The First International Conference of Thomas Paine Studies at
Iona College

Iona College hosted a gathering of national and international scholars for presentations and discussion on the life, legacy and ideas of a long neglected Founding Father of the United States, Thomas Paine. In addition to twelve sessions of scholarly presentations, the conference also featured a keynote speech by Lewis Lapham, a presentation of the play, Citizen Paine, as well as receptions at the Thomas Paine National Historical Association Building and the Thomas Paine Cottage.

Conference Information

• Session 1: Paine, Religion and Radicalism (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • The Radicalisation of Thomas Paine: Bill Speck, Independent Scholar
  • Apostles of Freedom: Thomas Paine and Pro-French Democratic Crusaders in the Early American Republic: Matthew Rainbow Hale, Goucher College
  • Paine in the American Radical Lineage: Michael Lawrence, Michigan State University College of Law
• Session 2: A Social and Cultural Legacy less Examined (Driscoll Hall, President's Dining Room)
  • "If We Women Have an Equal Right with You in Virtue": The Framing of Gender Roles in Paine's 'Occasional Letter on the Female Sex' and in the Equal Rights Amendment Public Discourse : Orly Shachar, Iona College
  • How much of the earth belongs to the living? Exploring Thomas Paine's ideas of inter-generational resource use: Jessica Panegyres, University of Oxford
  • In Memoriam: Alfred F. Andersen and the Tom Paine Institute: Brent Ranalli, Independent Scholar
• Session 3: "The Age of Reason" (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • Irreligion Made Easy: The Reaction to Thomas Paine's The Age of Reason: Patrick W. Hughes, University of Pittsburgh
  • Debating The Age of Reason: Rachel Spivack, City University of New York
  • Thomas Paine's Le Siècle de la Raison, ou Le Sens Commun Des Droits De L'Homme: Notes on the Earliest Edition of The Age of Reason: David C Hoffman, Baruch College and Claudia Carlos, Independent Scholar
• Session 4: Money, Memory and the Currency of Paine (Driscoll Hall, President's Dining Room)
  • The Second American Crisis: Paine's Politics Toward Censorship, War and the Banks: Jake Hogan, University of Toronto
  • Thomas Paine, Post-Newtonian Inventor of the United States: Albert DiCanzio, Webster University
  • Erasure of Public Memory: The Strange Case of Tom Paine in Washington, D.C.: Richard Robyn, Kent State University
• Session 5: The Literary Legacy (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • Paine's Imperial Imagination: Ed Larkin, University of Delaware
  • Beginning the World Anew: Betsy Erkkila, Northwestern University
• Session 6: The Political Paine (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • Paine and Rights: Two Puzzles Reconsidered: Gregory Claeys, University of London
• Keynote Presentation:
  • Lewis Lapham
• Session 7: The Head and Heart of Revolution (Ryan Library, Room 308)
  • The Relationship Between Washington and Paine: Ryan Staude, State University of New York at Albany
  • The Other Pamphlet: Richard Price's Observations on the Nature of Civil Liberty, Paine's Common Sense, and the Origins of American Independence: Robert P. Forbes, University of Connecticut
• Session 8: Social Contracts and the Foundation of Government (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • Thomas Paine's Social Contract Theory: Carine Lounissi, University of Rouen
  • The Aims and Meaning of a Constitution According to Thomas Paine: Maurizio Griffo, University of Naples
  • Thomas Paine's Lessons on Republicanism - Marc Belissa, Univ. of Paris Ouest Nanterre
  • Thomas Paine and the Case against Hebraic Republicanism: William J. Murphy, Syracuse University
• Session 9: New Illumination from New Methodologies (Driscoll Hall, President's Dining Room)
  • The Historiographical and Cultural Impact of Thomas Paine: A Quantitative Approach: Raymond D. Irwin, Kent State University
  • King and Government, England and America: Digital Text Analysis of Thomas Paine's Common Sense: Cristina Vignone, New York University
  • Author Attribution of Paine and his Contemporaries: Robert Schiaffino, Iona College, Smiljana Petrovic, Iona College, and Gary Berton, Thomas Paine National Historical Association
• Session 10: Social Justice, the Oppressed and Marginalized (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • A Friend to the Indians? Thomas Paine and Native America: Matthew Jennings, Macon State College
  • Paine's Antislavery Legacy: Some Additional Considerations: Mariam Touba, New-York Historical Society
  • To the French Inhabitants of Louisiana: Thomas Paine's Timequake: Fernin Eaton, Independent Scholar
• Session 11: The Rhetorical and Poetic Paine (Driscoll Hall, President's Dining Room)
  • Thomas Paine, the English Ballad and Liberty in an Associational World: Scott Cleary, Iona College
  • A Kind of Bee-Hive: Paine and the Pennsylvania Magazine: Peter Chapin and Kara Nowakowski, Iona College
  • Thomas Paine as a Rhetorician: The Crisis, No. 1: Flora Caldwell, Independent Scholar
• Session 12: Paine's American Identity (Ryan Library, Romita Auditorium)
  • A Man without a Country: Thomas Paine and Citizenship in the 18th century Atlantic World, Vikki Vickers, Weber State University
  • A National Hero in Transit: The Problem of Thomas Paine's American Citizenship, Bernard Vincent, University of Orléans
• Closing Remarks and a Performance of Citizen Paine

Special Thanks to:

James Hervey Johnson Charitable Educational Trust
Provost Brian Nickerson
The Dean of Arts and Science Office
Ryan Library Administration and Staff
Iona College Facilities and Information Technology

Viewing the TPNHA Collection

Please use the following web links to examine the policies for viewing the collection and for requesting a time to view material from the TPNHA Collection:

• Thomas Paine National Historical Association Collection Homepage
• Policies and Proceedures for Public Use of Iona College Archive Material
• Request to View Special Collection Materials