ipl-logo

An Analysis Of Uncle Tom's Cabin By Harriet Beecher Stowe

1752 Words8 Pages

John Gokey
Mr. O’Connor
American Literature H
27 February 2017
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a novel written by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852. This novel shows the harsh reality of slavery and the living conditions of slaves, which eventually led to the Civil War. Uncle Tom is a beloved slave by his owners on the Shelby plantation. He lives a content life in his own cabin with his wife and children, until the Shelby family becomes engulfed in debt, and are forced to sell Tom along with another slave to Haley, who eventually sells them to Mr. St. Clare. Tom becomes close with his new master, who promises Tom his freedom if he were to pass away. Mr. St. Clare unexpectedly dies, leaving Tom’s fate in Marie’s, his wife, …show more content…

All of the slaves hope to be granted their freedom, and would do just about anything in order to reach that goal. They are willing to escape their plantations, with the risk of being brutally tortured or killed if caught by their owners. Eliza could not live with herself if she had to leave her son, so she ran away to a nearby slave-harboring house to be free from her future master. But there are also some owners, such as Mr. St. Clare, that is willing to grant some of his slaves their freedom once he has passed away. Owners like Mr. St. Clare and others such as Miss Ophelia feel that slavery is horrendous, and should no longer exist, in order to better the nation and moral. But these people are afraid to take action, due to the fact that they do not know what it would be like without slaves. Or the concept of what the slaves would do or where they would go. The end goal for everyone is to have a stronger and more sound nation, where people can live in charity and goodness, and raise their own families in peace. But without the abolishment of slavery this cannot …show more content…

Slaves were mainly used for harvesting tobacco, and later cotton, for the mass markets in Europe. This was the early foundation of the American economy. In the early 1800’s, the Missouri Compromise banned slavery in all western territories. Many of the southern states saw this as a threat to their lively-hood. A few years later, the Dred Scott Decision said that all slaves did not have American citizenship. This meant that if any slave were to escape, they would not be allowed to be free, but they would have to be returned to their rightful owner. This decision made many Northerners upset, causing them to being the powerful movement we know today as the Abolition Movement. When Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860, as a member of the anti-slavery Republic party, he proclaimed that slavery would soon end in the south as it already ha din the north. This led to the Civil War, and the eventual abolishment of slavery in

Open Document