Difference between revisions of "Thomas Paine"

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*"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." from '' The American Crisis‎'' (1776)   
 
*"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." from '' The American Crisis‎'' (1776)   
  
* "He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself." (1795)</ref>Paine, "Dissertation on First Principles of Government," ''The Writings of Thomas Paine,'' ed. Moncure D. Conway, vol. 3, p. 277 (1895).</ref>
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* "He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself." (1795)<ref>Paine, "Dissertation on First Principles of Government," ''The Writings of Thomas Paine,'' ed. Moncure D. Conway, vol. 3, p. 277 (1895).</ref>
  
 
*"To say that any people are not fit for freedom, is to make poverty their choice, and to say they had rather be loaded with taxes than not." (1792)<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=a5YIAAAAQAAJ&pg=RA7-PA12&dq=paine+%22any+people+are+not+fit+for+freedom%22&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=1923&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES  ''Rights of Man'' online]</ref>
 
*"To say that any people are not fit for freedom, is to make poverty their choice, and to say they had rather be loaded with taxes than not." (1792)<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=a5YIAAAAQAAJ&pg=RA7-PA12&dq=paine+%22any+people+are+not+fit+for+freedom%22&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=1923&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES  ''Rights of Man'' online]</ref>

Revision as of 21:15, May 12, 2009

Engraving of Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine (1737-1809) was a political writer born in Thetford, England, whose came to America in 1774. His pamphlet "Common Sense" in 1776 was a major cause of the American decision to declare independence in 1776. At a point when the war was going poorly General George Washington ordered that Paine’s inspirational "American Crisis" (1776) be read to his troops before the Battle of Trenton. Paine supported the Revolution, although he believed it did not go far enough. He briefly lived in the rebelling colonies before returning to Europe in time to take part in the French Revolution. His later writings promoted Deism and were highly controversial

Quotes

  • "Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value." from The Crisis (1776)
  • "These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman." from The American Crisis‎ (1776)
  • "Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." from The American Crisis‎ (1776)
  • "He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself." (1795)[1]
  • "To say that any people are not fit for freedom, is to make poverty their choice, and to say they had rather be loaded with taxes than not." (1792)[2]
  • "Those words, “temperate and moderate,” are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing, moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; but moderation in principle, is a species of vice."[3](1895).
  • "The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which other rights are protected. To take away this right is to reduce a man to slavery, for slavery consists in being subject to the will of another, and he that has not a vote in the election of representatives is in this case." (1795)[4]

Works

His works include:

  • Common Sense - published in 1776, which challenged British authority over the colonies and spoke to the common people[5]
  • The Crisis - a series of articles published 1776-77 during the American Revolution[6]
  • The Rights of Man - published in 1792 in support of the French Revolution[7]
  • The Age of Reason - published in three parts (1794, 1795 and 1807), an anti-religious text[8]

Bibliography

  • Foner, Eric. Tom Paine and Revolutionary America (1976). ISBN 978-0195174854
  • Kaye, Harvey J. Thomas Paine and the Promise of America (2005). excerpt and text search
  • Philp, Mark. "Paine, Thomas (1737–1809)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,online edn, May 2007
  • Wood, Gordon S. Revolutionary Characters: What Made the Founders Different (2006). ISBN 978-0143112082 by a leading conservative historian excerpt and text search

Primary sources

References

  1. Paine, "Dissertation on First Principles of Government," The Writings of Thomas Paine, ed. Moncure D. Conway, vol. 3, p. 277 (1895).
  2. Rights of Man online
  3. Paine, "Letter to the addressers on the late proclamation against seditious writings." in The Writings of Thomas Paine, ed. Moncure D. Conway, vol. 3, pp. 94–95
  4. Paine, "Dissertation on First Principles of Government," in The Writings of Thomas Paine, ed. Moncure D. Conway, vol. 3, p. 267 (1895).
  5. http://www.ushistory.org/paine/commonsense/index.htm
  6. http://www.ushistory.org/paine/crisis/index.htm
  7. http://www.ushistory.org/paine/rights/index.htm
  8. http://www.ushistory.org/paine/reason/index.htm