Thomas Paine was one of the most influential writers and thinkers during the time of the American Revolution. Paine was born January 29, 1737 at Thetford, Norfolk in England, as the son of a Quaker. He had a short basic education and started to work as an officer of the excise. He was twice dismissed from his post, and in 1774 he met Benjamin Franklin in London, who advised him to immigrate to America. Paine landed at Philadelphia on November 30, 1774, and he started a new life as a publicist.
<Tab/>Paine began publishing works in the spring of 1775 with his first being A…