Study Questions

1. Why does St. Clare feel that with Eva’s death, he has lost everything?

2. Why does St. Clare keep company with Tom more and more?

3. Before his plans to return to Kentucky, what does Tom promise to do for St. Clare?

4. Why does Miss Ophelia want to legally own Topsy?

5. What is St. Clare’s concern once the servants are emancipated?

6. Why are the servants worried about their future?

7. What does Marie intend to prove by sending Rosa to the whipping-house?

8. How does Tom hear about the servants being sold?

9. How does Miss Ophelia invoke Eva’s and St. Clare’s names to argue for Tom’s freedom?

10. What does Miss Ophelia hope to accomplish by writing to Mrs. Shelby?

Answers

1. St. Clare feels that he has lost everything that was important to him because he had done everything for Eva’s sake. Now that she is dead, St. Clare senses a loss in purpose.

2. He keeps company with Tom because the pious servant reminds St. Clare of Eva’s spirituality and innocence.

3. Tom promises that he will stay with St. Clare until St. Clare’s soul is no longer troubled.

4. She wants to legally own Topsy to free her when they go north.

5. His concern is that once the servants are free, they will travel north for jobs and face stiff prejudice from Northerners.

6. They are worried because they know Marie is not as kind as St. Clare had been to them, and they think she will sell them.

7. Marie intends on shaming Rosa, whom she feels has too much haughtiness anyway.

8. Tom hears the news from Adolph, who had overheard Marie’s conversation with a lawyer.

9. She invokes their names by mentioning to Marie that their last wishes concerned Tom’s freedom.

10. She hopes that Mrs. Shelby, once knowing Tom’s situation, would send someone to buy Tom.