Analysis of "Common Sense"

I have always heard about the common sense pamphlets that were circulating during the revolution, in history classes throughout the years but I have never been interested in reading them. Now that I had to read them I am glad I did. The words that Thomas Paine had to say were very motivating and interesting. While reading them I wanted to get up and do something to help shape the government into a better one for today’s world. I didn’t understand all of it because it was written in old English but I understood enough of it because he wrote it in a way that the common person of that day would be able to understand. He brings up some very good points about how absurd it is to think the king to be wiser then all other people, how there were no kings according to the early scripture, and how God disproves of having kings and calls having kings a sin of the Jews.

It is very absurd to think that a man, as equal as everyone else, could be any wiser then a man who owns a farm or works in a carpentry shop. God made all man equal according to the scriptures and man himself has no right to declare him more powerful then all other men. The king is shut off from the world and has no idea how things are so he/she has no knowledge of what should be done which is what complicates the whole thing. Although this is one fact against kingdoms, absurdity is not the only valid one.

According to early scriptures there were no kings around. In fact there were no kings for 3000 years, until the Jews requested one, and everything ran smoothly. Having no kings meant no wars; according to Thomas Paine “it is the pride of the king that throws mankind into confusion”, causing wars. In fact Holland had no king around this time era and they had enjoyed more peace than any other monarchial government in Europe in that past century, according to Thomas Paine.

Not only does it not mention having kings in the early scriptures but it is mentioned that having kings is a sin of the Jews and that God highly disproves of the matter. Scripture says that “government which is so impiously prerogative of Heaven”. Thomas Paine mentions that kings were first introduced to the world by Heathens. “It was the most prosperous invention the Devil ever set on foot for the promotion of idolatry. They started out paying great respect to their dead kings and it evolved from there into worshiping the living kings.

Thomas Paine uses all of these facts to attack his enemies. He put down their way of government in every way he knew how and in turn he got a lot of support from the colonists. The things he mentions in his pamphlets are not only riveting to the colonists but they are true which is what hurt the British government’s chances the most.

Common Sense Website