Thomas Paine is one of the greatest political propagandists in history. The Rights of Man, first published in 1791, is the key to his reputation. Inspired by his outrage at Edmund Burke's attack on the uprising of the French people, Paine's text is a passionate defense of the rights of man. Paine argued against monarchy and outlined the elements of a successful republic, including public education, pensions, and relief of the poor and unemployed, all financed by income tax. Since its publication, The Rights of Man has been celebrated, criticized, maligned, and suppressed. But here, commentator Christopher Hitchens, Paine's natural heir, marvels at its forethought and revels in its contentiousness. Above all, he shows how Thomas Paine's Rights of Man forms the philosophical cornerstone of the world's most powerful republic: the United States of America.
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"Only 142 pages! This is a light, friendly material to those who don't know much of Paine and his legacy. Hitchens discards the polemics, but not his eloquence. A good grasp of the French and American revolutions is helpful." — Rob (4 out of 5 stars)
"Only 142 pages! This is a light, friendly material to those who don't know much of Paine and his legacy. Hitchens discards the polemics, but not his eloquence. A good grasp of the French and American revolutions is helpful."
“Hitchens writes in characteristically energetic prose, and his aversion to religion is in evidence, too. Young Paine found his mother’s Anglican orthodoxy noxious, Hitchens notes: freethinking has good reason to be grateful to Mrs Paine.”
Brilliant portrait.... An attractive introduction to Paine's life and work as a whole.... Hitchens remains a great writer, and a thinker of depth, range and vigour.
" Fascinating account of a misunderstood figure integral to our history. And Hitch is erudite as always. "
" A decent analysis of Thomas Paine and his enduring legacy. It helps to have some historical knowledge since Hitchens doesn't spend much time putting things into context. "
" A good introduction, biography, and commentary on the works of Thomas Paine. The only annoying thing was Hitchen's intermitten bashing of religion, which took a little away from an otherwise interesting book. "
" After reading this book, I care less than before reading it about Hitchen's thoughts about anything. Pompous, bombastic, self-absorbed and clueless. "
" love this author. a heady book but a good history lesson. "
" Easier reading than the original. Part of a series: Books That Changed The World. "
" A brilliant overview of Rights Of Man and the life of Tom Paine from a brilliant author. "
" Hitch gets a four but Paine gets a five! "
" Hitch at his best. In a perfect world, Christopher Hitchens will be permitted to narrative the entirety of human history...maybe in heaven? (which, naturally, doesn't exist) "
" Very Interesting and accessible. "
" Packed full of great stories and concepts of Thomas Paine. I can see myself re-reading this book many times. "
" Hitch is the man whatever he does, but this one was lost on me. Brilliant to be sure but I think he saved the meaning for his own mind. "
" A wonderfully-informative book that is relatively short, all things considered. Word-efficient, Hitchens is a master of using the right words so he doesn't have to as many. "
" This is an excellent introduction to Paine, but should be read WITH his actual works as opposed to in lieu of them. "
" I had a hard time staying awake and interested. It was boring and failed to captivate me in the least. The content contained many interesting details about Thomas Paine that I didn't know but the authors presentation was lacking. "
" Beautifully written account and argument about some of the most important yet forgotten writings. Both Hitchens and Paine I will gladly adopt as Americans. "
Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011) was the author of Letters to a Young Contrarian and the bestseller No One Left to Lie To: The Values of the Worst Family. A regular contributor to Vanity Fair, Atlantic Monthly, and Slate, he also wrote for the Weekly Standard, National Review, and Independent and appeared on The Daily Show, Charlie Rose, The Chris Matthew’s Show, Real Time with Bill Maher, and C-SPAN’s Washington Journal. He was named one of the world’s “Top 100 Public Intellectuals” by Foreign Policy and Britain’s Prospect.
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.
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