How Did Thomas Paine Put America On The Road To Revolution

The author Thomas Paine wrote a book that put America on the road to revolution. It was so memorable, the morals and topics discussed in the book, were included in the Constitution. Thomas Paine lived in New York from 1737 to 1809. At this time America was still a British colony and Paine wrote a book called Common Sense which discussed Representative Government and Republicanism, which was a show of open rebellion against the king. It one of the first books to openly suggest breaking free from Britain. And because it was written in a simpler style and was easily readable, it played a major role in persuading people to break from the British. The article states “being empowered by the people will have a truly legal authority” (Common Sense). This shows Representative Government and Republicanism. “being empowered by the people” means the people put the representatives into power which is what America was built off of. Our Founding Fathers liked Thomas Paine's idea and included aspects of it into the Constitution. For example, it states, “shall be composed of two Senators from each State… and each Senator shall have one Vote” (Constitution). This means, the people vote and chose the senators and the senator's vote and create laws that follow the people’s morals. Voting plays a massive role in the United States governing the system. It also gives the people the decision of how the country should be run, and that is Representative Government, which is exactly what Thomas Paine promoted in Common Sense. Having a representative government also allowed Americans to have rights. Our Founding Fathers were even influenced by their own creations. When America first broke away from Britain they made the Articles of Confederation which was, a loose union of all the 13 states. The Northwest Ordinance was a law made by the Articles of Confederation and is considered the only good thing that came from it. It established how new states would be apart of the union, and what classifies a state and a territory. It was made because of the massive expanse westward into areas around Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin. In one part of the Ordinance, it discussed the right to Trial by Jury. This concept was included in the Constitution. The Northwest Ordinance states, “The inhabitants of the said territory shall always be titled to the benefits of the writ of habeas corpus, and of the trial by jury” (Northwest Ordinance). This means that all states and territories have the right to trial by jury. Trial by Jury means that anyone accused of a crime they would have an impartial jury, and a fair prosecution. This compares to Article 7 in the Constitution. Which says primarily the same thing. The Constitution states, “the right of trial by jury shall be preserved,” (Constitution). During the time that this Amendment was created, King George could punish any …show more content…
Take the Federalist Papers, for example, they were written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay, urging the ratification of the Constitution after the Articles of Confederation were abolished and America was searching for a new government. They proposed new ideas and concepts not otherwise considered during this time period, one of those ideas was Checks and Balances in government. Federalist Paper no. 51 states, “It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices (checks and balances) should be necessary to control the abuses of the government” (Federalist Paper no. 51). King George abused his power on the British throne. This aggravated his citizens and eventually lead to the colonies breaking free from Britain and forming America. The Federalist Papers were written shortly after the revolution, and many people like Alexander Hamilton wanted to make sure the government doesn’t become too strong. Checks and Balances make sure one branch doesn’t become too powerful. This concept of one branch controlling another is in the United States Constitution today. This is because of the influential people, like Alexander Hamilton who thought up the concept, also helped build the Constitution. It states, “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States… The executive Power shall be vested in a President… The judicial Power of the United States shall be