Slavery

If an author ever mastered the force of morality in words it was Harriet Beecher Stowe. Stowe grants each character with emotion and depth and even today reminds readers of the debate over race and human worth.

With this book Stowe put a face on a practice that, previously, many had not allowed themselves to put a face on. This book changed history not just in practice, but also in perception. Even United States president Abraham Lincoln recognized its valor by saying, upon meeting Harriett Beecher Stowe, "So you're the little lady who started this great big war." His comment was not an understatement. The book was unprecedented and achieved unexpected results, especially for a work of fiction.

Uncle Tom's Cabin chronicles the lives of several slaves. The book opens with Arthur Shelby, a Kentucky farmer who is forced to sell two of his slaves, Uncle Tom and Harry, the son of Mrs. Shelby's maid Eliza. The family has a strong relationship with their slaves, and the decision and actual action of selling the slaves is fraught with difficulty.

When Eliza hears the plans to sell Harry, she runs away with her son. While Eliza and Harry are fleeing, Tom is sold on a riverboat and sent down the Mississippi River.

Eliza's escape did not go unnoticed, she and her husband George meet up and flee from slave tracker Tom Loker. While escaping, George shoots Loker. Fearful that Loker might die, Eliza convinces George to take Loker to the nearby Quaker village for medical treatment.

Back in New Orleans, Tom is purchased by the benevolent slave owner Augustine St. Clare. Tom has a good life with the St. Clares and grows close with the St. Clare daughter, Eva. When Eva dies, St. Clare pledges to free Uncle Tom. Before he can deliver on his promise, he is stabbed while intervening in a fight and Tom is sold to a vicious slave owner named Simon Legree. During his time at Legree's plantation, Tom meets several slaves, all of whom have been separated from their families...