Revolution Calling

Here are my thoughts on a couple of books I've read recently.

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
I was sorely disappointed by this, not because of anything in the book, but because he didn't finish it. It was something Franklin worked on periodically for many years and then died before he could finish. His account ends in the mid 1750s, just as things were getting interesting on the road to independence. I was left wanting much more and now I'm going to have to read a biography of Franklin just to fill in the holes and finish the story. It was a fun read, and I enjoyed it up until its all too sudden ending.

Common Sense by Thomas Paine
This one got my revolutionary fervor stoked up. Granted, the debate over monarchy has long since been resolved in this country but his discussion on the purpose of government was insightful and still relevant. This pamphlet played an important role in building public support for the independence movement. What's more, Paine put his money where his mouth is by donating his profits from the sale of the pamphlet to the war effort.

In the introduction he strikes a blow for civility by declaring, "In the following sheets, the author hath studiously avoided every thing which is personal among ourselves. Compliments as well as censure to individuals make no part thereof." He stuck to that intention and I think his argument was the stronger for it. I knew I was going to enjoy it even more when, in the second paragraph, he states, "Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil in its worst state an intolerable one." Considering the importance of this little book in the formation of our country, I'm surprised I haven't read it before now. I felt smarter while reading and I sure wish I could write with the clarity and style that Paine demonstrated.