Thomas Paine - Philosopher Work [Between 16 -18]

Thomas Paine was a British-American philosopher, political theorist and one of the founding fathers of the United States. Paine participated in both the American and French Revolutions and in what he thought would be the English Revolution. During his lifetime, Paine was a British citizen, an American citizen and a French politician. Paine wrote in a lively, enthusiastic – and common – language. His theories and philosophies about royalty, the universal rights of man and of God were so enthusiastically supported or bitterly challenged during his lifetime that his funeral was attended by only six people.

Paine, an Englishman, was invited to Philadelphia to become an American citizen at the start of the American Revolution by Benjamin Franklin. Paine wrote a pamphlet, “Common Sense”, which may be the most-read book in American history. Not all of Paine’s ideas were new, but the pamphlet was read by revolutionaries or read aloud in taverns and battlefields alike. Paine argued that monarchs were imperfect and not the natural leaders of a nation, that all men had “transnational” or universal rights, and that rights such as taking up arms or voting should not be held only by those who had money or owned property. These were revolutionary ideas and Common Sense almost forced readers and listeners to pick one side or the other. To this day, his political and religious philosophies both bind and divide the political realities of the United States and the world.

While on Paris during the beginning of the French Revolution. Paine wrote “Rights of Man”, which defended the revolution which saw the execution of the king and queen and many aristocrats. Rights of Man advocated his previous transnational rights and went further by implying that large abuses sometimes called for drastic actions, if men were to establish both personal and political freedom.

While briefly imprisoned in France, Paine wrote The Age of Reason. Paine attacked all churches of all different beliefs as being corrupt, in favour of a direct relationship between each individual man. He also wrote pamphlets to the people of England to promote their own revolution led by Napoleon Bonaparte, until realizing that Napoleon did not want to free anyone but to become the Emperor of Europe.

The popularity of his philosophies in “Common Sense” led to some of them being written into the new United States Constitution. The need and the right to overthrow oppression suited the idea that a new nation could run itself by its own government instead of a king. The idea of universal rights to be free, to vote and to own property became the foundations of the United States. However, blacks would not be given freedom until the Civil War and are still persecuted today. Women would not get the vote or freedoms until the 20th century and are still not perceived as equal in many important respects, such as careers, pay or profession. Christianity is still a driving force in American politics. Americans and most people of the world are still waiting to accept many of Thomas Paine’s rights of man