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Thomas Paine: How a Revolutionary Hero Became America’s Outcast
Season 3 Episode 5
Did you know the man who wrote Common Sense, the pamphlet that inspired Americans to fight for independence, died alone with only six mourners at his funeral? In this episode of This Constitution, Savannah Eccles Johnston and Matthew Brogdon unpack the fascinating and tragic story of Thomas Paine, a man who helped spark the Revolution but couldn’t find a home in the nation he helped create.
They follow Paine’s incredible journey from a struggling English immigrant to one of the most gifted writers of his generation, standing shoulder to shoulder with Franklin, Jefferson, and Hamilton whose words gave the colonies a sense of identity and purpose. Common Sense and The American Crisis didn’t just rally troops; they shaped what it meant to be American. But the same bold, uncompromising spirit that made him a hero would also turn him into an outcast.
Savannah and Matthew trace how Paine’s time in France, his open attacks on George Washington, and his controversial book The Age of Reason, where he challenged organized religion, left him alienated and forgotten. Was he a patriot or just a perpetual revolutionary? This episode dives into that question and reminds us how someone can be absolutely right for their moment in history yet completely lost in their own time.
In This Episode
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:17) Thomas Paine’s early life and arrival in America
- (01:02) Paine’s early career in America and Common Sense
- (01:24) Impact and success of Common Sense
- (01:59) Why Common Sense was so powerful
- (02:26) Paine’s attack on monarchy and hereditary rule
- (04:13) Biblical arguments against monarchy
- (05:15) Paine’s writing style and rhetorical skill
- (06:40) The case for American independence and identity
- (09:31) Immigrants and the American identity
- (10:31) Paine and the naming of the United States
- (11:28) Speculation on Paine and the Declaration of Independence
- (11:41) America’s duty and revolutionary purpose
- (12:17) Providence, history, and revolutionary ideals
- (13:07) American vs. French revolutionary ideals
- (14:38) Common Sense’s public reception and influence
- (15:38) Copyright, authors’ rights, and Paine’s finances
- (16:14) The American Crisis and its impact
- (18:36) Paine’s decline and involvement in the French Revolution
- (20:08) Paine’s imprisonment and rescue
- (24:17) Paine’s break with Washington and controversial writings
- (25:35) The Age of Reason and alienation from America
- (27:01) Paine’s radical ideas on property and universal income
- (29:10) Paine’s legacy: revolutionary vs. patriot
- (32:23) Lessons from Paine’s life and death
Notable Quotes
- (02:26) “Paine is an excellent writer. I mean, he's got a claim to being one of the most talented writers of the founding in a generation that boasted Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson and Gouverneur Morris and Alexander Hamilton.." — Matthew Brogdon
- (02:46) "I think he has a way of identifying the sort of core arguments, the core complaints. I mean, he's anticipating, in many ways, the argument of the declaration, because he's identifying the principal target as monarchy." — Matthew Brogdon
- (04:18) “He uses kind of a biblical argument against monarchy, which is very common in this day to do. But given the fact that he doesn't believe in the Bible, this is an interesting thing for him to do.”— Savannah Eccles Johnston
- (06:18) "The great joke of monarchy is that it so often gives us an ass for a lion. You know, you start out with a lion and then you wind up with the kids or just not what they ought to be." — Matthew Brogdon
- (10:33) "Thomas Paine is, in some quarters, credited with creating the name United States of America." — Savannah Eccles Johnston
- (20:02) "T
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