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Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of
Uncle Tom’s Cabin,
was born in Litchfield, Connecticut in the year of 1811. She was a housewife of
six, and wrote articles for magazines for a living. Stowe’s sister, Isabella
Jones Beecher, was furious from the passing of the
Fugitive Slave Law, passed as
part of the Compromise of 1850. The law required all Northerners to return
runaway slaves to their Southern owners. The result of the anger of the two
sisters resulted in the production of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
When reading the
book, it is quite obvious to an observant reader that the book was written by a
nineteenth century woman during the nineteenth century. The opening scene of the
book, where Mr. Shelby talks to Haley about Tom, is a reference to Harriet
Beecher herself. She is trying to portray that all themes in this book about the
evils of slavery are unfortunately true. There were some bright points besides
the evils of slavery. Stowe mentioned that slavery in Kentucky was not so
badly-off. This, however, angered abolitionists. Even though, there were still
many fears to worry about.
Another point is that Stowe makes Eliza and
George, the parents of little Harry, light skinned. Stowe remarks that
light-skinned women, like Eliza, are often especially attractive. This is one
stereotype that whites have over blacks. The stereotype is described fully in
the description of the two light-skinned story characters.
All of the
characters in Uncle Tom’s Cabin are based on real acquaintances of Harriet
Beecher Stowe. Eliza is based on a young woman that Stowe had met in Kentucky.
The first indication of this is found in Chapter 3: The Husband and the Father.
In this chapter, George Harris decides to run away to Canada and
work to buy Eliza and Harry’s freedom. Also in this chapter, George and Eliza
possess completely different thoughts about slavery.
All in all, most of the
situations and characters in this book are references to Harriet Beecher Stowe
and the life she lived. It was not an easy period to live in, especially for a
black woman in a slave state. Uncle Tom’s Cabin is an excellent example of what
she had to deal with, and what kind of people that the slaves and masters were
like. Stowe deserves much credit for writing this book, since she is coming
straight out and expressing everything that she has lived through , the
hardships, the terrors, and the friends that she made.
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