Uncle Tom's Cabin | Historical Context of Stowe's Novel

In the following essay, Cumberland, an assistant professor at Seattle University, explains that Stowe's novel cannot be understood outside of its historical context and the author's motives for writing it.

When Uncle Tom's Cabin was published in 1852, it created an immediate controversy in a United States that was divided—both geographically and politically—by the issue of slavery. It is impossible to understand the content or the importance of Uncle Tom's Cabin outside of the historical forces that prompted Harriet Beecher Stowe to write it.

The early settlers of the thirteen colonies were well aware of the problem that was developing for the young nation as more and more slaves were kidnapped in Africa and...

[The entire page is 2119 words long]

Join eNotes

The above is a free excerpt. Get total access to this content with the:

eNotes Pass

Summary and Analysis – Themes – Characters – And much more...