Shabbat Reading: Thomas Paine's Common Sense

#whatireadovershabbat Thomas Paine's Common Sense (1776; Penguin Classics, 2015)

It's remarkable what a K-through-PhD education in these United States will let you get away with not ever reading. I'm confident I read selections from Common Sense during that span of schooling. The whole thing? Never.

And what a shame that it was never assigned, because here, in the fewest pages possible, Paine sketches the main themes of the American Revolution—and the character of the United States itself thereafter. Common Sense is historical study, fierce polemic, and impassioned personal plea, all at once. The centuries have dimmed our feeling for the circumstances, but Paine’s appeal still rings loud and clear and true.