Question

End of Semester Test: English 11A

Select the correct answer.

Which statement best describes Thomas Paine's argument in this excerpt from Common Sense?

I have heard it asserted by some, that as America hath flourished under her former connection with Great Britain that the same connection is
necessary towards her future happiness, and will always have the same effect. Nothing can be more fallacious than this kind of argument. We
may as well assert that because a child has thrived upon milk that it is never to have meat, or that the first twenty years of our lives is to become
a precedent for the next twenty. But even this is admitting more than is true, for I answer roundly, that America would have flourished as much,
and probably much more, had no European power had any thing to do with her. The commerce, by which she hath enriched herself, are the
necessaries of life, and will always have a market while eating is the custom of Europe.

A.He shows that while America earlier flourished because of Britain, it faces a bleak future if British rule continues.

B.He uses anecdotal evidence to imply that America faces a bleak future if British rule continues.

C.He refutes the idea that America depends on Britain, using the opinion that America's trade has a secure future.

D.He implies that America's connection to Britain had prevented it from engaging in trade with European countries.

Answer 1

Thomas Paine's argument in the excerpt from Common Sense is that America does not need British rule for its prosperity and advancement; America's trade has a secure future with or without Britain, and the country is capable of flourishing on its own. The correct answer is option C.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement that best describes Thomas Paine's argument in the excerpt from Common Sense is that he refutes the idea that America is dependent on Britain, using the rationale that America's trade is secure and that it would have flourished regardless of British involvement. In the excerpt, Paine compares the relationship with Britain to the natural growth of a person, asserting that just as a child grows from needing milk to eating meat, America has outgrown the necessity of British governance and interference. Furthermore, he argues that the commerce which enriched America consists of necessities that will always be in demand in Europe, indicating an optimistic future for American trade independent of British control.

In the broader context of Paine's writings, it is clear that he champions the concept of a government's duty to its citizens, critiques the hereditary monarchy, and advocates for an American republic grounded in the Enlightenment principles of natural rights and self-governance, appealing to both the economic and philosophical sensibilities of the colonists.