EN 221H: Thomas Paine, Common Sense

According to Jefferson, who is primarily responsible for the wrongs and injustices the American colonists were experiencing in the 1770s?

King George III of England

Why were passages censuring English citizens omitted from the final draft of the Declaration?

Many colonists still had English friends.

Which was the last colony to approve the Declaration?

New York

If the colonists agree that common sense makes independence inevitable, what last argument does Thomas Paine provide why they should revolt and form a constitution immediately rather than waiting?

Some unsavory or uneducated person might seize power if they do not act.

What explicit assumption of Americans is this poem working actively to dispel?

Africans cannot be Christians.

Which of the following people joined Jefferson on the committee to draft the Declaration of Independence?

Benjamin Franklin

Which city does Thomas Paine use as an example of the grievous harm the British have already inflicted on the colonies?

Boston

For what reason(s) has it been said that Freneau failed at almost everything he attempted to accomplish in his life?

Both of these are true.

In Paine's Common Sense, which of the following is NOT a reason provided by the proponents of a union between England and America?

Britain is America's sole ally on the European continent.

Who is the explicit audience of this short poem?

Christians

What United States president was Freneau's college roommate and friend?

James Madison

What point did Jefferson make about slavery in his first draft of the Declaration?

He complained that the king had imposed the slave system on American colonists against their wishes.

How does Thomas Paine refute the idea that there is more materially to be gained by staying with Britain than by revolting against it?

He shows how British wars with other European countries hurt American trade in Europe.

In Thomas Paine's refutation to the claim that all Americans are descended from the English, why does he say the same logic of this argument would lead to England being ruled by a French king?

The first English king was of French origin.

What lesson from the Bible does Wheatley say she has learned?

There is a Christian God and Savior.

Which of the following was one of the most substantive changes the Continental Congress made to Jefferson's draft of the Declaration?

They removed his denunciation of the slave trade.

What evidence does Wheatley provide that Africans may be redeemed?

Wheatley's own conversion to Christianity

Which of the following committees was NOT formed by the Continental Congress in June 1776?

a committee to determine the guidelines for engaging in warfare

According to Thomas Paine, how will the fate of America be decided?

armed combat

How are Jefferson's claims about natural rights—the idea "that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights"—are presented in the Declaration?

as commonsense concepts that were already well-established and widely accepted

Wheatley makes one allusion to the Old Testament in the poem. To whom in the Old Testament does Wheatley refer?

cain

Those who view Negroes with a "scornful eye" see their skin color by what adjective?

diabolic

In closing Common Sense, which attribute does Thomas Paine suggest that "ye that love mankind" should receive into America, since it has been "expelled" from Africa and Asia, and Europe "regards her as a stranger"?

freedom

According to Wheatley, what brought her out of Africa?

mercy

In his Common Sense introduction, what does Thomas Paine state he has studiously avoided?

personal details and concerns

Which of the following is NOT one of types of people Thomas Paine names who might espouse the doctrine of reconciliation?

prisoners of the British who long for a return to normalcy

In Common Sense, which of the following does Thomas Paine claim NOT to use in his pamphlet?

private opinion

Which of the following is NOT a grievance listed in the Declaration?

the compulsion of colonists to join the Anglican Church

According to the Declaration, when do citizens have the right to abolish their government?

when the government no longer protects people's rights