13thomas Paine - Common Sense and The Crisis - Video & Lesson Transcript

1/3/2019 Thomas Paine: Common Sense and The Crisis - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.
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Thomas Paine: Common Sense and The Crisis
Lesson Transcript
Thomas Paine was an in uential writer during the American Revolution. In this lesson, we'll explore the content
and style of two of his most famous pamphlets and how they helped shape American history.
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine wasn't supposed to amount to much. Born in England in 1737, he failed out of
school by the time he was twelve. He worked as an apprentice for his father, a corset-maker, but
failed at that too. He became a sailor and failed. So he became a tax o cer and failed.
No one thought Thomas Paine would amount to much, but in 1774, he met Benjamin Franklin, who
helped Paine immigrate to America. There, Paine's life took a dramatic turn when he began to write
pamphlets encouraging Americans to ght for their independence against England. His pamphlets
became so popular that a larger percentage of the population read them than now watch the
Super Bowl! Let's take a closer look at two of Paine's most popular and in uential pamphlets,
Common Sense and The American Crisis.
Crisis
Common Sense
Common Sense was published anonymously in January 1776 and gained immediate popularity. It
was a call-to-arms for the American Revolution in which Paine encourages Americans to go to war
to gain their independence. At the time, the question of American independence from the British
was still an undecided issue. Common Sense swayed public opinion widely in favor of independence
and helped to spark the revolution.
The pamphlet is divided into four sections. The rst section explains why government is necessary,
and that the ideal government is either run directly by the people or indirectly via elections. He
then criticizes the English monarchy and aristocracy for ruling without representing the people.
The second section focuses in more closely on the concept of monarchy, and the English monarchy
speci cally. Paine opens this section by making a Biblical case against monarchy. He points out, for
example, that all men are created equal in the eyes of God, and that the distinction between the
monarchy and commoners is a false one. He then goes on to point out all of the problems that the
British monarchy has brought to that country.
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In the third section, Paine lays out his proposal for a new American government. In it, each colony
would send representatives to a congress that would rst draft a new charter for America, and
then, eventually, run the country by electing a president and making and enforcing the laws of the
land.
Paine proposed the formation of a new government in the pamphlet Common Sense.
The nal section promotes the idea of an American military and how powerful Paine believed it
could be. This supported the idea that America should insist on revolution, even at the cost of war.
For Paine believed that America could quickly raise a military to rival England's and ensure their
victory in the Revolutionary War.
Paine wrote in a simple and straightforward style in Common Sense, and the results were
astounding. Instead of writing for the educated elite, he reached out to the common man and
made government and revolution accessible to even the least-educated of America. Even people
who could not read were able to hear Common Sense read aloud at public gatherings. As a result,
more people than ever became passionate about revolution.
The American Crisis

But, once Americans were invested in the idea of revolution, what was the next step? Paine
followed Common Sense with a series of other pamphlets published during the American
Revolution, between 1777 and 1783. During this time, Paine traveled with the Continental Army,
but wasn't very good as a soldier. However, his pamphlets inspired both the army and the common
people of America during the war.
In total, Paine published sixteen pamphlets that collectively are known as The American Crisis.
Crisis Like
Common Sense, Paine did not publish The American Crisis under his own name, instead opting for
the pseudonym, Common Sense, which linked these pamphlets to his earlier popular pamphlet.
The rst sentence in the rst pamphlet in The American Crisis is one of the most famous lines
written by Paine, 'These are the times that try men's souls.' He goes on to say that fair-weather
revolutionaries might take away their support now that the war had begun and was bloody, but
that true patriots would continue to ght for their cause and their country, and would be
celebrated and thanked by all Americans.
1/3/2019 Thomas Paine: Common Sense and The Crisis - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com
Paine's take on what he called 'the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot' was a smart way to
start the pamphlet. As the Revolutionary War became a reality, many Americans despaired at how
they were outnumbered by the British. It would have been easy for any of them to give up and quit,
but Paine wanted to convince them, and the rest of the colonists, to continue to ght, to not give up
and to prevail.
Thomas Paine believed the war could be won if the colonists did not give up.
Once again, Paine's style was simple, and his pamphlets were meant for the average American.
They became popular amongst soldiers and civilians alike, and helped to inspire a nation to keep
ghting the war, despite the force of the British military. Paine argues that God is on the side of
America and that with the proper application of force, the American military could nd victory over
the British. Eventually, they did.
Lesson Summary
Thomas Paine was a famous writer during the American Revolution. His pamphlet Common Sense
was written for average Americans and helped spark the Revolutionary War. When the war was
underway, he wrote a series of sixteen pamphlets collectively known as The American Crisis,
Crisis which
encouraged Americans to keep ghting for their freedom from England.
Learning Outcome
After watching this lesson, you should be prepared to identify Thomas Paine as well as summarize
the content and style of his pamphlets, Common Sense and The American Crisis.

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1/3/2019 Thomas Paine: Common Sense and The Crisis - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.

Thomas Paine: Common Sense and The Crisis

The American Crisis

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