An Excerpt from, “The Crisis, No. 1”
"THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine
patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that
stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like
hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder
the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem
too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how
to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial
an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated. Britain, with an army to
enforce her tyranny, has declared that she has a right (not only to TAX) but "to
BIND us in ALL CASES WHATSOEVER," and if being bound in that manner, is
not slavery, then is there not such a thing as slavery upon earth. Even the
expression is impious; for so unlimited a power can belong only to God.
Whether the independence of the continent was declared too soon, or delayed too
long, I will not now enter into as an argument; my own simple opinion is, that had
it been eight months earlier, it would have been much better. We did not make a
proper use of last winter, neither could we, while we were in a dependent state.
However, the fault, if it were one, was all our own*; we have none to blame but
ourselves. But no great deal is lost yet. All that Howe has been doing for this
month past, is rather a ravage than a conquest, which the spirit of the Jerseys, a
year ago, would have quickly repulsed, and which time and a little resolution will
soon recover.
I have as little superstition in me as any man living, but my secret opinion has
ever been, and still is, that God Almighty will not give up a people to military
destruction, or leave them unsupportedly to perish, who have so earnestly and so
repeatedly sought to avoid the calamities of war, by every decent method which
wisdom could invent. Neither have I so much of the infidel in me, as to suppose
that He has relinquished the government of the world, and given us up to the care
of devils; and as I do not, I cannot see on what grounds the king of Britain can
look up to heaven for help against us: a common murderer, a highwayman, or a
house-breaker, has as good a pretence as he."
Paine, Thomas. "The Crisis, No. 1." 23 Dec. 1776. 7 Apr. 2008.<http://www.puc.edu/Faculty/Rosemary_Dibben/English11/NewNation/PaineCrisis1.pdf
Self-Reflection
The pamphlet written by Thomas Paine was a truly inspiring piece of work as it exemplified the struggles in which the white settlers were to encumber in their strive to achieve proper freedom from Great Britain. As I read the pamphlet of Thomas Paine, it was interesting to find the means of propaganda in which Paine integrated into his words in order to gain the support of all his followers. As the pamphlet deepened into its words, it became evident that Thomas Paine looked to encourage white settlers to fight in order to achieve freedom from the British Parliament. Such a piece of work truly exemplifies the hardships of white settlers and the development of patriots in order to achieve freedom for the new American Lands. Such actions took place primarily during the Puritan Era in which Britain was misusing its authority in order to gain money from the innocent white settlers. As I read the pamphlet I was inspired by the patriotic mentality that Paine presented towards the British as he did not falter from the threats of war. Within his speech, Paine appealed to logos by the use specific quotations to justify a point. Similarely he enforced the use of ethos by using a high vocabulary level in order to establisha point. Finally, Paine makes use of pathos as he uses figurative languagae in order to add power to the speech. He was keen upon initiated battalions in order to start a Revolutionary War to fight for freedom. Similarly I found myself evoking a mentality of angry as the British were only aggravating the difficult situations of the white settlers. The British did not look to provide support to the new white settlers, however, instead misuse the power they had in order to gain money. Such actions occur today—however, not as harsh— that require United States citizen to pay taxes in order to provide a stable income towards the financial aspect of the government. Overall, Thomas Paine’s pamphlet was a truly inspiring piece of work which ultimately looked to earn freedom for the white settlers.
Dear Diary,
March 3, 1622
Lately, I have seen many fliers expressing the words of a man name Thomas Paine. The apparent pamphlets seem to be named, “The Crisis, No. 1,” and have caught my interest. I have experienced many speeches; however, the powerful words set within this pamphlet are like no other. I truly agree with the words stated by Paine and how we are not meant to may such ridiculous taxes. It is up to this generation to provide a better life for our children and grand-children. Additionally Thomas Pain Implement God within his words, and therefore I do truly hope once again that god will always be on our side in this inevitable war. May god bless us all in our search to freedom from the evil British Parliament.
I myself truly believe we can win this war if we pray to god for the best of luck. I believe we must use our surroundings wisely in order to defeat the British. We may not have numbers on our side; however, we will always maintain the will to attain freedom! It is not my belief that we will win the war because we have better morals to go war rather that harvesting greed and corruption. I wish my family will be safe, as I would go to any extent in order to keep them safe from harm. May luck and success always be on our side!
-Edward Sumner-
A Pamphlet I found on the Ground
Essential Question Answer
Competition must be enforced in order to attain the American Dream, and therefore leaders may exercise powerful tactics towards humans in order to eliminate such a sense of competition. Such characteristics can be enforced by the powerful leader, Patrick Henry, who used powerful words in order to promote the advancement of white settlers in order to achieve freedom for the new lands of America. Henry suggested many tactics in his, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death,” speech as he looked to bring change to the American democracy and thus liberate the American citizens from unneeded payments and regulations. Likewise, another powerful leader, Thomas Paine, use propaganda in order to build up patriotism within the mentality of white settlers in order to start a Revolutionary War with Great Britain in order to achieve an undeniable freedom from taxes. Pane’s tactics encompassed the powerful words of Henry through the use of actions in order to promote freedom within the new American settlements built by white settlers. Furthermore, Pane looked to provide white settlers with an incentive to fight the war in order to provide a better lifestyle to their children as well as their grandchildren. Overall, it would seem that both men, looked to eliminate a sense of corrupt competition in order to pave a path to the American Dream in which every man desired.
2 comments:
Nikhil, your writing on Thomas Paine was fascinating because of your views on the war were similar in my opinion to many revolutionary heroes at that time. Your self-reflection current events correlation should be improved. However I believe that your diary entry was interesting and your emotions were similar to a patriot during the time. Your essential answer clearly answered the question in that the Revolutionary War was caused by the competitive nature that was enforced by the British and that the leaders had to take a stand in order to fulfill their dream of freedom. Overall everything regarding Thomas Paine was well identified and your writing seemed to intrigue by interest.
Thanks for your comments, I tried my best to take the position of an important speaker during the revelutionary period. I tried best to mimick the thoughts and actions in which speakers would take and therefore I based my self-diary entry on such a basis.
There was one comment in which you made regarding my modern day extension towards life in the twenty-first centry. Your concerns allowed my to realize that I should have been more indepth on my descriptions. Therefore as a result I have made minor changes to my post. Once again, thanks for your comments.
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