Uncle Tom's Cabin

Sorry it has been awhile since I have had an entry.  Reading has been tough, good books, but long.  At the current time I have been reading two different books on a similar topic, slavery.  Both books are well known, and worth reading.  Today I’ll speak about the book I just finished, Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe.  This classic is a must read as it is a wonderful story of its time.  Stowe has eloquently and bluntly captured a horrific story of the slave industry.  She has also personalized it with her own religious convictions, which underscore her own reasons why slavery is unthinkable in the society of her day (and I would say any day!).   The other book I am reading is a book that chronicles the life of a family that is brought into slavery (more on that when I finish!).  

The character of Tom is the most endearing character.  His commitment to his master, but more importantly his God gets him through the trials of being torn away from his loved ones.  For him to be so close to freedom (his master dies before he has the chance to put in writing) and the evil family member left behind sells Tom to Simon Legree (the quintessential evil slave owner) who tortures Tom in his attempt to tear him away from his religion.  In the end, Stowe shows that people “get what is coming to them!”  Stowe’s work comes from an abolitionist point of view and was hailed by President Lincoln as a force supporting his claim to end slavery.  While at times the writing “dripped” (fits nicely with the style I’m writing about) with melodramatic tones, it fits for the time.  Some of the southern writing can be hard to read, it gives it the flavor of moment.  I appreciated the Christian theme of forgiveness and commitment to faith, while others may find it too preachy, depends on your perspective.

There are some unintended stereotypes that are created through the book for Black Americans.  The lasting stereotypes are certainly not what Ms. Stowe had in mind.  This for me serves as proof how influential the book was in its day and still remains.  I hope all have a chance to read this book as if we don’t pay attention to the past, it certainly could repeat itself, through the introduction of another ethnic group in entering a new country or even another type of people (religious, etc.).  Stowe painted a picture of a time that I hope no society will ever repeat.