Throughout history we have had many different authors who set the standards for many other authors today. So far in the semester we have covered many different ones, some of these authors have similar points of view and others with totally different points of view. We've covered Jean De Crevecover, Thomas Paine, Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Phillis Wheatley. These authors are Revolutionary War era authors who are trying to answer what an American is. In history many authors try to answer this question. You get many different answers to this question. Jean De Crevecover is a French-American author. Crevecover was born January 31, 1735, and died November 12, 1813. Jean de Crevecover served in the French and Indian War. He moved to New York State and became a farmer. He returned to Europe and was imprisoned for being an American spy. He published his first book entitled “Letter from an American Farmer”. The book quickly became the first literary success by an American author in Europe and transformed Crevecover into a celebrated figure. Another author, Thomas Paine, was an influential 18th-century writer of essays and pamphlets. Thomas was born in England on January 29, 1737 to a Quaker father and Anglican mother and died on June 8, 1809. Thomas Paine moved to Philadelphia on November 30, 1774 where he helped edit the Pennsylvania Magazine in January 1775. Paine began by publishing several articles in the form anonymous. One of his first articles was a harsh condemnation of the African slave trade, called "African slavery in America". Thomas Paine is known for his writings on “Common Sense”. Phillis Wheatley was born in Senegal around May 8, 1753. At the age of 8 she was kidnapped and taken to Boston on a slave ship. Phillis Wheatley died in December... mid-paper... Thirteen colonies declared and fought for independence from Great Britain in the summer of 1776. Common Sense Explains the Benefit of Independence and What We Must Do to Get ItPhillis Wheatley is was the first African American woman to publish a book. Even though she was a slave she was intelligent. Phillis' poems spoke of her time as a slave, addressing its moral and religious aspects. Phillis Wheatley in her writings believes that the way African Americans are treated is unfair. All of these authors are different in many ways, such as their skin color and family background, but they all have the same opinion on what they think it is to be. an American. All of these authors want the abolition of slavery and they want equality in America. Everyone living free living out there dreams of being an American.