Question

What arguments does Paine use to reject the notion that the colonies must remain connected to Great Britain for their future happiness?

Answer 1

Thomas Paine made several different arguments as to why the colonists do not need to remain connected to Great Britain. One of his most significant arguments is the fact that Great Britain pulled the US into wars they did not want to be in (like the French and Indian War). Some loyalists in the US were scared that if we broke away from the British that we would no longer have their military to protect. However, Paine points out that any time the British army helped the American colonists was to protect Britain's own selfish interests, not to help the American colonists.

Besides this argument, Paine also believes that the US economy would have flourished more without being controlled by the British. The reason why the American colonies were even controlled by Britain in the first place was very natural resources and to benefit British trade overall. If the US was to break away from Britain, they could expand their horizons to trade with other countries, allowing their economy to continually flourish.