Thomas Paine
"Common Sense" author
Thomas Paine was an English-born American political philosopher and revolutionary whose pamphlets shaped the American and French revolutions. *Common Sense* (1776) argued for American independence in plain language that reached ordinary colonists. *The Rights of Man* defended the French Revolution; *The Age of Reason* attacked organized religion.
His directness made him influential and controversial—celebrated as a founding voice, later reviled for his religious skepticism.
Era prioritizing reason over dogma
- natural rightsFreedoms inherent to personhood
- social contractAgreement exchanging freedom for order
- republicanismGovernment by elected officials
- democracyRule by the people
liberty · equality · reason · progress · humanist · radical · constitutionalist · ethics
Author of short prose
- pamphleteerWriter of political tracts
- journalistNews profession practitioner
- polemicistAggressive debate writer
- political writerAuthor covering government affairs
propagandist · publicist · correspondent · prose · rhetoric · persuasion · pen name
Colonial separation from Britain
- French RevolutionLate-1700s republican upheaval
- activistVigorous cause champion
- agitatorOne who foments discord
- radicalRoot-indicating symbol
patriot · independence · insurrection · citizen · National Convention · Lafayette · Washington · Jefferson
Revolutionary War propaganda text
- tractArea of land
- broadsheetLarge-format serious newspaper
- propagandaBiased information for influence
- polemicAggressive argumentative discourse
revolution · independence · colonies · liberty · democracy · republicanism · tyranny · monarchy
Theist rejecting revelation
- rationalistOne guided by reason
- skepticOne who doubts claims
- secularistAdvocate for nonreligious governance
- anticlericalOpposed to church influence
agnostic · atheist · heretic · organized religion · superstition · reason · providence · freethought
Enlightenment
Era prioritizing reason over dogma
- natural rightsFreedoms inherent to personhood
- social contractAgreement exchanging freedom for order
- republicanismGovernment by elected officials
democracy · liberty · equality · reason · progress · humanist · radical · constitutionalist · ethics · popular sovereignty
essayist
Author of short prose
- pamphleteerWriter of political tracts
- journalistNews profession practitioner
- polemicistAggressive debate writer
political writer · propagandist · publicist · correspondent · prose · rhetoric · persuasion · pen name
American Revolution
Colonial separation from Britain
- French RevolutionLate-1700s republican upheaval
- activistVigorous cause champion
- agitatorOne who foments discord
radical · patriot · independence · insurrection · citizen · National Convention · Lafayette · Washington · Jefferson · Franklin
Common Sense
Revolutionary War propaganda text
- tractArea of land
- broadsheetLarge-format serious newspaper
- propagandaBiased information for influence
polemic · revolution · independence · colonies · liberty · democracy · republicanism · tyranny · monarchy · oppression
deist
Theist rejecting revelation
- rationalistOne guided by reason
- skepticOne who doubts claims
- secularistAdvocate for nonreligious governance
anticlerical · agnostic · atheist · heretic · organized religion · superstition · reason · providence · freethought
- American AuthorsMark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe, Twain, Poe, Hawthorne
- Colonial Americanacolonial laws, almanacs, Benjamin Franklin, William Bradford, Mayflower Compact
- Founding FathersGeorge Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison
- Deismfirst cause, clockwork universe, non-intervention, Voltaire, Jefferson
- American RevolutionDeclaration of Independence, Boston Tea Party, Continental Congress, founding fathers, Stamp Act
- ThomasTom Sawyer, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Tom Brady, Tom Jones
Thomas PaineKing George III
British ruler, late 1700s
Alexander Hamilton · John Adams · Benedict Arnold · Thomas Hobbes · Napoleon Bonaparte
Thomas PaineKing George III
British ruler, late 1700s
Benedict Arnold · Tory · courtier · royalist