There numerous characters and stories makes it difficult to understand what is exactly going on. It seems like Harriet Beech Stowe had a lot to say all at once. But I do know that her major theme is anti-slavery.
Harriet Beecher Stowe shown the hardships and horror blacks went through during slavery. There were separation of families, abuse, physically and verbally. They were forced working labor without pay, no outside contact, and were considered property. They justified that the importance of slavery was to help build the economy of the country. Mr. Shelby is quoted in Chapter V, page 39...'ther is no choice here is sellning these two and selling everything. Either they must go, or all must go.' He felt that selling Tom and Harry was his only choice to settle his debt.
It is known that slavery was part of the building of this country but is it acceptable under these circumstances? Is it necessary to pull apart families and/or make them suffer through horrible beatings? Harriet Beecher Stowe says in this novel that it was not necessary to allow torture against humans for the country and countrymen to thrive.
There also was an emphasis on Christian beliefs to prove how immoral slavery is to the Backs. If you are a true Christian, then you would not accept the idea of owning another human being. The Christians they were for slavery believed that they were doing the blacks a favor by taking care of them. The slave owners that did not particularly believe in slavery believed that was the way things are and they will just have to accept it. The 'true' Christians used their faith to overcome the traumatic situations believing that God will see them through.
Harriet Beecher Stowe emphasizes the unity of the family. She focuses mostly on the relationship between a mother and her child. Eliza ran away when she overheard Mr. and Mrs. Shelby talking about her son being sold. In chapter 12, she mentions a family Mr. Haley bought and sold the woman's child while she was asleep. Mr. Haley did not understand the strong bond the mother builds with her child. He believed the the black slaves were capable enough to get over it like the flu. Harriet expressed how damaging it is to a mother and her child when they are separated.
Harriet Beecher Stowe went farther than the bond between the mother and child relationship. She went a step further and expressed the value of relationships of a person with others in his community. Tom built relationships with Mr. and Mrs. Shelby, and their son. He also formed a close relationship with Augustine and Eva St. Clare. Relationships that possess love, trust and support for one another can build strong communities.
The one theme that really affected me was the allowance of the voices of women whom expressed their opinions on slavery. Mrs. Shelby knew that she did not have the last say when it came to selling the slaves but that did not stop her for telling Mr. Shelby the moral thing to do.
Mrs. Bird also had her own opinions as well and did not hesitate to express her feelings about slavery. Throuth my faith, I learned that speaking out on what you believe in can eventually make a difference in someone's life. It can change the way people view the way they treat others.
On the website bleckblog.org, it mentions that Harriet was a daughter of an abolitionist and helped slaves on the underground railroad. These two facts reveals why Harriet Beecher Stowe was anti-slavery and how she helped the slaves.
I am not sure yet how I feel about this book so far but I hope that I will understand the second part better.
1 comment:
I like how you touched on the relationships Tom formed with Mr. Shelby and George Shelby and then with Augustine St. Clare and Eva. Those relationships are very important to this novel and say a lot about how some of the slave owners were able to develop and maintain relationships with their slaves although they were still technically their owneers.
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