Introduction
In January 1776, the pamphlet of the democrat Thomas Paine, Common Sense, was published. For Americans, it is imperative because Paine proposed the name of the state that the colonists were to form – The United States of America (Paine, 1776). The political and legal ideas of the pamphlet Common Sense were the basis for the Declaration of Independence of 1776, the principal author of which was Thomas Jefferson (Jefferson, 1776).
In my opinion, Common Sense had a more significant effect on revolutionary America than the Declaration of Independence since it prepared the consciousness of an ordinary citizen for the perception of the idea of independence and helped to replace their attachment to England with an attachment to the Republic.
Similarities
Since the Declaration of Independence was based on the ideas of Common Sense, these two historical documents have quite a substantial similarity in content. The political views of Thomas Jefferson, who became their third president after the formation of the United States, were close to the political views of Paine. Like Paine, Jefferson embraced the natural law doctrine in its most radical and democratic interpretation (Ziesche, 2019). Hence, his political and legal views are close to Rousseau’s (Ziesche, 2019). Therefore, the Declaration of Independence and Common Sense texts have similar views on the structure of the state.
Both texts on the social compact as the foundation of society’s structure, granting all its participants the right to establish governmental authority, represent a radical and democratic interpretation of natural law. The idea of national sovereignty and the equality of citizens’ political rights, including the ability to vote, followed naturally. The Declaration of Independence was a constitutional document (Jefferson, 1776). Jefferson started with a democratic and radical application of the natural law theory of Common Sense. As a result, the Declaration of Independence, like Common Sense, established the legality of the colonies’ separation from England and the establishment of an independent state.
Differences
The main difference between the historical documents under consideration was the attitude toward religion. Unlike Paine, who rationalizes the Bible, the mention of God the creator in the Declaration is made in passing and does not change anything in its content. Therefore, in the Declaration of Independence, there is a gap in religious ideas about state power, which is still characteristic of that era (Ziesche, 2019). In the Common Sense, although there is a natural-legal argument, religion is still an important link of the state.
In addition, the forms for these two documents are entirely different. The text of the Declaration of Independence contains more logos. It has rigorous logic, extended sentences, verb tense, and verbal nouns (Ziesche, 2019). In addition, language cliches and stamps are widely used in the document, and highly accurate information is presented to the detriment of ease of perception and reading. At the same time, Paine’s style is journalistic (Ziesche, 2019). It is distinguished by imagery, logical information presentation, calls to action, assessments, and emotional saturation.
Effectiveness
The Declaration of Independence, in contrast to the Common Sense, is still effective today. It played a central role in the formation and further development of democracy in the United States. This document declared that the sovereignty of the people was the basis of the structure of the state (Jefferson, 1776). The Declaration became a solemn declaration of the birth of a new country, and at the same time, it is considered a kind of literary heritage.
The Declaration’s adoption date – July 4 – is celebrated as an official public holiday. There is a tradition that in the archive where the original Declaration is kept, on July 4, performances of actors dressed up in jackets of the XVIII century sample take place. Among other things, they read out the text of the document loudly (Ziesche, 2019). Therefore, the Declaration of Independence continues to have an impact and be effective as a reminder of the foundations of the legal state foundations. The Common Sense is not a compelling government document today. It is not re-read at least once a year at an official event, and the day of its adoption is not celebrated as a public holiday. However, at one time, the Common Sense had a considerable impact on the public, preparing it for the ideas framed in the Declaration of Independence.
Conclusion
Thus, despite the fact that the long-term effect was stronger for the Declaration of Independence, Common Sense prepared for it. Without this document, the signing of the Declaration of Independence would have been impossible. The Declaration of Independence, whose primary author was Thomas Jefferson, was based on the political and legal concepts presented in the treatise Common Sense. In my opinion, Common Sense had a bigger impact on the American Revolution than the Declaration of Independence because it helped people shift their loyalty from England to the newly formed Republic by preparing their minds for the idea of independence.
References
Jefferson, T. (1776). Declaration of independence. Totally History. Web.
Paine, T. (1776). Common sense (pamphlet). Totally History. Web.
Ziesche, P. (2019). Apostles of revolution: Jefferson, Paine, Monroe, and the struggle against the old order in America and Europe. The Journal of American History, 106(1), 162-163. Web.