Thomas Paine’s 1776 pamphlet arguing for American independence in plain language was Common Sense.
Published anonymously in Philadelphia on January 10, 1776, Common Sense attacked monarchy and hereditary rule while arguing that the American colonies should become an independent republic. Paine wrote in an accessible style rather than the formal political language common in eighteenth-century pamphlets.
The pamphlet appeared when the colonies were still debating whether to seek reconciliation with Great Britain or pursue separation. Its arguments helped move public opinion toward independence during the months before the Declaration of Independence was adopted.
Common Sense was not the Declaration itself, and Thomas Paine was not one of its principal drafters. Paine later wrote The American Crisis series to support the Revolutionary War. The pamphlet’s influence is one reason it remains closely associated with the founding era commemorated by America250.