the rest of the world. Many
Americans still hoped for reconciliation with Britain, but Paine's pamphlet proved that
separation was inevitable. He expressed the necessity of separating from Britain by saying "Until
an independence is declared the continent will feel itself like a man who continues putting off
some unpleasant business from day to day, yet knows it must be done, hates to set about it, wishes
it over, and is continually haunted with the thoughts of its necessity." (Paine, Common).
Paine's pamphlet was different from others of its time because he used very clear and
direct language, which made it accessible to common people and intellectuals alike. Also, his
pamphlets were read aloud all over the colonies so that even people who could not read were
able to hear his ideas. The style of writing in Common Sense was completely new in the field of
political journalism. No political writers before Paine had included the common man in the
government; political debates were usually reserved for intellectuals. However, Paine proved that
common people had rights as citizens; they could form their own opinions about politics instead
of being just ignorant subjects of the government. This encouraged Americans to be more open
about their political beliefs. When they abandoned their partiality for their king and thought of
how the government was hindering their personal lives, they could see how oppressive their
mother country was. Political writers before Paine had never used political journalism to sway
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the public in this way, which makes modem historians consider Paine the father of contemporary
political journalism.
Common Sense was hugely successful. It went through 25 editions in one year and sold
about 500,000 copies. Newspapers such as the New London Gazette went wild with praise. ln an
editorial, it said "Your works, above all other political writings, have this peculiar virtue, they
convert [Loyalists] and, like Noah's ark, prove a covert for different species of animals. [People
from all walks of life] may meet in this common center and become one in the great cause of
liberty...sir, you stand high in the esteem of Americans, and unborn Millions will rise up and call
you blessed. America through your means will rise to Glory and Independence, and become the
envy as wel l as the admiration ofEurope, Asia, and Africa." (New). Another letter published in
the Pennsylvania Evening Post said, "If you know the author of COMMON SENSE, tell him he
has done wonders and worked miracles...his style is plain and nervous; his facts are true; his
reasoning just and conclusive...Sometime past the idea [of independence] would have struck me
with horror. I now see no alternative...Can any virtuous and brave American hesitate one
moment in the choice?" (Letter). However, not all Americans were united by Common Sense.In
A Loyalist Rebuttal to Common Sense,Charles Inglis calls Paine "a crack-brained zealot for
democracy", and writes, "I find no Common Sense in this pamphlet, but much uncommon
frenzy. It is an outrageous insult on the common sense of Americans, an insidious attempt to
poison their minds and seduce them from their loyalty and truest interest...1cannot persuade
myselfthat such fire and fury are genuine marks of patriotism...I am fully, firmly, and
conscientiously persuaded that our author's scheme of independence and republicanism is big
with ruin...with inevitable ruin to America...if America should now mistake her real interest, if
her sons should adopt this republican's scheme, they will infallibly...destroy this happy country,
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make it a scene of blood and slaughter, and entail wretchedness and misery on millions yet
unborn." (Inglis). But however much the Loyalists protested. they could not stop Common Sense
from taking hold of the colonies. Although many Americans were previously loyal to Great
Britain, Common Sense inspired them to rebel against their mother country and start a new
nation. On July 4, 1776, the American colonies went to war against Great Britain. In an extra
attempt to facilitate the war effort, Paine donated all of the royalties from the pamphlet to George
Washington's Continental Army after the Revolution started, saying "As my wish was to serve
an oppressed people, and assist in a just and good cause...the honor of it would be promoted by
my declining to make even the usual profits of an author.'' (Philip).
Common Sense was not the only pamphlet Paine wrote to unify the people. In the years of
1777-1783, Paine published a series of pamphlets called American Crisis. Paine used these
pamphlets to inspire Americans and unite them against Britain with passages such as "These are
the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis,
shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks
of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with
us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph." (Paine, American). George
Washington liked the pamphlets so much he had them read to his troops to increase morale. As
thanks for his service to the country, Paine was appointed the secretary of the Foreign Affairs
Committee by the Continental Congress in April 1777 and served the position for two years
before the Committee forced him to resign because of an information leak.
After the Revolution ended, the Continental Congress awarded Paine a farm in New
Rochelle, New York and 500 pounds for his troubles, as he had earned no profits from his
pamphlets. He lived there fairly comfortably until he traveled back to Europe in 1787 and
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became involved in the French Revolution. While imprisoned in France for his radical political
beliefs, he wrote Age of Reason. This controversial pamphlet presented Paine's deism, or doing
what one believes makes a good person instead of accepting an established religion. He
proclaimed that his own mind is his church, and he believed that Jewish and Christian churches
terrified and enslaved mankind. He thought that men should be able to form their own
conclusions about religion instead of having a belief system forced upon them. His criticism of
the Bible and Christian churches greatly angered religious Americans. When Paine returned to
America in 1802, he found that his former friends now shunned him and spread inaccurate
rumors that he was an atheist. He had very little money, and now his friends and colleagues
dismissed him as too radical and refused to associate with him. Shunned by the country he
helped to create, Paine died alone on June 8, 1809, at the age of72. Although this man was one
of the fathers of America, he died largely forgotten and friendless, and only six mourners
attended his funeral. Paine always served his country to the best of his ability, but after his death,
hardly anyone cared or remembered him. In the words ofW. J. Linton, in Linton's Comments on
Paine's Habits, "I always considered Mr. Paine a gentleman, a pleasant companion, and a goodnatured and intelligent man...this man, still pointed out to abhorrence as a coarse, brawling,
brandy-tippling reviler of religion, was indeed a gentleman, a high-souled man of genius and
philanthropic purpose...a notably good man; and known now in the mud flung at him by
calumniators, and heaped again by those who care not to learn the truth concerning him."
(Linton).
Thomas Paine was a brilliant journalist and an exceptional leader during the American
Revolution. Though he risked his life to free the United States, he was forsaken by his friends
and denied political rights that he ensured every citizen of his country could have. In the words
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of Thomas Alva Edison, "We never had a sounder intelligence in this Republic. He was the equal
of Washington in making American liberty possible..." (Edison). Paine's ideas were popular
with the American people because he believed that people could think for themselves instead of
being just servants to the government. In the words ofHarvey Kaye, expert on the life ofThomas
Paine, Paine believed "that the common people... could be citizens and not merely subjects. That
people had it within themselves not only to listen to their superiors, but literally to speak to each
other and deliberate and govern themselves." (Kaye, Harvey). Paine's powerful persuasive skills
and clear unadorned style was a brilliant leap in his field, and he is often said to be the father of
contemporary political journalism. Paine's genius in political journalism left a profound legacy on
America, and without him, we would not be the great nation we are today.
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Annotated Bibliography:
Primary Sources:
Adams, John. The Adams Papers' Diary and Autobiography of John Adams. 1807. Print.
This book describes how John Adams fel t about Thomas Paine. Even though he was
highly respected at first, Adams later shunned him for his religious views. This source
helped me because it allowed me to see how people thought of Paine after the
Revolution.
Inglis, Charles. A Loyalist Rebuttal to Common Sense. 1776. Print.
This pamphlet is a rebuttal to Common Sense by the extreme loyalist Reverend Charles
Inglis. This source helped me because it shows that there were some people who greatl y
opposed fighting for Liberty and were still content under British control.
Letter. 6 Feb. 1776. TS.
This is a letter from Maryland which was published in the Pennsylvania Evening Post.
The source greatl y helped me because it gave me a better idea of Paine's writing style and
the effect he had on the American people.
New-London Gazette [New London] 22 Mar. 1776. Print.
This is an excerpt from a newspaper article in the New-London Gazette praising Thomas
Paine and Common Sense. The source greatly helped me because it gave an idea of how
the public responded to Paine's ideas.
Paine, Thomas. Age of Reason. London, 1794. Print.
This is a pamphlet by Thomas Paine expressing his radical religious views. This source
helped me a lot because it helped me understand why Paine was shunned for his religious
views.
- - -. The American Crisis. 1776. Print.
This is the first essay of a series which Thomas Paine used to inspire and motivate the
American people. This source helped me get a better sense of how Paine wrote and the
inspiring nature of his work. I will also quote this essay in my paper.
-- -. Common Sense. 1776.Print.
This is Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense. This source helped me a lot in my
research because it was very informative of Paine's political views. I will quote this
source in my paper to illustrate Paine's beliefs.
---.Republican Manifesto. Trans. Achille Duchatelet. 1791. Print.
This pamphlet describes some of Thomas Paine's views regarding French politics. The
source helped me because it gave me a better idea of what Paine did in international
politics.
---.Rights of Man. J.S. Jordan, 1791. Print.
Thomas Paine's book Rights of Man expresses his radical views on the French
Revolution. This source helped me because it gave me a better idea ofPaine's political
life after the American Revolution.
Upon Reading a Book Entitled Common Sense. 1776. Print.
This is a poem about how both sides of the issue were too extreme, and there needed to
be some common ground in the middle.It helped me greatly because all of the sources
I've looked at so far have been either by die-hard Patriots or Loyalists, but hardly any
moderate viewpoints.
--
Secondary Sources:
Belchem, John. "Thomas Paine: Citizen of the World." BBC History. BBC, 17 Feb. 2011. Web.
29 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/britishlempire_seapower/paine_Ol.shtml>.
This website discusses how Paine's works on politics and religion affected the world. The
website was really helpful to me because it helped me analyze his legacy both in America
and Europe.
Blythe, Bob. "Thomas Paine (1737-1809)." The American Revolution. National Park Service, 4
Dec. 2008. Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.nps.gov/revwar/about_the_revolution/thomas
paine.html>.
This website is very informative and gives a biography of Thomas Paine's life. It
explains how Thomas Paine was monumental in America's fight for independence, and it
looks at the legacy he left behind.
Burton, Gary. Thomas Paine and the Declaration of Independence.TPNHA, 2014. Print
This is a very in-depth report that describes how Thomas Paine influenced the writing of
the Declaration of Independence. This source helped me because it allowed me to see
how Paine impacted politics at the time.
Digital History. 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/eracfm?eraiD=3&>.
This website gave me a lot of background information on the Revolutionary War. It
really helped me because it allowed me to see what else was going on in America as
Thomas Paine was writing his pamphlets.
/
Edison, Thomas Alva. The Philosophy ofThomas Paine. 1925. Print.
This report was very helpful to me. It describes how Thomas Paine has faded into
obscurity, and how he has been wrongfully ignored for years because of false rumors
spread about him by critics. I will probably use this in my legacy paragraph.
Fruchtman, Jack. '"Common Sense' and Its Meaning Today." Thomas Paine National Historical
Association. Philadelphia. 26 Jan. 2001. Speech.
This was an extremely helpful source that descri bes how Common Sense affects society
today. This source was very helpful to me, will probably use it in my legacy paragraph.
Katz, Jon. "The Age of Paine." Wired 1995: Print
This magazine article was extremely helpful, it gave a thorough summary of Paine's life
and explains his legacy on America today. This source will help significantly in the
legacy paragraph of my paper.
Kaye, Harvey. '"Common Sense' and the American Revolution." Firebrand of the Revolution.
Oxford UP, 2000. Print.
This was a very in depth book analyzing the events leading up to the American
Revolution, Common Sense's impacted on America, and the impact that Paine left on the
nation. This source helped me see the legacy that Paine left and how it impacts society
today.
Kaye, Harvey J., and Richard Brookhiser. "Celebrating Thomas Paine." Bill Moyers Journal.
PBS, 12 June 2009. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/06122009/profile2.html>.
This website gave an overview of Thomas Paine's life. While it was a little broad, it gave
me important information on Paine's legacy internationally.
Klemetti, Eet al. "Thomas Paine." US History.Ed. Thomas Kindig. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.ushistory.org/paine/>.
This website gives a brief biography of Thomas Paine, and also a list of his works.I
found this site to be very helpful in my research because it allowed me to see what
Thomas Paine did for America and the legacy he left behind.
Levernier, James A. "Thomas Paine: Overview." Gale Student Resources in Context. Gale, 2003.
Web. 26 Oct. 2014.
<http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/suic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?
This online database entry gave a general overview ofPaine's life, accomplishments, and
legacy in America. This source was excellent for the beginning of my research because it
gave me a lot of background information on Thomas Paine's life.
Linton, W. J. "Linton's Comments on Paine's Habits." Scribner's Monthly Nov. 1880: 32. Print.
This newspaper article describes Paine's personal life. It was a fairly helpful source, I'll
probably use it to give a brief description of Paine in my background paragraph. and in
my legacy paragraph to illustrate what people thought about Thomas Paine in the couple
years following his death.
O'Brien, Steven G. "Thomas Paine." ABC-CLIO American History. ABC-CUO, 2014. Web. 14
Oct. 2014. <http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/247606?
terms=thomas+paine>.
The reference article gives a general overview of Thomas Paine's life. Understanding
Paine's background and life accomplishments is a key part of grasping bow he impacted
the American Revolution. This was an excellent article for the beginning of my research
because it helped me understand what Paine did in his life.
--Philip, Mark. "Thomas Paine." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.2013. Print.
This is a very in-depth reference source that discusses Paine's life, his views on politics
and religion, and his legacy. The article was very helpful to me as I began to narrow
down my research.
Polin, Raymond. "Thomas Paine as Political Theorist." Thomas Paine's Birthday Celebration.
Memorial Building of the Thomas Paine National Historical Association. 29 Jan. 2000.
Speech.
This was a helpful speech that gives a brief summary on Thomas Paine's life and explains
how he was largely unrecognized after his death. I will probably use this source in the
legacy paragraph of my paper.
---."Thomas Paine's Legacy of Equality." Thomas Paine Day. New Rochelle, NY. 4 June 2000.
Speech.
This speech was pretty helpful, it analyzes Thomas Paine's life and legacy. I will
probably use this source in the legacy paragraph of my paper.
ScWereth, Eric R. "Paine, Thomas." World Book Advanced. World Book, 2014. Print.
This reference source gives a general overview of Thomas Paine's life and how he
impacted the American Revolution. The source was very helpful during the beginning of
my research when I was trying to get an idea of what Thomas Paine did in his life.
nThomas Paine." ABC-CLIO World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 29 Oct.
2014. <http://worldhistory.abc-clio.com/Search!Display/315455?terms=thomas+paine>.
This article details not only how Thomas Paine impacted America, but how he swayed
events in Europe. The source helped me because it allowed me to learn more about how
Paine influenced the French Revolution and how his legacy even stretched overseas.
--"Thomas Paine.'' Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.biography.com/people/thomas-paine-9431951#final-years>.
After giving an overview of Thomas Paine's life, the article briefly explains Paine's most
influential works and analyzes how they impacted the Revolutionary Era. It also explains
how Paine's legacy was not immediately recognized, it was only until many years after
his death before he became a well-liked, popular figure. This article helped me
understand what Paine did inhis life, and how his writing impacted the world.