Common Sense was an instant
best-seller. Published in January 1776 in Philadelphia, nearly 120,000 copies
were in circulation by April. Paine's brilliant arguments were straightforward.
He argued for two main points: (1) independence from England and (2) the
creation of a democratic republic. Paine avoided flowery prose. He wrote in the
language of the people, often quoting the Bible in his arguments. Most people
in America had a working knowledge of the Bible, so his arguments rang true.
Paine was not religious, but he knew his readers were. King George was
"the Pharaoh of England" and "the Royal Brute of Great
Britain." He touched a nerve in the American countryside.
