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.
The main obligations that a peasant had to the lord of the manor included the constant upkeep and maintenance of the land, as well a promise to give up the land upon command.
