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Thomas Paine : Collected Writings : Common Sense / The Crisis / Rights of Man / The Age of Reason / Pamphlets, Articles, and Letters (Library of America)

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This book collects together Paine's Common Sense (which was instrumental in collecting and gathering America's attention to the benefits of strict independence from Great Britain); his letters or series entitled "the American Crisis," which galvanizes his previous topics; gives a brief account of his engineering work for arches bridges; provides another span of letters on his involvement in the French Revolution, and finishes with his Age of Reason, in which he examines and debunks the Bible. Though his reasoning and conclusions may alarm some and even offend others, his thinking and writing is lucid and cogent, and for reflective minds will provide much food for thought. Accused of sophistry and impudence by some of his contemporaries, his reasoning is normally sound and simple, as he inquires into the root of things, and only seldom does he make debating points fit only for the playground. A sensible and likable man, Paine's writing should engage any American for its historical sense, any lover or researcher interested in human rights and the hope of removing human misery, and any person interested in reading the entertaining but vital arguments of a man whose love of liberty and order forced him late in life to become one of America's most influential revolutionary and socially-minded voices.

A "must have" for any legitimate personal "library".

Paine's thoughts are important reading for every person who would call himself educated and versed in the history of ideas about how society should organize -- particularly "Common Sense" and "The Age of Reason". I myself would have included him in Stephen Covey's "Wisdom Literature" ("First Things First"). Carl Sagan cites him ("The Demon Haunted World") in support of his own reflections on "the God hypothesis".

COMMON SENSE speaks to form and purpose of government and was the pivotal Revolutionary pamphlet in which Paine disected and debunked the legitimacy of monarchy, giving voice to the growing feelings in the Colonies that being ruled by the King of England had become obsolete. Paine's articulation served to "tune" the chorused voices of the Colonies, which before his writing, were loud but out of tune. (War was underway, but the Colonies not well organized in a joint defense.) COMMON SENSE even has a refreshed relevance in the aftermath of the 9/11/01 tragedies in New York, as we re-examine some of our institutions.

THE AGE OF REASON will be disagreeable reading to devout followers of any organized religion -- particularly Christians -- as it is Paine's book-by-book disection and denunciation of the Bible (and, by extension, the "scriptures" of all other religions) as a collection of fables, nurtured through the ages for corrupt purposes of church leaders (starting hundreds of years BC). But, almost by definition, an educated person MUST acknowledge disagreeable ideas and THEN make disposition of them Once in a while "disagreement" is even persuaded to new thinking, n'est ce pas?.

This edition is a particularly excellent resource for these pieces and Paine's other writings. It is scrupulously based on the best discoverable versions, with meticulous notes documenting the sources.

The physical quality of the printing and binding is premium in every aspect, and will last for generations. Truly a "library" quality volume, far superior to the typical "best seller" construction.

Thomas Paine's greatness lied in his ability to take the abstract ideas of the American Revolution and make them graspable by all of his time, while infusing them with the moral passion that they truly deserved. Paine is one of the great masters of ideas taken into action.

His immortal opening of the "American Crisis" was like new fuel to a dying flame. "These are the times that try men's souls," he wrote, and his arguments for continuing the revolution reminded the patriots of the meaning of their fight. And Paine could not have been timelier-his words came at a time when the success of the revolution seemed much in doubt.

Perhaps more than any man, he breathed new life into the patriots though his keen analysis and moral passion. 225 years later, he still gives life to the idea of America, even as our freedoms come under increased threat.

Thomas Paine is required reading for any student of America who wishes to understand the ideas from which America was made real.

Thomas Paine was the most consistent and important of all the American Founding Fathers. He consistently spoke up in favor of liberty and freedom; for example, his opposition to the institution of slavery (which he argued was immoral and un-Christian and thought it quite contradictory to claim to be a Christian on the one hand and support slavery on the other hand) - Paine also spoke up in support of women's rights, freedom of thought, the poor, etc.

The important thing about Paine is that he practiced what he preached, as opposed to just about every other founding father (e.g., Jefferson saying all are "created equal" but owning slaves, or Adams "dismissing" his wife's assertion that they too should be included in the political process). I don't think we ought to condemn those individuals for the beliefs that they had, indeed they were products of their time period - and they are worthy of study. However, I also believe that we should praise those who were able to step out of that period and see things as they are, this is what Paine was able to do.

If you doubt Paine's importance in the history of American independence, consider the following; probably no other phamphlet brought the idea of independence to the mind of the colonists like Paine's "Common Sense" did and it was Paine's "Crisis #1" that was read to Washington's soldiers before they prepared for the biggest fight of the American Revolution. Paine's defense of the French Revolution in his "Rights of Man" sparked off a publication war that has yet to be matched and his "The Age of Reason" delineated the philosophical ideas that most of the founding fathers had with regard to religion (regardless of what the religious right would have you to believe).

Paine's mistake was not believing what most of the founding fathers believed, that the "common man and woman" was not intellectual enough to handle the arguments that he (and the others) were advocating. It was his consistency which brought about his downfall - this is a shame, because he is one of the most important thinkers to come out of the Revolutionary Period in American history.

This volume is of great value to anyone who's interested in the foundations of this country. Paine was far ahead of his time in so many areas, for example in his vocal criticism of slavery. This country owes a debt to him in the profound impact he had on those who wrote the constitution and declaration of independence. The closing work of this volume, The Age of Reason, was, for its time, a very courageous indictment of the bible. It was written toward the end of Paine's life. There have been many men of courage and conviction, but Paine also had a profound honesty and the gift of a great intellect which allowed to express his ideas clearly.
The binding, cover, and paper of this volume are of the highest quality. The volume is smaller than the typical bestseller hardback, both in length, width, and thickness. But its slenderness is due to high quality of the very thin paper--the book has over 900 pages. I liked its small size because it makes it comfortable to read.

When I started reading Common Sense I had a hard time because the text was so dense, but when I decided to read it aloud, the text came to life--it was like discovering Shakespeare. Actually, the second set of texts is a collection of about ten essays called "The American Crisis" (numbered 1-10), and I thought these were even better. In them Paine tries to convince the American public that Great Britain doesn't have a chance against the 13 Colonies. Sort of like the Iraqi Information Minister telling his people that the Iraqi's will "roast the American soldier's stomaches in hell", while American shells explode in the background, shaking the building he's speaking from. The oratory of other greats such as Jim Carvill and Muhammad Ali came to mind, too, but the text is so well written, as to approach Shakespeare.

"These are the times that try men's souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from service of his country; but he that stands it NOW, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph."

It's almost comical, in retrospect, because he address a few essays directly to the British General in charge, Sir William Howe. To the most powerful general in the world he says, "England was never famous by land; her officers have generally been suspected of a cowardice, have more of the air of a dancing-master than a soldier, and by the sample we have taken prisoners we begin to give the preference to ourselves."

He does make good points, but the abuse, both exaggerated and level-headed, just goes on and on. It was truly a pleasure to read. And even though the pages turned slowly, it just felt good to savor his words.

The book is about 800+ pages, so reading the whole collection like a novel is just too much work for most. The varied texts (about 35 in total) are arranged chronollgically, which is nice. Besides Paine's major works, Common Sense, The Crisis, the Rights of Man, The Age of Reason, there is also a nice smattering of smaller essays.

Additionally, there are very helpful footnotes in the back of the collection, but there are no numbers within the text; the notes are listed by page and line number.

The essays were written about very topical subjects, so it is most helpful to have done a fair amount of general reading before attempting to tackle Paine so you know what he is talking about, though the notes do help. There is also a very nice chronolgy of Paine's life in the back, as well.

It was an absolute pleasure reading these primary source texts. I understand now why Common Sense sold 120,000 copies within months of being published and what an essential role Thomas Paine played in keeping up the spirits of the colonists during the very discouraging early years of the War of Independence.

A previous reviewer commented on how the high-quality, super-thin pages made the text small, light-weight, and easy to read. I'd have to agree.

Before reading the Collected Writings of Thomas Paine, I understood very little about him. Though his language and vocabulary are a little dated, his deep wisdom and understanding of the human condition shines through remarkably as if he were alive today. If only he were. What would he think of our current state of affairs? The best part of the collection has to be both parts of The Age of Reason. If this isn't required reading in school, it should be. If you've forgotten what it means to be American, then read and re-read this book.

This anthology offers a wide survey of Thomas Paine's writings, including the complete series of articles on "The Crisis" and the whole of "Rights of Man" and "Age of Reason." Through these writings, one gains a self-portrait of Paine in all his strengths and weaknesses. Some of his deficiencies stand out markedly in "Age of Reason," where his attempts to discredit what he calls "the stupid texts of the bible" actually highlight his own misunderstanding and the gaps in his education (which was largely self-achieved). His natural wit comes to the fore in his superb Revolutionary War propaganda pieces ridiculing the British generals who were then besieging the colonists. And his extreme bravery and committment to principle appears in his speech, when serving as a delegate to the French Assembly just as the Reign of Terror was beginning, pleading for the life of Louis XVI . Eric Foner has chosen the pieces well and supplies excellent notes, and the volume is up to the usual high typographical and binding standards of the Library of America. Highly recommended

Thomas Paine was an Englishman whose writings had a profound effect on the American Revolution and in the debate in the English speaking world on the French Revolution. This wonderful volume from the Library of America provides his major writings in one volume. Knowing these works is important to your understanding of what ideas were in circulation at the time of our founding and what was being debated on both sides of the Atlantic.

"Common Sense" takes on the idea of monarchy and of American Independence with arguments that amount to no more than common sense. Paine takes apart the idea that monarchy comes from God using the logic of the current English constitution and its internal checks wondering why a form that comes from God would need such a check. As for American Independence, he points out that a small island might need protection from a greater power, but why would a continent need protection from a small island. He also points out that our previous dependence on Britain is not reason to continue the relationship. Children begin as helpless babes, but do not drink milk forever. The time inevitably comes when the child must take its place in the world as an independent adult. There is much more to his arguments, but this gives you a sense of how he argues. This tract was printed many times and made a huge noise in the world.

"The Crisis" or "The American Crisis" is a series that reports on aspects of the War for Independence that began in December of 1776 when things were not going all that well for the Americans. The first in this series begins with the famous sentence, "These are the times that try men's souls." And goes on about the summer and winter soldier.

"The Rights of Man" is Paine's argument for the French Revolution and specifically taking on the arguments of Edmund Burke against what was going on in France after their Revolution. In my view, Paine is pretty much off the rails here, especially when he lists the rights declared by the French. For example, compare number three of these declarations with the American notion that man is sovereign whose rights are given him by God. The French say, "The nation is essentially the source of all sovereignty; nor can any INDIVIDUAL, or ANY BODY OF MEN, be entitled to any authority which is not expressly derived from it." Oy. Anybody see tyranny justified in that one?

In "The Age of Reason" Paine takes on sectarian religion and all orthodox Christianity, which Paine does not like. He advocates a Deism as superior to all religions. Sigh.

Anyway, these are important essays and had a big impact in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and are a part of our history. Students of our history need to know these works.

This fine edition also has notes on the text and a chronology of Paine's life.

Mr Foner has put together a wonderful collection of the major writings of Thomas Paine. I would recommend this book to any open minded person who seeks truth. Thomas Paine clearly in the space of a few sentences states his position on a number of topics including religion in language that is both eloquent and powerful.