Compare And Contrast Declaration Of Independence And Common Sense

661 Words3 Pages

Christopher Troyer
Mrs. Foster
ACP US History
19 September 2017
Two Men, One Idea
The Declaration of Independence and Common Sense may have more in common than you think. Thomas Jefferson was a well educated man with a background in law. He attended the Second Continental Congress where he wrote The Declaration of Independence. Thomas Paine was a great writer and was the editor of the Pennsylvania Magazine. Paine was strong in his beliefs and wrote Common Sense. The Declaration of Independence and Common Sense are two well known documents that share remarkably similar ideals regarding the ongoing crisis in America, but they also have some differences.
Common Sense is a pamphlet consisting of forty-nine pages on why Paine believes the thirteen American colonies should break off from Great Britain. Throughout the Pamphlet, Paine creates a political argument in an attempt to rally the people together to fight for independence. On January 10, 1776, the piece was anonymously published and it was an instant sensation. Many colonists were wondering what they should do regarding Great Britain, and Common Sense encouraged many to think deeper into the idea of America’s independence. Today, Common Sense remains …show more content…

Both authors use the same techniques on sharing their opinions. They first express the same issue, which is Great Britain and the king. Then, they share their many reasons why it is a problem. One strong reason was government. In both documents they address the fact that if the government does not meet the needs of the people, the people have the right to replace them. A second is the Colonies tried to reconcile with the king, but he was simply unsympathetic and unresponsive to the needs of the people. The king continued to take away their rights as humans and they had enough of it. And finally, Paine and Jefferson present their solution of