An era of inhumanity
Uncle Tom's Cabin is one of the most famous and popular pieces of Civil War literature. It was drawn from selected pieces of a real life memoir done by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin was a book that drew many people into the fight over the institution of slavery. Few books can truly be said to have altered the course of history, and even fewer can be said to have started an entire war. Uncle Tom's Cabin was one such novel. It is a realistic, although fictional, view of slavery that burned into the consciousness of America the images of brutal beatings and unfair slave practices. Originally planned for a series of short essays for the National Era in 1851-1852, Stowe gathered so much information, that it was too large for newspaper print, and was published originally by the Boston publishing company Jewett. (Smith, 1). Immediately, it became a hot seller with Northerners and Southerners alike. Many argued that there were false reports in what she wrote because the slave owners were portrayed as heartless devilish men, and the slaves were portrayed as their victims. Uncle Tom's Cabin tells a story of adversity in the struggle for freedom, a look into human cruelty as well a
Stowe also portrays Uncle Tom as a perfect being. Shelby's Kentucky plantation was overwhelmed by debt, so he makes plans to trade some slaves to a slave dealer in exchange for debts being canceled. Legree has enough of Tom's kindness and piety, after Tom is ordered to beat another female slave and refused. Harriet Beecher Stowe used her knowledge of the past to write a clear argument for the abolition of slavery. By creating such a fictional scene, Stowe is able to help the reader realize how desperate Eliza is to obtain freedom; an inborn right given to all human beings. For this show of obstinance, Tom is beaten until he fainted. By giving Uncle Tom this flawless characteristic, Stowe is able to show that he, too, is human although his difference is skin color. The main characters in this story are Uncle Tom, Eliza, and George Harris. The author brings out the humanity in the slaves and describes the great injustices that took place during the time. The novel is more than just a narrative of slaves, but of human emotion rising up in the face of adversity. It is a story of the fight for freedom and an account of the history of America. By her description of Tom, Stowe contradicts the common stereotype that blacks are savages and inhumane by giving Uncle Tom the characteristic of an ideal, honest man.
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Acceptance Essays
