Revolutionary
Literature Review
Mr. Feraco
American Literature
14 November 2007
Quick Capsule Review
 The quiz will be tomorrow, and will be worth
approximately 30 points
 A mix of short answer, fill-in, and multiple-choice
 Material from PowerPoints
 Material from actual selections – quotes, names, etc.
 No notes on this one!
 Patrick Henry’s Speech to the Virginia Convention
 Thomas Paine’s Crisis, No. 1
 Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence
We Already “Previewed” Henry
 Let’s return to our study of Patrick Henry
before we move on to the other authors
 The Speech Itself
 The main point is that the colonies have run out
of time to “negotiate” with Britain
 Militias must be organized before the Empire can
strip them of their military prowess.
 At the time, many feared that the formation of
militias would simply irritate Britain, and
encourage them to retaliate against the colonies
with military force
Más Henry!
 Some features of the Speech






Urgency
Militia
Disregards “Provocation” Argument
Using Either/Or Fallacy for Effect
Image-Heavy
Filled with Allusions
Más Henry!
 Notice the way he introduces his opponent’s
argument – then refutes it
 What sort of appeal is he using throughout
the piece – ethos, pathos, or logos?
 What rhetorical device does he use to close
the speech?
 When a persuasive speech or essay features a
particularly memorable conclusion, we call that
conclusion a peroration
 When you write your persuasive speeches,
remember to go for the glory!
OK, We’re Done With Henry!
 Next up on the docket is Thomas Paine and
his “Crisis No. 1”
 Henry and Paine deal with similar subjects
– the need to stand up to Britain before the
colonies are crushed – in different ways
 After all, Henry was speaking to a convention;
Paine was stationed with Washington’s troops
 As a result, it’s nice to be able to compare
the two, as well as compare those works to
the Declaration
Paine!...Without Love
 Paine had something of a rough life
 Born in England, but poorly educated
 Drifted through life until the age of 37
 Was fired from his tax-collection job for trying to
“organize” (form a union) his fellow workers,
and came to America seeking a new life
 Immediately became one of the great American
patriots
 “Common Sense” ended up in the hands of
about a fourth of the American population
Paine!...Can’t Get Enough
 Unfortunately, Paine went back to Europe in
1787
 He was tried for treason in absentia in England
in 1791 for publishing “The Rights of Man.”
 Paine was safe because he was living/hiding in
France…until the French arrested him for being
“a citizen of an enemy nation”
 James Monroe made a deal for his release, and
he returned to America…which was a curse
disguised as a blessing, really
We’d Rather Feel PAINE!!!
 His final work, “The Age of Reason,”
convinced Americans that he was an atheist
(he wasn’t)
 As a result, he lost all of his money, was
stripped of his right to vote, and was shunned or
harassed for the rest of his life
 The harassment continued into death, when he
was denied burial in consecrated ground in 1809
 After being buried on his farm, someone dug up
his body and stole it
 A furniture dealer in England bought his coffin
and bones in 1844
 No one has heard of him since
Uh…
 Although Paine’s existence was
somewhat miserable, his writings
were incredibly influential
 Part of this is due to his inflammatory
writing style – he accuses Britain of
intending to enslave the colonies, and
labels those who don’t want to fight
as enemy sympathizers
 Colonists who openly sympathized with
the British were called “Tories”
About That Piece
 Like Henry, Paine advocates the
formation of a militia
 A militia was merely a group of citizens
who organized to combat something
when faced with an emergency
 A standing army, on the other hand, is
just that – a permanent military force
 He does so in a slightly less
emotionally charged way than Henry
 He’s also fond of parallelism
Homework Questions!
 #2: Paine mentions the “summer soldier”
and “sunshine patriot.” He uses these
images because the summer soldier isn’t
brave enough to keep fighting when the
going gets tough (i.e., winter), and the
sunshine patriot will turn on you when
faced with strong opposition (i.e., in stormy
weather)
 Basically, if everything’s pleasant, these guys
are the loudest, bravest folks around
 When the chips are down, however, they’re
nowhere to be found
Homework Questions!
 #3: “Mutual fear is the principal link
in the chain of mutual love.”
 What does that even mean?
 Well, namely that people will stand
together if they’re seeking protection
from an external threat
 In other words, self-preservation and
self-interest is the best reason to stay
united as a whole
Homework Questions!
 #4: The “thief analogy” exists so Paine’s readers can
see “Britain” in a different light.
 The empire may seem monolithic or intimidating – or
perhaps his readers don’t see the Empire’s actions as
egregious or criminal
 By comparing the fight against Britain to the fight
against a thief, Paine is underscoring the two parties’
mutual danger – namely, that they both overstep
their legal right to act in such a manner, and that
both pose a threat to one’s home, even if that home
is a country whose independence has not yet been
established
 An opponent may point out that the rule of law is on
Britain’s side, and not on that of the “rebellious”
colonists (since, by definition, people rebel against
something - control or rules)
Reading Check!
 A. Paine believes God will favor the
colonists because they make no claim to
God’s authority (we only want “peace”),
whereas King George claims Godlike
authority over the lands of the British
Empire (and abuses that authority).
 B. The anecdote about the Tory tavern
keeper highlights a simple truth:
Maintaining allegiance to Britain out of fear
is not only short-sighted, but merely delays
the inevitable conflict
 Paine does a good job of using pathos here
Reading Check!
 C. As mentioned earlier, Paine accuses Britain of
harboring the long-term goal of enslaving the
colonies. He also mentions ruined countryside, cities
without people, and German mercenaries swooping in
to attack the colonists’ families. (More pathos!)
 D. The main idea of the Crisis is that it’s too late to
back down now – the die has been cast, the hands
have been dealt, and war is coming. The colonies can
choose either to lay down in the face of opposition
and suffer the consequences, or stand their ground
and fight the tyrannical British Empire. In order to
stand firm, the colonies must be united behind that
common purpose!
 Details include: Independence is inevitable; we’re
facing external (British/Germans) and internal
threats (Native Americans); God is on our side
The Declaration!
 Like Henry and Paine, Thomas Jefferson
uses a number of rhetorical devices to
great effect in his writing
 For example, the Declaration of Independence is
a study in parallelism
 Jefferson skillfully combines parallelism with
pathos (particularly on page 119) to create a
document that withstands the test of time.
 However, the Continental Congress redacted a
substantial portion of the document in order to
make it softer – as I’m sure you noticed while
reading the underlined portions
Homework Questions!

#2 is about the underlined portions of the Declaration of
Independence, and how certain portions of the removed
material indicate that the Continental Congress wasn’t
ready to completely sever ties with Britain.




Lines regarding the colonies’ submission to the English
Parliament were deleted (page 122)
The line “renounce forever these unfeeling brethren” (page
123) was cut
A reference to the “people” of Great Britain on page 123 was
also scrubbed
The Congress was reluctant to cut ties with the Empire
because many of the colonists still felt at least some
connection to it, or had family members still living overseas

Also, the colonies’ entire existence had been preserved by
close economic, political, and military ties to Britain

It wasn’t easy to throw these away
Homework Questions!
 #3 also refers to the deleted material; in
this case, it’s trying to see if you can tell
the difference between a politically
motivated edit and a “pure” edit
 There are a number of “pure” edits, including
“begun at a distinguished period” and “and
continually” on pg. 118
 There are also a number of “political” edits; for
example, “expunge” was softened to “alter” on
pg. 118, and a reference to slavery was cut
Reading Check!
 A. The main idea of the Declaration is
pretty simple: Britain’s turned evil, and we
won’t take it anymore. Time for
independence and war!
 B. Jefferson believes the following truths
are self-evident:
 All men are created equal
 We have inalienable rights
 Governments gain power by the consent of the
governed, rather than the other way around
 The governed have the right to alter or to
abolish their government
Reading Check!
 C. According to Jefferson, the King hasn’t
agreed to make necessary changes to
laws, nor has he agreed to make new ones
that will benefit the colonists. Jefferson
also accuses the King of harassing and
breaking up legislative bodies that could
protect the colonies; of preventing the new
states from being properly settled; of
coercing judges into corrupt rulings; of
robbing our coasts and destroying coastal
settlements; capturing and “coercing”
Americans who were captured on the open
seas; and inciting slaves and Native
Americans to rebel against the colonists
Reading Check!
 D. The independent countries have
the power to levy war, the power to
conclude peace, the power to form
alliances, and the power to establish
free commerce.
That Just About
Does It for the Review!
 I would re-read the pieces, if I were
you
 Hint, hint
 The pages you should review are
100-104 (Henry), 106-111 (Paine),
and 114-123 (Jefferson)
 The Jefferson selection isn’t actually
much longer than the others – its pages
are usually short or filled with pictures
When Re-Reading the Texts
 When you re-read these pieces tonight, remember to
run the “persuasion check” on each
 The persuasion check consists of the following
questions:
 What is the thesis or purpose of the piece?
 How does the author go about “defining” key terms?
 What assumptions does the author use as
foundations for his/her argument?
 What reasons or evidence does the author use to
support his/her argument?
 What sort of appeal (L/E/P) is being used? How is the
author trying to win over the audience?
 How would you describe the tone/style of the piece?
 Is the author a legitimate or believable authority on
the topic at hand?
Final Straw
 If you can answer each of those
questions for the pieces, you probably
understand them well enough to do
well tomorrow!
 Study your PowerPoints
 Re-read your selections
 E-mail me if you have questions