Question

Which sentence in this excerpt from "The American Crisis" by Thomas Paine illustrates that it is a persuasive essay?

I shall conclude this paper with some miscellaneous remarks on the slate of our affairs; and shall begin with asking the following question, Why is it that the enemy hath left the New England provinces, and made those middle once the fear of war? The answer is easy, New England is not infested with Tories, and we are. I have been under in raising the cry against these men, and used numberless arguments to shew them their danger. . . . The period is now arrived, in which either they or we must change our sentiments, or one or both must fall. And what is a Tory? Good GOD! what is he? I should not be afraid to go with a hundred Whigs against a thousand Tories, were they to attempt to get into arms. Every Tory is a coward, for a servile, slavish, self-interested fear is the foundation of Toryism; and a man under such influence, though he may be cruel, never can be brave.

But before the line of irrecoverable separation be drawn between us, let us reason the matter together: Your conduct is an invitation to the enemy, yet not one in a thousand of you has heart enough to join him. Howe is as much deceived by you as the American cause is injured by you. He expects you will all take up arms, and flock to his standard with muskets on your shoulders, Your opinions are of no use to him, unless you support him personally; for 'tis soldiers, and not Tories, that he wants. . . .

Quitting this class of men, I turn with the warm ardor of a friend to those who have nobly stood, and are yet determined to stand the matter out: I call not upon a few, but upon all: not on this state or that state, but on every state: up and help us; lay your shoulders to the wheel; better have too much force than too little, when so great an object is at stake. Let it be told to the future world, that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive, that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet and to repulse it. Say not that thousands are gone, turn out your tens of thousands; throw not the burden of the day upon Providence, but "show your faith by your works," that God may bless you. It matters not where you live, or what rank of life you hold, the evil or the blessing will reach you all. The far and the near, the home counties and the back, the rich and the poor, will suffer or rejoice alike. The heart that feels not now is dead; the blood of his children will curse his cowardice, who shrinks back at a time when a little might have saved the whole, and made them happy. I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death.

Choices
A-I shall conclude this paper with some miscellaneous remarks on the slate of our affairs;
B-. Howe is as much deceived by you as the American cause is injured by you.
C- I call not upon a few, but upon all: not on this state or that state, but on every state: up and help us; lay your shoulders to the wheel; better have too much force than too little, when so great an object is at stake.
D-It matters not where you live, or what rank of life you hold, the evil or the blessing will reach you all.
E- I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection.

Answer 1

The correct option is C: I call not upon a few, but upon all: not on this state or that state, but on every state: up and help us; lay your shoulders to the wheel; better have too much force than too little, when so great an object is at stake

Step-by-step explanation:

“The American crisis” is a collection of articles wrote and published by the American philosopher Thomas Paine between 1776 and 1783. In these texts, Paine, through 16 different publications, expresses his liberal way of thinking and tries to persuade people to believe in the revolution that will be ended on American Revolution and the independence of the 13 colonies from England power.

In this excerpt of the text, we can see an example of what Thomas Paine wrote in all of his pamphlets; as we can see all his intentions were related with persuading or convince other people to be part of the coming revolution. But, what is a persuasive text?

PERSUASIVE TEXT: It is a text that can be read or heard by someone. The main purpose of its lines is to present a specific point of view and lead or change the way of thinking of someone. To do it possible this texts constantly use rhetorical techniques in order to convince the audience.

In regards to the question, we can say that the correct option is C: I call not upon a few, but upon all: not on this state or that state, but on every state: up and help us; lay your shoulders to the wheel; better have too much force than too little, when so great an object is at stake because through these lines the author is trying to make people part of the revolution no matter their precedence or beliefs, he is wanting to be helped and that is why he is inviting people to join his cause. It is important to notice that the invitation is made after presenting the arguments; it is: first he gave you the reasons why you have to believe in his cause and then he invites you to join it. If the persuasive text is effective then the audience would be convinced and probably would accept the invitation.

Options A, B, D and E are not correct owing to they don’t represent a direct invitation to join a cause or to do something; for example, option A is just explaining what the author is going to present; option B is appealing to a certain person and telling what did he do; option D and E are expressing personal beliefs of the author.

Answer 2

The right answer is:

A-I shall conclude this paper with some miscellaneous remarks on the slate of our affairs;

Explanation:

We don’t have to wait until the last sentence from the conclusion to illustrate that this is a persuasive essay.