Preparation Questions for Common Sense  Hist 1210

 

  1. What were Paine’s criticisms of the English Monarchy and Constitution?

 

  1. What form of government did Paine want in America?

 

  1. Who do you believe was Paine’s intended audience?

 

  1. What was Common Sense to Paine?  What were the arguments he made that made “common sense?”

 

  1. Why was Paine against reconciliation with the British Crown?  At what point was it too late to reconcile differences between American and Great Britain?

 

 

  1. What were Paine’s opinions about the future of American trade?

 

  1. How did Paine use the concept of a parent/child relationship to the one between America and Great Britain?

 

  1. According to the Declaration of Independence, What were inalienable rights?

 

  1. If Inalienable rights were not protected, what right did the people have as stated in the Declaration?

 

  1. What reasons did the Declaration of Independence give justifying American independence?