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LITR 4326
Early American Literature Research Posts 2016 (research post assignment) Research Post 2 |
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Eric
Howell
5
April 2016
The Blessing and Curse of Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine and his work Common Sense
are often portrayed as the great spark that launched American colonists into
action in their pursuit of freedom throughout the American narrative, and
quickly after, that great spark fades into an afterthought. Upon completing my
first research post, I felt as if I had pinpointed the reasons behind Paine's
minimal acknowledgment throughout American history and equated these reasons as
the reaction to Paine's fierce antagonism towards the world's religions,
including the dominant religious culture of the newly birthed nation:
Christianity. However, in light of further research and analysis, I believe
that, perhaps, there is more to the story of Thomas Paine and his fraction of
American glory.
As I
read Josh Cobb’s research post Thomas
Paine: The Silenced Critic, I felt as if I had jumped right into what Cobb
describes as “popular perception” by rationalizing that Paine was a heretic and
staunch critic of popular beliefs and therefore did not fit the American
narrative and was cast out of American history. Cobb’s post insinuated that
perhaps Paine's religious views and aspects were not completely to blame for the
author being written out of American history, but perhaps it was Paine himself
and his views towards America that garnered the role of American outcast.
I had not considered the perspective that while Paine was distancing
himself from America, attempting to spread freedom throughout Europe, his
admiration for the nation diminished as well.
Upon
searching for the reasoning behind Paine's hostility toward America, I
discovered that he did not necessarily despise the nation, but rather,
vehemently disapproved of the newly formed government, led by George
Washington. In an open letter to
Washington, Letter to George Washington,
Paine lets his dissatisfaction with the inaugural president be known stating,
Monopolies of every kind marked your administration almost in the moment of its
commencement. The lands obtained by the Revolution were lavished upon partisans;
the interest of the disbanded soldier was sold to the speculator… In what
fraudulent light must Mr. Washington’s character appear in the world, when his
declarations and his conduct are compared together!
Paine’s signature fervor within his writing does not cool off even when
addressing the President of the United States of America, in a time where most
held Washington in the highest of regards.
To
Paine, the newly established government reeked of aristocracy and left room for
the opportunity of an unjust, undemocratic political system to take control, a
system very similar to what the young nation just broke away from. It should be
noted that throughout his letter to Washington, Paine makes mention of his
constant thought of America and the potential greatness the young country
possess though he does not hold high hopes for the future of the nation when
regarding the newly birthed political system. From Paine's tone, one can inference the
angst and displeasure he possesses is directed toward the political elite and
not the nation as a whole.
Paine’s ferocious views of Washington may have been fueled by his
imprisonment in France, where Washington neglected to free Paine, even though he
claimed American citizenship, but his anger with the American government was
propelled by what he deemed stark similarities shared between English monarchy.
In Paine’s work Rights of Man, Paine
condemns any form of government which uses hereditary tendencies to elect new
leaders. He also points out in his letter to Washington that John Adams was in
favor of such systems, based on what Paine described as Adam’s ignorance.
Although I could not find many sources that addressed Paine's dissatisfaction
head-on, the conclusion can be made that Paine felt that the characteristics of
the post-revolution government in America and old English rule were too close
for comfort for him.
For Paine, he felt that the new Federalist leaders of the American nation
favored and sided with England too much, and neglected to acknowledge France as
the allied nation who helped America gain their independence. The Federalists’
grotesquely one-sided Jay Treaty exemplifies this favor. Paine and many other
Americans felt as if they had given up too much to Britain without receiving
anything in return. The Thomas Paine National Historical Association depicts the
treaty as America giving in to England and letting them have their way by
stating that John Jay “agreed
to the prohibition of export from the United States… [and] also agreed to permit
British creditors to collect private debts from southern planters in America,”
essentially, so that American ships could gain entry into British-controlled
waters.
Paine and many other Americans were
appalled that the newly appointed officials seemingly gave back so much power to
an empire they had relentlessly fought against for freedom, less than twenty
years before. At this time, Paine was in full support of the French Revolution
and often harbored much sympathy for the French nation as he saw many
similarities between France's story and America's. When the Jay Treaty was
established, France was at war with Britain, as was Paine. England was
attempting to persecute Paine for Rights
of Man; writings they felt were treasonous and dangerous to the British
Empire. Paine felt as if his former countrymen had turned their backs on him
just as they had done to the French.
In conclusion, Thomas Paine played perhaps the most influential role in
American history, yet his rebellious nature and cynical views of both religion
and government were a combination that kept him from his true legacy in American
history. Paine spoke his mind freely, never faltering, no matter who the
audience was. I feel that more research is necessary but that one can draw the
conclusion that both Paine and America were going their separate ways, and
Paine’s counter-culture ideas were out of step with the great men of his time,
thus driving a wedge between the nation and the great author. This noble,
uncanny characteristic was his blessing and his curse.
Works Cited
Cobb, Josh. Thomas Paine: The Silenced
Critic. March 26th, 2014. Research Post 1.
Thomas Paine National Historical Association.
Observation on Jay’s Treaty.
Accessed April 5, 2016.
http://thomaspaine.org/essays/american-politics-&-government/observations-on-jay-s-treaty.html
Paine, Thomas. Common Sense, Rights of Man, And Other Essential Writings of
Thomas Paine. New York: Penguin, 2003. 163-207. Print.
Paine, Thomas. Letter to George
Washington. July 30th, 1796.
http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/ecco/004829307.0001.000/1:3?rgn=div1;view=fulltext
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