The Age of Reason - Review and Summary

The Age of Reason - Review and Summary The Bottom Line If The Age of Reasons creates controversy today, imagine what readers must have thought at the time the work first appeared! Still, the work was a bestseller in America, and an important representative work from the time period. Pros Presented in a clear, straightforward style (accessible)Drawn from intellectual masters: Voltaire, Hume Spinoza (along w/other influences) Cons Mocks/ridicules religiosity (may be offensive to some readers) Description A deistic pamphletWritten by 18th-century British radical, Thomas PainePublished in 3 partsin 1794, 1795 1804 Guide Review - The Age of Reason Summary Thomas Paine is often associated with the American Revolution, because of his pamphlets; but The Age of Reason is still controversial (and has been banned) for its criticism of established religion and its challenge to the Bible. After reading The Age of Reason in 1757, Benjamin Franklin famously wrote: I would advise you... not to attempt unchaining the Tyger, but to burn this Piece before it is seen by any other Person, whereby you will save yourself a great deal of Mortification from the Enemies it may raise against you, and perhaps a good deal of Regret and Repentance. If Men are so wicked as we now see them with Religion what would they be if without it? Despite the controversy (and the many irate responses) that the pamphlet inspired, The Age of Reasons was a popular in Americathe work struck a chord. It appears to have inspired deep-rooted passionsit brought punishment and imprisonment to those associated with the early publishing history. Study Guide SummaryThe Age of Reason QuotesThe Age of Reason Questions for Study and DiscussionA Letter to a Friend Regarding The Age of Reason