Thomas Paine wrote Common Sense, the influential 1776 pamphlet advocating independence from Great Britain.
Published anonymously in Philadelphia on January 10, 1776, the 47-page pamphlet used direct language rather than the formal style common in political writing of the period. Paine argued that hereditary monarchy was unreasonable and that the American colonies should establish a new republican government.
Common Sense circulated widely through printed copies, newspapers, taverns, and public readings. Its arguments helped make independence a subject of mass political discussion at a moment when many colonists still hoped for reconciliation with Britain. Paine later wrote The American Crisis pamphlet series, which supported the revolutionary cause during the war.
Readers sometimes confuse Common Sense with the Declaration of Independence. They were different works: Paine’s pamphlet was a persuasive argument for separation, while Congress’s Declaration formally announced separation. Both appeared in 1776 and helped shape the political language remembered during America250.