Includes the complete texts of Common Sense; Rights of Man, Part the Second; The Age of Reason (part one); Four Letters on Interesting Subjects , published anonymously and just discovered to be Paine’s work; and Letter to the Abbé Raynal, Paine’s first examination of world events; as well as selections from The American Crises

In 1776, America was a hotbed of enlightenment and revolution. Thomas Paine not only spurred his fellow Americans to action but soon came to symbolize the spirit of the Revolution. His elegantly persuasive pieces spoke to the hearts and minds of those fighting for freedom. He was later outlawed in Britain, jailed in France, and finally labeled an atheist upon his return to America.

托馬斯・潘恩，生於英格蘭諾福剋郡一個裁縫，上過幾年學，先後做過學徒、鞋匠、英語教師、收稅官，在富蘭剋林幫助下到達北美大陸，投身於爭取北美獨立事業，1776年以“一個英國人”名義發錶《常識》，成為瞭北美人民明確的戰鬥綱領，並隨後被吸收為《獨立宣言》的精華，並隨後被吸收為《獨立宣言》的精華，除瞭《常識》，潘恩還應邀參加起草瞭《人權宣言》，齣版過極具啓濛意義的《人的權利》、《土地正義論》、《理性時代》等著作，晚年迴到美國，潘恩一生都在跟獨夫民賊以及君主製等強大的“傳統”作戰，並終身宣揚激進的民主共和思想－－這些思想至今還閃耀著穿透曆史迷霧的耀眼的光芒。