The radical pamphlet that helped incite the American Revolution
Penguin presents a series of six portable, accessible, and--above
all--essential reads from American political history, selected by
leading scholars. Series editor Richard Beeman, author of The Penguin
Guide to the U.S. Constitution, draws together the great texts of
American civic life to create a timely and informative mini-library of
perennially vital issues. Whether readers are encountering these classic
writings for the first time, or brushing up in anticipation of the 50th
anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, these slim volumes will serve as a
powerful and illuminating resource for scholars, students, and
civic-minded citizens.
Common Sense is the book that created the modern United States, as
Paine's incendiary call for Americans to revolt against British rule
converted millions to the cause of independence and set out a vision of
a just society. Published anonymously in 1776, six months before the
Declaration of Independence, Common Sense was a radical and
impassioned call for America to free itself and set up an independent
republican government. Savagely attacking hereditary kingship and
aristocratic institutions, Paine urged a new beginning for his adopted
country in which personal freedom and social equality would be upheld
and economic and cultural progress encouraged. His pamphlet was the
first to speak directly to a mass audience--it went through fifty-six
editions within a year of publication--and its assertive and often
caustic style embodied the democratic spirit he advocated.
