"So you're the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war." - President Abraham Lincoln to Harriet Beecher Stowe about Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1862. Though Stowe wrote this book, not to start a war, but to recognize the horrors of slavery. This can be appropriately addressed by comparing the three main places Uncle Tom was sold to: The Shelby Farm, the St. Clare Homes, and the Legree Plantation. They vary from each other, especially concerning family dynamics, religion, the treatment of slaves, and what kind of people are there.
Which brings us to Mr. Shelby, owner of the Shelby Farms, he believes slavery to be a necessary evil. His wife, Mrs. Shelby feels that it goes against Christianity, made evident when she states “This is
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Clare Homes. It’s located in Louisiana, almost the southernmost you can go, like Simon Legree but unlike Legree they aren’t situated in the rural portion. St. Clare, master of the Homes, has a drinking problem, but despite this he is a kind slave owner much like Mr. Shelby. They are also similar in that they both promised to free Uncle Tom and that they both believed slavery wasn’t a good and happy thing, specifically St. Clare believed that the Bible didn’t justify slavery as he states “When I look for religion, I must look for something above me, and not something beneath.” (Uncle Tom’s Cabin 156). The St. Clare's whole family dynamic is different from the Shelby's, Marie St. Clare was oblivious to the thoughts and feelings of others, she is described as having “not much capability for affection… sensibility” and a case of extreme selfishness (Uncle Tom’s Cabin 131), whereas Mrs. Shelby was defined as a woman of high class, high morals, and high principle (Uncle Tom’s Cabin 10), Cassy, Simon Legree’s mistress, too, was high class even as a mulatto woman and though she has had a difficult time of it, retains the poise and intelligence that once came with her station. Miss Ophelia, the cousin from New England with strict mannerisms, most opposite to Augustine St. Clare, she is the embodiment of religious duty. Eva though adored didn’t have much of a relationship with her parents, unlike George Shelby. Like George though, Eva …show more content…
Clare Homes are and far from the Shelby farm, is where this story takes a turn for the worse. The treatment of slaves is really bad, this seems to come from the fact that Legree’s own father was a vicious man. Though his mother was kindhearted, it did not save Legree from taking after him. Simon Legree, with no family or friends to speak of, takes on a black mistress, Cassy, and her maybe replacement Emmaline. He doesn’t allow slaves to practice any religion and took away everything Tom owns except his bible because he hid it. Though religion isn’t tolerated the slaves sing hymns anyway. The closest thing Simon has to friends are the two black overseers on his plantation who he encourages to be cruel “Legree had trained [the overseers] in savageness and brutality as systematically as he had his bull-dogs; and, by long practice in his hardness and cruelty, brought their whole nature to about the same range of capacities.” (Uncle Tom’s Cabin 292-93). This is such a different reality than the Shelby Farm and the St. Clare Homes, until Marie was in
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a slavery novel written by Harriet Breecher Stowe. The book begins with Arthur Shelby, a “kind” slave owner and Tom’s master who resides in Kentucky. He is facing the loss of his farm because he has debts. Even though Mr. Shelby and his wife Emily have a close by connection with their slaves, Arthur decides to raise funds by selling two of his slaves which are Uncle Tom and Harry. Uncle Tom is a man with a wife and children, and he is about middle aged, and Harry, the son of Emily Shelby’s servant Eliza, are going to be sold to a slave trader. Emily is not okay with the idea of Harry being sold because she has promised
Another odd aspect which was displayed in chapter 1 of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, is the description of Eliza Harris, who is Mrs. Shelby’s maid. She is described as having, “Rich, full, dark eyes, with its long lashes; the same ripples of silky black hair. The brown of her complexion gave way on the cheek to a perceptible flush, which deepened as she saw the gaze of the strange man fixed upon her in bold and undisguised admiration. Her dress was of the neatest possible fit, and set off to advantage her finely moulded shape”. (Stowe, Harriet Beecher.) Unfortunately, many don’t imagine slaves being well groomed, and dressed neatly. It may be believed that Stowe is giving a false racial stereotype here and trying to paint a different image of what slavery was like.
Mrs. Shelby exemplifies the difference between her moral code, and her society’s morals, as she goes against the regulations set by society that America should be a segregated one, as she reaches out to help out Uncle Tom, upon the bad news that has come upon the Shelby planation.
Stowe expressed that the geographic region and birth could decide whether a person is slavery or not. She strongly suggested the geographic region in the paragraph which depicted how Eliza with her son Harry escaped. When Eliza decided to seek for happiness and freedom for her son and herself, Mrs. Shelby, her current master, kindly suggested her to run further north and migrated to Canada. Both Eliza’s husband and Mrs. Shelby believed that the northern region is a place of freedom and could offer some equal rights for slaves. Whereas, Stowe described southern region as a place full of bitterness. As Uncle Tom was sold further south, he encountered more inhuman violence and ideas from slavery. Legree, Uncle Tom’s third master, lived in the
But Tom real host is Mr. St. Clair. Tom's second master, the little girl Eva's father; Is a novel inside the most sympathetic slave owners. St. Clare is already aware of the sin of slavery, but have not yet to prepare for discarding it brings wealth. After the death of his daughter, he became more religious, and began to read the bible to Tom. However, his kindness is because nothing has resulted from his accidental death.
Stowe focuses on the story of a slave name Uncle Tom, who was sold down the river and brutalized by the planter whose name remains a synonym for cruelty and oppression, Simon Legree. Uncle Tom was a slave for the Shelby’s’, who were very nice to him and really cared about their slaves. Unfortunately, due to their financial circumstances they had to sell Uncle Tom to another man named Haley, who later sold him to a very oppressive master named Simon Legree. Tom experienced the “best” of slavery at the Shelby plantation, and suffered the “worst” at the Legree plantation. Even though Tom suffered a lot he never gave up, as stated in the book when he tells his master “if you was sick, or in trouble, or dying, and I could save ye, I’d give ye my heart’s blood” (Stowe, 464).
Clare since Tom saves his daughter, Eva. Clare is a well-educated gentleman and clearly knows that slavery is evil. Although he is a slave owner, he does not have any prejudice against slaves. Thus, like Arthur, he does not do harm to his slaves while he also does not free them. Because of his miserable experience in his early life, he does not feel willing to do anything to change the slavery and thinks one person cannot make any difference.
When Uncle Tom’s Cabin first starts, two men are introduced. One being Haley, the other being Mr. Shelby. Haley is described as a short fat man, who is far overdressed just for a meeting with Shelby. Mr. Shelby is only described as looking like a gentleman. The men are discussing a slave named Tom, who Shelby is looking to sell and Haley to buy. Tom is said to be an uncommon slave who is very honest, loyal, and has good Christian values. The way Shelby talks about Tom shows what a great relationship he has with his slaves. Also, the way Haley responds shows that he may be a very inconsiderate master.
In literature, the nature of a character’s villainy plays an important role in novels and play. These evil characters enhance the good in the other characters. In the novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by Harriet Beecher Stowe, there are many acts of evil committed by multiple characters, but one that stands out in the novel is Simon Legree. Simon Legree is a vicious slave owner of Tom. He exhibits no remorse and cruelty.
In Uncle Tom’s Cabin Beecher Stowe persuades her audience that there is nothing that can justify slavery. Black women began to believe they stood at a lower status. Simon Legree, a character in Uncle Tom’s Cabin, was a potent slave owner. He owned a woman and a girl by the names of Cassy and Emmeline who he used as sex objects and personal entertainment. Simon was selfish and macho, making him disrespectful towards women, including his own mother.
As United States citizens take a jump back into reasonably recent history, it is guaranteed that one will find elements of slavery in the southern states. Slavery, something many people frown on in this day an age, looked a little different back some 150 years ago. This was a major part of the southern colonies’ government and wasn’t the sure cause of the American Civil War. Moreover, slavery is how their entire economy ran, with black people working on mega plantations, picking cotton, making clothing, and even watching children of young ages. The aspect of slavery wasn’t something that southerners looked upon with a disapproving eye; it was something that people needed to survive and make money off of. Slavery made their world go around,
Another place in the text where Stowe’s theme becomes clearer to readers in in chapter twenty when St. Clare exclaims, “That’s you Christians, all over!—you’ll get up a society and get some poor missionary to spend all his days among just such heathen. But let me see one of you that would take one into your house with you, and take the labor of their conversation on yourselves! No; when it comes to that, they are dirty and disagreeable, and it’s too much care, and so on (866).” St. Clare recognizes the evil of slavery himself but is afraid free his slaves in order to become a “Christian.” He is more than willing to point out all the problems
Throughout the whole story, Tom studies and marks in his bible verses in which he finds the deepest meaning. While Tom was at Mr. Shelby’s after the work for the day was complete, Tom would go into the woods and preach to his fellow slaves while his wife, Aunt Chloe, cooked dinner. When Tom received news of his purchase by a slave trader, he placed his trust into God that this was the best thing for him(Chapter 5). After being purchased by St. Clare due to the persuasion of Eva, whom discovered Tom’s devout interest in the Bible. Together, Eva and Tom explored Christianity together, passing it along to numerous slaves on the farm. While George is being pursued by runaway slave hunters, he tells them, “We don’t own your laws; we don’t own your country; we stand here as free, under God’s sky, as you are; and, by the great God that made us, we’ll fight for our liberty until we die.”(Chapter 17). From this, Stowe reveals the point that black men and white men are both in this world together; and that blacks deserve the same right to freedom as whites do. Since Eva had been exposed to so many of the horrors of slavery and felt their suffering, she dedicated her death to the slaves on St. Clare’s farm. Early Eva expressed to her father how unjust slavery is and how the ideals he uses with her such as how he doesn’t her to suffer. Also Eva express how the slaves should be educated so they can know so much more(Chapter 24). People such as Eva realize that slaves has just as much potential to become educated and religious members of society if they were given the same
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a novel written in times of unrest where slavery was a controversial topic and women 's rights were still suffering. Uncle Tom’s Cabin showed the grim reality of slavery and showed the importance for women to gain a societal role beyond the domestic domain. The reading contains a number of major characters throughout the novel. The two most notable characters we will discuss is Mrs. Shelby and Marie St. Clare. Throughout this paper we will compare and contrast these two characters and give specific examples to illustrate the similarities and differences between these two unique individuals.
Another odd aspect which was displayed in chapter 1 of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, is the description of Eliza Harris, who is Mrs. Shelby’s maid. She is described as, “Rich, full, dark eyes, with its long lashes; the same ripples of silky black hair. The brown of her complexion gave way on the cheek to a perceptible flush, which deepened as she saw the gaze of the strange man fixed upon her in bold and undisguised admiration. Her dress was of the neatest possible fit, and set off to advantage her finely moulded shape”. (Stowe, Harriet Beecher.) Many don’t imagine slaves being well groomed, and dressed neatly. It may be believed that Stowe is giving a false racial stereotype here.