American Literature

Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)

Women

This collection uses primary sources to explore Harriet Beecher Stowe&#39;s Uncle Tom&#39;s Cabin.

An illustration of a slave auction created by Theodore R. Davis in 1865.

An 1864 carte de visite, a type of small photograph frequently exchanged and sold during the war, depicting so-called white slaves.

“The Scourged Back,” a carte de visite depicting a slave who was severely whipped, 1863.

An illustration of Topsy and Eva, two of the novel’s characters with the greatest cultural impact.

An 1897 illustration of Uncle Tom and Simon Legree.

A photograph of Harriet Beecher Stowe, circa 1860.

An excerpt from a 1838 sermon against slavery by Lyman Beecher, father of Harriet Beecher Stowe.

A broadside announcing the 1850 passage of the Fugitive Slave Bill.

An 1852 review of *Uncle Tom’s Cabin* in *Fraser’s Magazine*.

The printed announcement of a theatrical performance of *Uncle Tom’s Cabin* at Methodist Episcopal Church in Hudson, New Hampshire in 1879. 

A photograph of actors in blackface for an 1896 minstrel show in Mercur, Utah.

A 1936 illustration depicting Europe as Eliza from *Uncle Tom's Cabin* crossing the ice floes of crises that led to World War II.

Questions

1. Read Chapter XII of *Uncle Tom’s Cabin*, which addresses the sale of slaves. Identify the characters who argue for or against slavery, and list the different arguments these characters make. Now look at the [illustration of the slave auction](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/330). Connect the image with one of the character’s arguments for or against slavery. How could the character use the image to support the argument?

2. *Uncle Tom’s Cabin* is best known for creating controversy and sparking opinions and emotions on an important issue of its time. Discuss how "[The Scourged Back](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/332)" may have contributed to controversy over slavery and abolition. What other literary works have created controversies or addressed social issues? 

3. A review of the novel in the *Southern Literary Messenger* argues that Harriet Beecher Stowe “intermeddle[s] with things which concern her not” and as a result, has “forfeited the claim to be considered a lady.” What could be the things in which Stowe is accused of meddling? Brainstorm reasons why this meddlesome behavior might cause her to be considered unladylike in 1852. Discuss what it means to be a lady today, and how this compares with the era of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Finally, compare the *Southern Literary Messenger* review with the [review from *Fraser’s Magazine*](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/338).

4. Discuss adaptations of *Uncle Tom’s Cabin*. Look at the illustrations of [Topsy and Eva](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/333) and [Tom and Legree](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/334), the [announcement of the stage adaptation](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/339), the [minstrel show](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/340), and the [World War II political cartoon](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/341). Identify ways that the story, the characters, and the telling changed over time. Compare the adaptations of and changes to *Uncle Tom’s Cabin* to a more recent text that has been adapted for the stage or screen.


Activity

Divide students into groups. Give each group one of these images from the set: the [illustration of the slave auction](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/330), the [illustration of Topsy and Eva](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/333), the [illustration of Tom and Legree](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/334), the [1864 carte de visite](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/331), and "[The Scourged Back](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/uncle-tom-s-cabin-by-harriet-beecher-stowe/sources/332)." Each group will discuss the ways in which African Americans are represented in their image. Next, groups will compare the image to a contemporary representation of African Americans during slavery and the Civil War, such as the films *Twelve Years a Slave* and *Lincoln*.

Teaching Guide: Exploring *Uncle Tom’s Cabin*

Resources

1. [*Uncle Tom’s Cabin*](http://dp.la/item/7709e9556bb0de7db7a7c9efb8f47e5f) by Harriet Beecher Stowe, HathiTrust, Digital Public Library of America. 

2. [Slave narratives and Uncle Tom's Cabin](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2958.html), PBS. 

3. [Uncle Tom’s Cabin](https://www.harrietbeecherstowecenter.org/utc/), the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center. 

4. [Uncle Tom’s Cabin and American Culture](http://utc.iath.virginia.edu/), the University of Virginia. 


Overview

*Uncle Tom’s Cabin* caused an uproar when it was published in 1852 and it has sparked controversy ever since. Abraham Lincoln is said to have called the author, Harriet Beecher Stowe, “the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war.” The novel was hugely popular and everyone had an opinion about its depiction of slavery. Many Northern readers saw the novel as revealing the horrors of the “peculiar institution,” and abolitionists characterized it as a gift from God. In the South, *Uncle Tom’s Cabin* generated outrage; slave owners criticized it as hyperbolic and untruthful. Stowe, daughter of the famous Congregational minister Lyman Beecher, achieved her goal, to write a work of fiction protesting slavery. However, *Uncle Tom's Cabin* also addresses women’s roles and Christian themes. Stowe wrote many other works during her lifetime, but she is best remembered for *Uncle Tom’s Cabin*. The story’s popularity continued for decades, generating stage shows and “Tom shows” that combined basic elements of Stowe’s novel with the blackface minstrel tradition.


English

*Uncle Tom's Cabin* by Harriet Beecher Stowe

uncle-toms-cabin-harriet-beecher-stowe_11_15baf3c996ad2da502edd1f00546d96f.jpg

Courtesy of Utah State Historical Society via Mountain West Digital Library.

“Mercur, Utah-Life and Customs p.5,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/f4ac76b36e3bad939d53de1c01a400e8.

A photograph of actors in blackface for an 1896 minstrel show in Mercur, Utah.

Cite this item

Tips for Students

Item 11 of 12 in the Primary Source Set Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe