Read the excerpt from The Crisis, Number I by Thomas Paine.“I once felt all that kind of anger, which a man ought to feel, against the mean principles that are held by the Tories: a noted one, who kept a tavern at Amboy, was standing at his door, with as pretty a child in his hand, about eight or nine years old, as I ever saw, and after speaking his mind as freely as he thought was prudent, finished with this unfatherly expression, ‘Well! give me peace in my day.’ Not a man lives on the continent but fully believes that a separation must some time or other finally take place, and a generous parent should have said, ‘If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace;’ and this single reflection, well applied, is sufficient to awaken every man to duty.”Which is a central idea of this excerpt?
Answer
A
Paine feels that everyone should be able to speak freely, which is why he supports independence.
B
Paine believes that colonists should fight for independence so their children can live in peace.
C
Paine believes that some people are selfish and place their needs above others.
D
Paine felt anger for the first time when he saw an interaction between a Tory and a child.
Explanation
Paine contrasts the tavern owner’s wish for “peace in my day” with what a generous parent should say: “let it be in my day, that my child may have peace.” He argues that colonists should accept the struggle for independence now so the next generation can live in peace. This makes B the central idea; the passage is not mainly about freedom of speech or Paine’s first experience of anger.
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