Thomas Paine

Broschiertes Buch

Rights of Man (Aziloth Books)

Being An Answer To Mr. Burke's Attack On The French Revolution

Beschreibung

Thomas Paine was an English reformer who emigrated to the American Colonies and in 1776 published 'Common Sense', a hugely influential tome that swayed many colonists to reject British rule. During the French Revolution of 1789, Paine became an honorary French citizen, but was later imprisoned, narrowly escaping the guillotine when the symbol of execution was inadvertently placed on the inside, rather than the outside, of his cell door. Paine's 'Rights of Man was' written as a rebuttal to the anti-republican 'Reflections on the Revolution in France' by Edmund Burke. Paine carefully deconstructs the absurdities of monarchy and aristocratic privilege, contrasting them with the logical and equitable tenets of republicanism. Presaging modern-day advocates of 'small government' Paine holds that effective society predates big bureaucracies, that government is legitimate only with popular consent, and that "a great part of... government is mere imposition". Considered shocking and seditious at the time, Paine's beliefs have since become widely accepted throughout western democratic societies.

Autor

Thomas Paine (February 9, 1737 - June 8, 1809) was an English-born American political activist, philosopher, political theorist, and revolutionary. He authored the two most influential pamphlets at the start of the American Revolution and inspired the patriots in 1776 to declare independence from Great Britain. His ideas reflected Enlightenment-era ideals of transnational human rights. Born in Thetford in the English county of Norfolk, Paine migrated to the British American colonies in 1774 with the help of Benjamin Franklin, arriving just in time to participate in the American Revolution. Virtually every rebel read (or listened to a reading of) his powerful pamphlet Common Sense (1776), which crystallized the rebellious demand for independence from Great Britain. Common Sense was so influential that John Adams said: "Without the pen of the author of Common Sense, the sword of Washington would have been raised in vain". Paine lived in France for most of the 1790s, becoming deeply involved in the French Revolution. The British government, worried by the possibility that the French Revolution might spread to England, had begun suppressing works that espoused radical philosophies. Paine's work, which advocated the right of the people to overthrow their government, was duly targeted, with a writ for his arrest issued in early 1792. Paine fled to France in September where, despite not being able to speak French, he was quickly elected to the French National Convention. The Girondists regarded him as an ally. Consequently, the Montagnards, especially Maximilien Robespierre, regarded him as an enemy. In December 1793, he was arrested and was taken to Luxembourg Prison in Paris. While in prison, he continued to work on The Age of Reason (1793-1794). James Monroe, a future President of the United States, used his diplomatic connections to get Paine released in November 1794. In 1802, he returned to the U.S. where he died on June 8, 1809.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Aziloth Books
• Seitenzahl: 194
• Erscheinungstermin: 9. September 2014
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 229mm x 152mm x 11mm
• Gewicht: 290g
• ISBN-13: 9781909735620
• ISBN-10: 1909735620
• Artikelnr.: 41624395