Thomas Paine was an English-born man who seemed to stir controversy wherever he traveled. Paine’s forceful yet eloquent prose made him a hero for the three great causes to which he devoted his life; the American Revolution, religious reform, and the natural rights of man. At the age of 37, Paine strove for the fabled shores of America, determined to forget his past. He made the acquaintance of Benjamin Franklin, and settled in Philadelphia. There, Paine was eventually hired into the profession of editor for the Pennsylvania Magazine. He published a series of minor essays, but his first important work was an essay written for the Pennsylvania Journal in which Paine openly denounced slavery. This was Paine’s first foray into the world of protest literature, and it clea

Although somewhat braggadocios (it is very unlikely that the Americans could have doubled their numbers), Paine sends a clear and powerful message to all those who read his works. He further insults the British by comparing their army to a "band of ten or twelve thousand robbers" and implores the American people to continue the fight, stating that the only way the British could possibly conquer so great a nation would be if the people "sit down and suffer them to do it" (Fast 54). Paine further pictured General Howe as a "chief of plunderers" (Fast 55). Through his clear language and remarkable imagery, Paine left no doubt as to the poignancy of his arguments.

Paine’s other influential protest work was his Letter To Washington. Paine, after long sufferings in Europe, had appealed to America to help rid him of his imprisonment, and been many times denied. He did not realize that Washington had nothing to do with this refusal to help, and as such Paine narrow-mindedly attacked Washington. As always, Paine was not gentle, striving merely to prove his point, and not heeding the consequences and people he may have hurt. For example, Paine bluntly accuses Washington of complacency, stating that Washington was obviously conniving to keep Paine jailed, and that Washington was the last person Paine would have suspected of treachery. These damning terms showed a bitter, resentful, shallow Paine rather than the man of objectiveness and intelligence he had once been. In a statement that is humorous today, Paine states that the only logical explanation to Washington’s silence was "that every thing is not as it ought to be amongst you" (Fast 334). He further accuses various officials as "prate", "pompous", "offensive, suspected, and ridiculous" (Fast 334). Paine also was disenchanted with the development of the Federalist party, and could not bring himself to understand how a country that had fought against injustice for its own freedom could issue a proclamation of neutrality and refuse to help another country trying to gain independence. He concludes by expressing regret for having lost the friendship of a man he once respected:

The second Crisis paper was a great chance for Paine to launch a personal attack of George III, whom he deemed incompetent and unintelligent. His third paper was directed against the American Tories, and particularly the loyal Quakers of Philadelphia, whom Paine scathingly rebuked for their lack of courage. In his fourth Crisis, Paine gave a call for his fellow man to join in the fight against the yoke of British oppression, stating that "Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it" (Fast 54). This helped to draw new members into the faltering Army, and also to convert some of those who were considering leaving into freedom fighters. Another great talent of Paine’s was in explaining events, as was evidenced by his version of the events of the winter of 1776:

In an illustration compromising no more than half a page, Nast showed the view of the common man in protesting the viscousness and total control that the political machines exercised to come by their goals. Nast is also warning people of the danger to come if they do not fail to break the power of the machines. His arguments may have helped lead to Tammany Hall’s eventual downfall and Tweed’s imprisonment (Levenstein 75). Mr. Tweed is quoted as telling Nast at one point: "Let's stop those damned pictures. I don't care so much what the papers write about me -- my constituents can't read, but damn it, they can see pictures."

This cynical piece of literature showed how much of a personal fight Paine’s protest of the development of America had been, and the degree of his disenchantment with it spurred him into writing one of the most scathing protests ever.

Another American giant in "traditional" protest literature was John C. Calhoun. Most well known for his "South Carolina Exposit

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