Thomas Paine’s The Rights of Man.

Thomas Paine (1737-1809), An English American born on January 29^th was a pamphleteer, political activist, philosopher, theorist and revolutionary who applied the theory of natural rights to far-reaching arguments on the crucial issues of his day. These included arguments against hereditary and monarchical systems of government, foreign domination, taxation without representation, and slavery; and arguments for popular sovereignty, constitutional and representative government, the principle of consent and the right to resist, universal male suffrage, national independence, tolerance and religious freedom.

In addition, Paine highlighted the relationship between the rights of man and poverty and advanced arguments for economic and social right, this being a significant philosophical groundwork for the concept of the right to development. In Paine's view, a lack of respect for individual rights and the absence of representative government can result in adverse policies that disproportionately affect the poor. Policies such as unfair taxes on essential consumption goods mostly consumed by the poor and rules that artificially depress wages. In contrast, Paine shows that securing the rights of man and representative government can provide a basis for the redistribution of the burden of taxation (which will prevent income inequality) and promote  pro-poor policies such as poor relief, state education for poor children, and old age pensions amongst others.

Thomas Paine’s work The Rights of Man can also be described as an endorsement of the most prominent and significant effect or result of the prevailing ideas and philosophy of liberalism which notably, was the French revolution. The revolutionary ideals of liberty, equality and individual rights are the ideals which Paine had the strongest support for. So the rights of man is a response to Edmund Burke’s attack on the French revolution (which is found in his work  Reflections on the Revolution in France) which Paine attributes  to his bankruptcy of clear understanding of the revolution in France. Paine’s defence of the revolution in France as distinguished from previous revolutions across Europe was based on his belief that, it was solidly based on and upholds the principles of the rights of man. “In the instance of France we see a revolution generated in the rational contemplation of the rights of man and distinguishing from the beginning between persons and principles” Paine (1795:12).

The French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the  ensuing revolution has gone into the pages of history as showing the power which resides in the unfailing belief and stance upon  human centred principles or generally, strong  principles as  against strong individuals or class of individuals.  In defending the French revolution against the backdrop of Burke’s critique, Thomas Paine gives an account of the revolution, emphasizing its necessity and instrumentality in asserting the rights of the common man.  He depicts the revolution as a fight for freedom, a fight against slavery and the freedom of man from every oppressive government by those who believed in the principles of equality, rights and human dignity.

Paine justified the brutality with which the government and its despotic leaders and sympathizers were overthrown, claiming this to be a ripple effect of the kind of government that the people were in. In effect, the display of brutality and the style of elimination were learnt from the prevailing circumstances of execution which the government had created. So instead of lamenting on the kind of brutality displayed in the punishment (an insinuation of Edmund Burke), Paine stresses that attention should be directed towards fixing the government such that they are more humanely oriented as such the people will follow suite.

As part of his justification of the French revolution and defence of the declaration on the rights of man, Thomas Paine traces the rights of man to creation. Noting that prevailing ideas of rights are deduced from precedents in antiquity, and to those antiquities it is provable that they also have precedents from which their own ideas were deduced from. With this methodology, Paine traces the divine origin of the rights of man which is, at the point of creation.  It is that point from which all other ideas proceed.  “If a dispute about the rights of man had arisen at the distance of an hundred years from the creation, it is to this source of authority they must have referred and it is to this same source that we must now refer”  Paine (1795 :20).

The illuminating and divine principle of the equal rights of man (for it has its origin from the maker of man) relates not only to the living individuals but to generations of men succeeding each other. Every generation is equal in rights to generations which preceded it by the same rule that every individual is born equal in rights with his contemporary Paine (1795:20). 

      Paine describes the rights of man as a light which pervades all darkness in which the sorrows and chains of mankind are confided.  He further asserts that,

By considering man in this light and by instructing him to consider himself in this light, it places him in a close connection with all his duties whether to his creator or to the creation of which he is a part. And it is only when he forgets his origin or to use a more fashionable phrase his birth and family, that he becomes dissolute. Paine (1795:21). 

    The well being of man in effect is therefore connected to his right as a man. Here in this statement, lies the remedy for all the plights and inadequacies that have befallen mankind, ranging from oppression by systems and governments to the denial and deprivation of a decent and improved well being. In essence, any man living with his right fully attached to him as created by the creator, makes him more of a man and any man living without a right thereby becomes less of a man.

Paine defines the natural rights of man as, the rights imposed on man by the creator at the point of creation, of which equality of man is the most fundamental. After elaborating on natural rights of man which he traced from nature or at the point of creation, Paine introduces civil rights of man which he believes derives or evolved from natural rights. In asserting that man’s natural rights are the foundation of all his civil rights, he makes it clear that from man’s natural rights and natural condition as a human being all other rights can be deduced and ascribed to man, this can also include the right to a better life. Civil rights arises from man finding himself in a society, especially a society with institutions that in one way or the other whether directly or indirectly affects his life’s prospects. Hence, man possess rights which are to enable him accomplish his existence as a man in the society. Thus the society in turn is so constituted to enable man achieve other goals of his being which cannot be obtained individually, the purpose of the society then, is to enable man achieve or attain those natural rights which his individual power alone cannot attain.

There are certain class of natural rights which man retains after entering into society and those which he throws into the common stock as a member of society. The common stock of society Paine describes as, the collection of surrendered natural rights possessed by men which forms civil power.  Paine gives a clearer description, “civil power properly considered as such is made up of the aggregate of that class of the natural rights of man which becomes defective in the individual in point of power and answers not his purpose but when collected to a focus becomes competent to the purpose of everyone” Paine (1795:22). He therefore insinuates that there is a class of natural rights which turns out to be defective when held individually. Deducing further, Paine draws a line between the rights retained and those submitted to the common stock by ascribing a sort of superiority to the rights retained. Since these rights are surrendered to form the civil power, the civil power in turn cannot be used to invade the natural rights retained. “The power produced from the aggregate of natural rights, imperfect in power in the individual, cannot be implied to invade the natural rights which are retained in the individual and which the power to execute is as perfect as the right itself” Paine (1795:22).

Having traced man from his origin as a natural individual and a member of society, Paine used his theory to deduce the kind of governments that are established in societies.  He raised four sources from which governments have arisen which are :superstition ,power, the common interest of society and the common rights of man.  Paine describes them in simple terms, “the first was a government of priestcraft, the second of conquerors and the third of reason” Paine (1795:22). Stressing his views on government, Paine laments,

when I contemplate the natural dignity of man,  when I feel (for nature has not been kind enough to me to blunt my feelings ) for the honour and happiness of its character,  i  become  irritated at the attempt  to govern  mankind by force and fraud as if  they  were  all  knaves  and  fools  and can scarcely avoid disgust at those who are thus imposed upon. Paine (1795:23).

Paine channelled his focus to the government because it is a body which determines to what extent man’s right can be granted or denied, as it is part of the social compact or society. The type of government in place is shaped by the origin of the government which also determines the kind of law in place, and ultimately binds on the citizens. Thus dysfunctional laws, constitutions or government are the origin of inequalities, the trampling of freedoms, deprivations and violations of the rights of man. The extent to which the government  upholds  the  principles of  freedom and equality,  to that extent it is able to fulfil and  establish  man’s needs because,  every government is directly or indirectly tailored to affect the life, living conditions and prospects of its  populace, considering the fact that every system instituted (be it economic, political or social) on earth either proceeds from man or is for man. It is therefore essential that theyconnect with man’s fundamental and original human nature for it to be successful in attaining its goals. But if it turns otherwise and instead connects  with  negative  principles set up by destructive ideas that  are  meant to  satisfy the interest of a few, impeding the freedom of mankind it turns around to become a snare to the very humans it was created for. This is an enduring principle and philosophy that should be applied in every department of our society today.

In highlighting the characteristics of the French declaration on the rights of man that made it credible, Paine summarises it with the fact that it placed the people above every other concerns, privileges and titles in accordance with the natural order of things. “The patriots of France have discovered in due time that rank and dignity in society must take a new ground.  The old one has fallen through, it must now take the substantial ground of character instead of the chimerical ground of titles and they have brought their titles to the altar and made of them burnt offering to reason”. Paine (1795:28).

He proposes that every arm of the state, the government and parliament should arise from and operate in accordance with the rights of the people. Viewing  government  in  the context provided by Thomas Paine implies  that,  there  are  certain  privileges of which the governed do not have to plead for or ask for not because they cannot be granted or should not be asked for but because,  they  possess  a natural right to it and as such should be granted them as part of the functions of government.