Allusions In Common Sense By Thomas Paine

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Pages: 2

Thomas Paine was an Enlightenment thinker who had ideas about Britain’s authority over America. In order to convey his thoughts to the common people, he wrote a pamphlet. In Thomas Paine’s pamphlet “Common Sense” (1776), Paine claims that it is in America’s best interest to be independent from England. Paine strengthens his thesis by providing allusions. He uses allusions so his readers can relate more to his ideas and provide a vivid image. For example, Paine writes that “a government, like a dress, is the badge of lost innocence”(Common Sense). This is a biblical allusion to Adam and Eve; Adam and Eve wore clothes because they sinned and the people of America are governed because they sin. This allusion also plays a role in making Paine’s