Thomas Paine Themes

Thomas Paine, born 1737 in Thetford, England, was the son of a Quaker while his mother was part of the Church of England. Paine never received a higher or secondary education like many of his contemporaries writers and political activists, but he had always been compassionate about social and public welfare. He worked a humble job as a tax collector in England, and seeing the misery of the working class first-hand, he was aching for a social and political reform. He immigrated to North America in 1774 after a few personal situations that left him seeking a new reform. His humanitarian ideals can be seen in his pamphlets, the first one being “The Case of the Officers the Excise” published in 1772. His first published pamphlet was subsequently

In fact, he urged for a “Declaration of Independence” to give the colonists freedom and sovereignty from the tyranny they had to endure under the reign of King George III. His pamphlet “The Age of Reason: Of Myth and Miracle” emerges two significant key themes in which he urges the public to gain religious freedom and gives way to the first tenants of a democratic government. His ideas and desire for change are carried out well beyond his means and had a profound effect on the future of America. To begin with, the first visible key theme in “Of Myth and Miracle” in Paine’s pamphlet is religious freedom for the population of North America, including and not limited to the colonies. In the past, many settlers fell under the strictly religious practices of the Church of England which was mainly a Protestant church. Moreover, a newly found group known as the Puritans emerged off the Church of England in order to convey stricter, traditionally orthodox, and more “pure” methods of practicing religion. Although Martin Luther was popular amongst the Puritans for his spiritual and social views, conflicts between religions were still present. Paine’s main focus in his pamphlet “Of Myth and Miracle” is to verbalize that everyone has the

The two main key themes in “Of Myth and Miracle” still have a profound effect on the American society today, as he offered a critical and logical viewpoint on controversial topics for the first time to the newly Americans. In the time of the American Revolution, minds were filled with hope and desire for change and new freedoms that settlers did not experience before. To illustrate, Danea Brack explains in her thesis paper “Daniel Hannan, Thomas Paine, and the Rhetoric of Outrage” that, “Without a doubt, powerfulness was the most demanding and yet rewarding part of my analysis of Common Sense”(47). It is profound that a document so many centuries old can still produce an emotional reaction in readers today as it gives an insight into the past on how our society today formed. Equally important, Paine, also called the “Forgotten Founding Father”, boldly and straightforward appeals to the public for a change and to think rationale about forming a new political institution. Paine addressed not only the religious freedom but also showed that all man are urged to explore the depth of their own thought to gain a free mind. This unity just is outlined in the “Declaration of Independence” and wherein 1892 the phrase “one nation under God” was added. The central idea of Paine’s writings are to prevent the religious institutions to