Government is Not Society
Paine begins his pamphlet by outlining what he feels is an essential lesson in common sense too easily misunderstood. This misunderstanding, in turn, is what feeds the misconception among those resistant to rebellion and revolution against England.
“Some writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction between them; whereas they are not only different, but have different origins. Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness.”
Demonizing Monarchy
Paine outlines his argument for American democratic revolution against England like a prosecutor. He begins by setting up a historical record for the creation of the monarchical system which had been the established—and only—form of government for almost all of civilized history. Being the effective propagandist that he is, however, he tweaks the dry factual march of history with an appeal to the emotions that is nothing less than startling:
“Government by kings was first introduced into the world by the Heathens, from whom the children of Israel copied the custom. It was the most prosperous invention the Devil ever set on foot for the promotion of idolatry.”
God's Country
Still on the subject of the evils of monarchy, Paine builds upon the Puritanical conception of the New World as god’s promised land for Christians. In the process, he quite possibly becomes the first writer in America who has routinely—whether warranted or not—been termed an atheist to situate a revolution against the British crown as God’s will:
“In short, monarchy and succession have laid (not this or that kingdom only) but the world in blood and ashes. ’Tis a form of government which the word of God bears testimony against, and blood will attend it.”
Aristocracy
Monarchical government eventually evolved outward into the system of aristocracy; a system in which the worth of a person is determined at the moment of birth based on nothing but papers of hereditary lineage. Paine finds this an especially vile combination of stupidity and malevolence and worthy of being stamped from the archives of history forever:
“It is not so much the absurdity as the evil of hereditary succession which concerns mankind…it hath in it the nature of oppression.”
Common Sense
When appeals to political ideology aren’t effective and when religious exceptionalism doesn’t bait the hook properly, the propagandist knows he always has one tool to rely on that is almost fool-proof. The appeal to the financial state of his target audience is just plain common sense in action:
“Europe is too thickly planted with kingdoms to be long at peace, and when- ever a war breaks out between England and any foreign power, the trade of America goes to ruin, because of her connection with Britain.”
