COMMON SENSE by Thomas Paine shifted public opinion in favor of declaring independence from Britain, in favor of a revolution. George Washington said the essay erased his lingering doubts about leading the rebel army. Why was Common Sense so powerful?

Paine distilled into common language the ideas and ideals of the Enlightenment thinkers in the 18th century. Their views flowed from the Age of Reason in the 17th century, which arose from the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, which sprang from the Renaissance in the 15th century, which revived Greek and Roman philosophy after a millennium of medieval darkness in Europe.

The invention of modern printing had upset the cultural applecart. Popular books on classical thought recalled Plato’s wholistic view of life and Aristotle’s deconstruction of reality into its tiniest classifiable parts. These books restored the use of reason based on the syllogism: If A = B, and if B = C, then A = C. Using logic, “freethinkers” and scientists like Benjamin Franklin applied René Descartes’ and Francis Bacon’s useful tool for critical thinking—The Scientific Method:

1. Create a working hypothesis or theory from all available facts.
2. Test the hypothesis fairly (tests must be repeatable by others).
3. Impartially and rigorously analyze the test findings.
4. Revise the hypothesis to fit the findings (return to Step 1).

Freethinkers read The Principia by Sir Isaac Newton, who saw an apple fall straight to earth (not on his head) and deduced gravitation. Newton supported Copernicus and Galileo, who said our planet goes around the sun. Man on earth was not the center of the universe, as the Church had taught. Reason was gaining power over religion just as the Magna Carta had given the law power over the king.

Such trends raised a vital question: Can we live without kings? Read the rest of this entry »