In Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe the reader is shown the hardships of discrimination and the horrors of slavery. Stowe’s book reveals the bitter life of African-American slaves in the south during the Nineteenth Century. Harriet Beecher Stowe offers a diverse cast of Christian slaves (Tom, Eliza, Harry, George, and Chloe) and slave owners (Haley, Loker, Marks, Marie, and Simone Legree) to depict the reality of southern lifestyle in Early America. The direct theme of Stowe’s book emphasizes that slavery is evil. Stowe clearly depicts that slavery is not only a curse on colored people, but it is a curse on American society.
In this book the reader is shown the extremes of slavery through the character of Uncle Tom. Uncle Tom is my favorite character because he is honest and kind. Uncle Tom is African-American slave that is a strong believer of Christianity and a devout follower. Throughout the book the reader is shown the difficult hardships that Tom faces throughout his life as a slave. Instead of running away to Canada with Eliza, George, and Harry, Tom stays with his master Mr. Shelby out of trust and loyalty. Throughout Tom’s journey the reader sees the different kinds of slave owners: St. Clare and Simon Legree. For a slave owner St Clare was a generous man and showed some form of respect to his slaves. Legree on the other hand was very cruel to his workers and discriminatory. For instance, he asked Tom to whip one of the other slaves. But, as a Christian follower Uncle Tom refuses to punish another slave for not doing anything wrong. As a result Tom was whipped and abused for not obeying Legree’s request.
In Uncle Tom’s Cabin the author highlights the sinful behavior of slavery and questions if slavery can truly coexist with Christianity. Harriet Beecher Stowe does an excellent job narrating a very dark period in American history. Through Uncle Tom the reader is shown the corruption behind slavery. The participation of violence and discrimination towards African-American minorities seems unholy. As a result the author questions how Christianity can coexist with the evils of slavery and concludes that slave owners are one of the worst kinds of Christian sinners.
Stowe really depends on moral suasion to convince her audience of the evils of slavery. The root of abolition, Stowe argues throughout the book, stems from confronting individual prejudices and moral reflection. It is certainly reflective of the sentimentalism that define many reform moments during the Antebellum period.
It is worth noting that many of the social reformers of the mid and late 19th century came from a religious background. Some of the earliest and most vocal opponents of slavery were the Quakers who grounded their argument in faith. Later revivalist groups would also argue against slavery with protestant moralism.
I like how you mention the contrast between St. Clare and Simon Legree. Yes, they are both slave owners, but are still very different people. St. Clare was much more compassionate to his slaves, while Legree was much more oppressive and harsh. Perhaps St. Clare’s character was made to be a symbol for maintaining hope for humanity and the Christian faith. His name somewhat gives the reader a hint to that theme.
What I think is one of Stowe’s most powerful moves for her argument that a true Christian can not participate in the evils of slavery is Tom’s death. Tom is a picturesque Christian until the bitter end, showing forgiveness (turning the other cheek) to Legree, telling George not to attack him because “he’s a poor mislabel critter! it’s awful to on’t! O, if he only could repent the Lord would forgive him now; but I’m feared he never will!” It’s a moment that deeply appeals to readers’ emotions, making them wonder how anything good could possible lead to the painful and tragic death of such a good Christian man
The quote is from page 426
I think Stowe purposely uses Christian slaves as her characters to show that in some way they were morally superior to their masters. Uncle Tom is a devout, loyal Christian man who accepts his role as a slave and serves his masters to the best of his ability because to him it is a testament from God.