Why did Thomas Paine Entitle his Pamphlet
When Thomas Paine, a Quaker from England, arrived at Philadelphia in 1774, he brought with him the spirit of English radicalism which would later help to shape the future of an emerging nation. As colonists struggled both physically to defend their rights and their land from England, they were also engaged in a moral battle. Whereas some colonists favored reconciliation with their "mother" country, there was a growing number who favored a break from the monarchy. By 1776, Thomas Paine felt that the time was right for him to provide a voice for the increasing number of discontented colonists. His anonymous pamphlet, Common Sense proved to be unbelievably successful in turning the tide of public opinion amongst the colonists towards an immediate break from England and towards independence. Although the pamphlet contained strong and highly reasoned arguments, much of its success in promoting independence rather than reconciliation was rooted in Paine's rhetorical strategy. The way in which the pamphlet is set up forces readers to make a clear choice between liberty (independence) or tyranny (reconciliation). By entitling his work Common Sense, Thomas Paine reinforces support for his argument for independen
What Thomas Paine lacks in subtlety he makes up for in persuasiveness. Furthermore, not only does Paine speak in an uncomplicated tone that can reach a wide audience, his words are full of passion, urgency and a sense of prophecy. As Paine begins to deal with the situation in the colonies, he declares that he offers, "nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense. On page 88 Paine produces a list of men who may support reconciliation. ce by implying that any dissenters lack common sense. He effectively utilizes imagery to appeal to the emotions of the readers. His tone is also one that provides a sense of hope to colonists who are involved in a tough time in the nation's history. " To those undecided colonists to whom Paine is addressing, very few would choose to consider themselves interested, weak or prejudiced and therefore are inclined to support independence. He uses this approach to take up each of the colonists' concerns regarding declaring independence. Nothing could be more fallacious than this kind of argument. " While inspiring the prospect of a free nation, Paine also links good citizens and the rights of mankind with independence. Divided into four basic parts that move from the general and the theoretical to the specific, Paine consistently writes in a format that presents an argument for reconciliation and immediately following strongly refutes that argument with sound reasoning for the contrary path, total and immediate independence from England. Overall though, despite his well-reasoned contentions, the success of Thomas Paine's Common Sense can be most clearly explained by its title. " But Paine's most effective rhetorical strategy lies in his ability to establish his argument for independence as the only logical solution to the existing problem. The arguments contained within Common Sense and the way in which they are structured not only pushed the undecided colonists over to the side of independence and had a significant impact on the establishment of the Declaration of Independence soon after, but even today his claims and the reasoning behind them remain relevant.
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