Question

how does paine most clearly attempt to persuade his audience in this introductory paragraph? he appeals to his audience’s sense of morality by asking people to “not put off the true character of a man.” he argues for his own credibility by explaining that he allowed “his reason and his feelings to determine for themselves.” he attempts to evoke an emotional response by suggesting his audience has “prejudice and prepossession.” he makes his argument seem easy to understand by stating that it contains “simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense.”

Explanation:

To determine how Paine persuades his audience, we analyze each option:

• The option about appealing to morality is incorrect as the quote doesn't focus on morality.
• The option about evoking emotion by suggesting prejudice is incorrect as that's not a persuasive appeal to emotion in the right context.
• The option about making the argument easy to understand by stating it has simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense is correct. Paine's style in "Common Sense" often emphasizes clarity and using simple, relatable reasoning, and this option aligns with that approach of making the argument accessible.
• The option about arguing for credibility by letting reason and feelings determine is not the main persuasive technique here compared to the clarity - focused approach.

Answer:

He makes his argument seem easy to understand by stating that it contains "simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense."