Rights of Man, Common Sense, and Other Political Writing
Thomas Paine's pamphlet Common Sense helped launch the American Revolution. His American Crisis brought the revolutionaries courage when they seemed to be teetering on the edge of defeat. The Rights of Man is one of the cornerstones of progressive political philosophy. If you're not familiar with the works of Thomas Paine, then you're missing some of the earliest, most fundamental arguments for the importance of progressive and liberal government.
Why this is progressive/liberal: The problem with history is that it's often difficult to find a starting place. Every starting place needs some background to explain how it came to be. The same is true for learning about the history of progressive thought in the United States. But, without digging too deep into the past, Thomas Paine is as good a place to start as any. In fact, much of the argument between the radical firebrand Thomas Paine, and the conservative traditionalist Edmund Burke continues today.
Buy the Kindle version: Rights of Man, Common Sense, and Other Political Writings (Oxford World's Classics)
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