Common Sense was the 1776 pamphlet by Thomas Paine that argued publicly for American independence before the Declaration.
Published anonymously in Philadelphia in January 1776, Common Sense attacked hereditary monarchy and argued that the American colonies should become independent. Paine wrote in direct language intended for a broad audience rather than only political specialists.
The pamphlet helped move independence from a controversial idea into a subject of widespread public debate. It was sold and read across the colonies, and its arguments influenced public opinion during the months before Congress formally declared independence.
Common Sense was not the Declaration of Independence and did not legally separate the colonies from Great Britain. It was a persuasive political pamphlet. Paine later wrote The American Crisis, a different series of writings published during the Revolutionary War.