Common Sense
常识

Common Sense is a 50-page pamphlet written by Thomas Paine in 1775-1776 that inspired people in the Thirteen Colonies to declare and fight for independence from Great Britain in the summer of 1776. In clear, simple language it explained the advantages of and the need for immediate independence. It was published anonymously on 10 January, 1776, at the beginning of the American Revolution and became an immediate sensation.
《常识》是托马斯·潘恩于1775年至1776年撰写的一本五十页的小册子，激励了美国早期13个殖民地的人们奋起反抗英国的殖民统治，并使美国于1776年夏宣布独立。该书以简单明了的语言阐释了获得独立将会带来的好处以及独立战争的迫切性。该书于1776年1月10日匿名出版，为美国独立革命带来了轰动性效应。

Common Sense presented the American colonists with an argument for freedom from British rule at a time when the question of whether or not to seek independence was the central issue of the day. Paine wrote and reasoned in a style that common people understood. Historian Gordon Wood described Common Sense as “the most incendiary and popular pamphlet of the entire revolutionary era”.
当时，要不要从英国独立出来是决定时局的重大问题。在这种背景下，《常识》告诉美国的殖民地居民独立的必要性。潘恩用浅显易懂的语言和直白的逻辑说服了当时的普通大众。历史学家戈登·伍德认为《常识》是“整个革命时代最富煽动性、流传最广的宣传小册子”。

Paine begins the first section by making a distinction between society and government, and then goes on to consider the relationship between government and society in a state of “natural liberty”. In the second section he considers monarchy first from a biblical perspective, then from a historical perspective. In the third section Paine examines the hostilities between England and the American colonies and argues that the best course of action is independence. The fourth section of the pamphlet includes Paine's optimistic view of America's military potential at the time of the revolution.
第一章，潘恩比较了社会和政府的区别，接着讨论“天赋自由”背景下政府和社会的关系问题。第二章，潘恩分别从圣经和历史的角度探讨君主制的问题。第三章，潘恩审视了当前英国和美国殖民地居民的敌对状况，提出独立是最好的出路。第四章，潘恩对美国军事力量在革命中的前景持乐观态度。