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Common Sense Rhetorical Analysis

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"Common Sense" was one of the most important pieces of literature in early America, because it was extremely influential to many people throughout all of American colonies. The colonist came to America to escape religious boundaries. They wanted to be able to worship God freely. Thomas Paine uses this to his advantage by using scriptural quotes, pathos, to convince his audience that it is common sense for the colonists to break completely with Great Britain. He says that "a monarchy is terrible, and to have a king is not only an unsuccessful way to rule a nation, but it is also a sin." Paine undermines the king in his writing by using rhetorical devices to help destroy America 's loyalty to the king. The monarchy can make anything look appealing …show more content…

He again uses pathos to try and persuade the colonist to fight for their independence. On page seven lines thirteen through fourteen he says "Such a power could not be the gift of a wise people, neither can any power, which needs checking, be from God". Paine wants the colonist to understand that no wise person would ever want to be ruled by a monarchy. He says "[no] power, which needs checking, [could] be from God", because if the subjects have to watch your every move to make sure you do not mess up your doing something wrong. Therefore the colonist will stop being loyal to the …show more content…

He dates back to the early day before there there was a king or government. He uses these facts/statistics to show the colonies what it was like. On page nine line four through eleven he says “In the early ages of the world, according to the scripture chronology, there were no kings; which throw mankind into confusion. Holland without a king hath enjoyed more peace for this last century than any of the monarchical governments in Europe. Antiquity favors the same remark; for the quiet and rural lives of the first patriarchs hath a happy something in them, which vanishes away when we come to the history of Jewish royalty.” He says that without a king we would be so much happier. It must be the government that makes us

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