Harriet Beecher Stowe, the daughter of a clergyman, published Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852. This inspired book is a forceful condemnation of the
institution of slavery. This book played an important part in stirring the conscience of a nation, and in spreading the message against slavery. In all probability, the author was motivated to write this book not just due to her personal experiences, but in protest against the “Fugitive
slave Laws” passed by the United States Congress, laws which facilitated the recapture and extradition of runaway slaves.
The broad thrust of the author’s argument – a point that she hammers again and again – is that the institution of
slavery is incompatable with the Christian faith. As a Christian, the author was never in any doubt where her duty lay. The author
says that the most dreadful aspect of this tragedy was that it had the sanction of the American legal system and the Christian church. Such a thing, she says, must never be for the doors of the church can not be shut to these outcast slaves. The author strongly feels that their Christian faith has been perverted by the institution of slavery.
Though it is not a biography, this story is true nonetheless in the sense that the character sketches are drawn from real life (with changes in name and address), and the incidents that contribute to this story have occurred to
people or persons that the author knew. In this book, the author has tried to portray the institution of slavery in all its aspects. Not as a dry and dreary topic for debate and discussion, but as a living drama that impacts upon the lives of
human beings. The author has tried to describe this human tragedy, affecting thousands of families, in vivid terms.
The author states that there were no legal safeguards, and no legal remedies, for a slave. The slave was at the mercy of his or her master, as the case may be. It is not that there were good masters and bad masters, for there are good people and bad people everywhere. Free people with a conscience should neither defend nor take part in the slave system. But the author says that by keeping silent, the people can not absolve themselves of their individual responsibilities. The injustices that she describes in the book were an inherent part of the slave system - and one could not conceive of slavery without them.
The author makes a compelling case for the emancipation of slaves. The author says that the
slaves are as capable of honesty, kindness, and feeling as other people. In other words, the slaves are no less human than other Americans, and should be treated as such. All the slaves lack is the freedom to put their talents to good effect.
This book carries both a political and a moral message. The author says that the American people are guilty before God. As for the American nation, she says that any nation that aspires for greatness cannot carry an un-redressed injustice in its heart. And if the Union is to be saved, it is not going to be saved by appeasement, but only by giving justice to those who deserve it.
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