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Thomas Paine, a seminal figure in American History, was an Englishman by birth who immigrated to America in 1774, where he quickly took up the cause of the independence of the American colonies from England. His famous work "Common Sense", published in 1776, helped to gain public support for the American Revolution and established him as a central figure among the founding fathers. Later, while living in France during the French Revolution, Paine was dismayed by the increasing political radicalism of the revolutionary movement. In response he wrote the first part of "The Age of Reason" in…mehr

Produktbeschreibung
Thomas Paine, a seminal figure in American History, was an Englishman by birth who immigrated to America in 1774, where he quickly took up the cause of the independence of the American colonies from England. His famous work "Common Sense", published in 1776, helped to gain public support for the American Revolution and established him as a central figure among the founding fathers. Later, while living in France during the French Revolution, Paine was dismayed by the increasing political radicalism of the revolutionary movement. In response he wrote the first part of "The Age of Reason" in 1794, with two more parts published in 1795 and 1807. In this influential and controversial work, Paine turns his attention to a philosophical examination of Christianity. Paine lays the foundation of his Secularist Deist philosophy and argues that God is real but that the Bible is not the word of God and is merely a human work that is flawed and inaccurate. Paine further contended that Jesus was not divine, rejected belief in miracles, and argued the world was governed by the laws of nature. Paine criticized organized religion as power hungry and corrupt and advocated for religious tolerance and freedom of thought. Accessible, clever, humorous, and far ahead of its time, "The Age of Reason" continues to resonate with readers today. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.
Autorenporträt
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.