Uncle Tom's Cabin

This is a very conflicting story, I know that it is said that this story brought the country to its knees. I believe it is for three reasons, first the close attachment between most of the main characters in the story and God, it appears most of the characters rely on God as a source of hope and strength this is similar to The Wide Wide World's early chapters certainly. Also embedded in this story is the idea that good, Christian Americans would be opposed to slavery, just as much as they would be opposed to the treatment of anything in a cruel way for a example, stoning a kitten. In this example we see questions and gaps of this society that was supposed to be of the highest morals. Finally the attachment between a mother trying to protect her innocent child is something that is universal, every woman can imagine protecting her child, it's instinctual to a large degree, and everyone who read this book was once a child so the strength of this relationship can be understood by a large audience.

Mrs. Bird, the wife of a senator with morals but who helped pass the run away salve act of 1850, is a woman of very small stature, and who is very passive in most instances, and often will convince her husband and children rather than order them. She is seen as very sweet and meager one scene on page 275 illustrates well the idea that though she is not one to get into conflict she will not hesitate when there is an innocent creature being treated cruelly. Here, in this instances of oppression of a kitten, by little boys. "I'll tell you what," Master bill used to say, :i was scared that time. Mother came at me so that I thought she was a crazy, and I was whipped, and tumbled off to bed, without any supper, before I could get over wondering what had come about; and after that I heard mother crying outside the door, which made me feel worse than all the rest..." this I feel, is an important part of the story because it makes people question themselves. If being cruel to a kitten is wrong, is being cruel by owning a slave wrong too?

On page 273 we see senator Bird come home and of course the chaos that is in all houses with lots of children, "Tom, let the door-knob alone,--there's a man! Mary! Mary! Don't pull the cat's tail,-- poor pussy! Jim you musn't climb the table,-no, no!-you don't know what a surprise it is to see you here tonight! said she, at last, when she found a chance to say something to her husband." Here we have the nice little family, doing well in life, full of love, and when juxtaposed with Eliza, and her situation, it's all the more sweet. The scene in which Eliza jumps from the boat, jumping from ice patch to ice patch across the Ohio river is unlike anything we have read thus far. Never has so much action been placed around a mother and child.

Overall, I'd say that Uncle Tom's Cabin keeps the assumption that having strong faith in God will see you through, also, I would think this is an example of children in literature used to draw emotions out of us. Finally I think it is trying to teach a moral as well, and the fact that it is through such a violent story kind of makes since and goes along with the teaching of morals idea.