Analysis of Uncle Tom’s Cabin | Summary, Themes, Characterization, Narrative Techniques

Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin | Theme

Uncle Tom’s cabin

                                                Harriet Beecher Stowe

Louisiana

• Simon legree
• Emmalive
• Uncle Tom
• heorge Shelby
• Cassy – Mother of Eliza

Themes of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

1. Cvils of slavery
2. Christinity
3. Depiction of the females

Summary of Uncle Tom’s Cabin

It is the kentucky plantation undes the control of Arthur Shelby from where our novel begins. in the Kentucky Plantation Arthur Shelby possesses several slaves among them are uncle Tom, his wife Aunt Chole, Eliza, her 4 years old son Hassis. Because of the emotional relationship between Aunt Chole and Arthur Shelby’s wife, uncle Tom’s family was given the promise that this family will not be separated. but Arthur Shelby’s inability to pay the doubt borrowed from Haley compelled him to sell two of him slaves. When Haley chooses Harris and Uncle Tom, Shelby is compelled to lose them despite, his promise of not separating the relation networks between and among the slaves.

After this there are two Hines of histories the story of Harris and the story of uncle Tom. These two slaves, who are sold, now become the pivotal element around which almost all the incidents in the novel revolve round. On throne hand Eliza is disheartened from the possible separation with her only son, who has already been separated with her husband George. Because of the relational destruction going to be caused by the evils of slavery, she cannot sleep Powards the Quaker settlement. Later, Tom, Locker and Marks, who are ten slave catchers, are employed to catch the run a way solves. Near the Quaker settlement Eliza is reunited with her husband George who shot the slave catchers and makes them return after treating them. This story of Eliza’s family, now does not have significant appeal in the novel and the reference of this family is brought at the end of the novel where Eliza being united with Cassy, (Eliza’s mother) who is old sexually exploited slave of legree plantation becoming able to escape from there due to the kind heart of uncle Tom from where they proceed in a ground towards liberia where they think, they’ll achieve freedom.

Now the story of uncle Tom begins apart from the story of Eliza. With Haley, Tom thinks necessary to go because he is with his master’s order. In other words he has to fulfill his duty of slavery . On the way they have to pass from the Boat. in the way uncle Tom, Haley, Eva and her father happen to be in the same boat. in the boat Tom’s saving of Eva makes her father to be convinced to buy uncle Tom from the hand of Haley as result of which after the second selling, uncle Tom reaches to the residence of Augustine St. Clare which is in the New Orleans. Eva’s Christianity and the Christ figure in Uncle Tom makes them befriended. When Eva accidentally falls sick and is ton the verge of death, she makes her father premise that one day he will free uncle Tom But, before he can fulfill the promise of his daughter Eva’s father is killed accidentally. The notorious wife of Augustine St. Clause, who is from the beginning dominating towards Uncle Tom, new manifests her sell the faithful slave Uncle Tom, to Simon Legree where Tom will have to experience the hell of his life that will kill him.

Legree plantation owned by Simon Legree is the most hated play by uncle Tom. The indigestible sexual exploitation haunts uncle Tom in other words the mistress Cassy and Emmaline who are abused physically by Simon legree makes uncle Tom furious inwardly which cause uncle Tom’s secret help for their escapement from the legree plantation. Uncle Tom who is time and again brutally exploited by legee people, is now further fortunes from his suspicious involvement in the escapement of the slaves, Cassy and Emmaline. In the verge of the death of Uncle Tom caused by the brutal beatings towards him by Simon legree and his people. Arthur Shelby’s humanist son, George Shelby who is dissatisfied for his father’s act of selling Uncle Tom, is now searching for Uncle Tom. Finally, George Shelby meets Uncle Tom but to the inhuman torture Uncle Tom dies being incapable to endure the physical punishment upon him. George Shelby Knocks Siman legree unconscious, returns to his father’s plantation and frees all the slaves in the name of Uncle Tom’s sacrifice for the evils of slavery. Cassy and Emmaline with a group proceed to Liberia with the hope of getting freedom where Cassy is happy with the accidental reunion with her daughter and son in law.

Novel of Slavery (anti-slavery ethos)

• Double isolation in the slaves
• In the name of protection the slaves are bought and sold
• They are commodities
• The slaves are exploited either they protest or accept the domination.

Themes of Christianity in the novel

• Uncle Tom’s acceptance of the domination upon him being sold three times is an example of how the protagonist like Christ is enduring all the pangs and sufferings.
• The setting of New Orleans where Eva and Tom practice Christianity is also the glimpse of Christian setting
• Uncle Tom’s sacrifice of his life in the name of freedom of other slaves in an example of how uncle Tom like Christ scarified his self for the sake at humanity.
• George Shelby’s action of freeing the slaves in teh name of Uncle Tom is also an example of how Tom is the Christ figure who by sacrificing his life makes others’ freedom possible.
• Lack of adequate physical protest

Theme of Rebellion in the novel

• Round about rebellion or indirect rebellion
• lack of adequate physical rebellion. Uncle Tom protagonist
• Humanist purpose
• Victory in his mission.
• Lack of physical protest in the protagonist
• He would have been able to unite the slaves to launch the revolution. If he had wanted.
• He would have reacted against the master in lagree plantation, Shelby plantation and in the house of Augustine St. Clare, if he wanted. But he did not present any revolution.

Why did not he become successful to the physical protest ?

Tom is the man of Christianity

Narrative Technique

                        Two types of female Characters

Bold                                                    Submissive

1. i) Eliza (able in her escapement – essay
2. ii) Eva – Emmaline

– Auntchloe

– Topsy

– Augustine’s wife

– Shelby’s wife

• Grace of Christianity and evils of slavery are brought Augether

On the one hand the Christian theme of freedor through the character of uncle Tom is depicted while on the other hand, the enslavement of the slaves is presented.

• The novel presents the multiple plots because of which three climatic situations emerge in the novel

– When Eliza escapes with her four year son Hasis is the first climax.

–  Death of the Eva and St. Augustine is the second climax

– The death of uncle Tom is the third climatic event in the novel.

• The novel contains 45 chapters where the last 4 chapters are only the summarizing and critical views regarding the story up to the 41 chapters
• The novel ends with the dramatic not from the part of the novelist advocating the audiences react against the colour discrimination and social injustice
• The last but not least narrative technique is the depiction of the freedom of the slaves where the slaves like cassy and Emmatine fain the physical escapement for legree’s plantation where as Uncle Tom in the novel achieves physical as well as spiritual freedom through his death.

Depiction of the female Character in ” Uncle Tom’s Cabin”

• The females are hardly bold and revolutionary
• Only the character of Eliza is the bold character and her escapements only because of her act to save her son
• Arthur Shelby’s wife can do nothing to fulfill her promise of not searching uncle Tom and his wife, when her husband sells uncle Tom. This is also an example of how the females are undermined.
• In the legree plantation there are two female slaves, Cassy and Emmaline, to be sexually abused, who are rescued by the protagonist uncle Tom. Till this time they are experiencing the hot exploitation. This is also one of the features in the novel to present the female subordination.
• The wife of Augustine St. Clare is presented helpless in the absence of her husband which compels her to sell the faithful slave, Uncle Tom. This also shows the females are the feeble figures in the novel. In respect of the black females and the mulatto females there is the double domination. On the one hand they are exploited by the evils of slavery, while on the other hand they are exploited and undermined by the male characters. In the respect of black and mulatto females there is the sexual, physical and emotional exploitation where as the males are only physically exploited. In the black radical doctrine, it is believed that the notion of colour discriminatntion and social injustice is imprinted upon the whites since their birth which they manifest when they become conscious in the their adult age. If we believe this argument them we can claim that Eva is in her innocence unaware of colour  discrimination and orcial injustice because of which she is lovely in her dealings with uncle Tom.

Polemical Novel/ the novel of Protest

• Through the silent revolution by the protagonist the novel is presenting the evils of colour discrimination and social injustice
• Presenting the characters sacrificing their lives against colour discrimination and social injustice, the novel hints at the negative aspect of the slavery system.
• The escapement of the characters, cassy and Emmaline and the freedom of the slaves in the name of uncle Tom, are some of the themes and issues against the slavery system.
• The existent of domination and exploitation of the slaves in laegree plantation is an example of the slavery system is at the extension paint of domination which will immediately collapse. The dramatic note at the end of the novel by the novelist chinting at the harrowing consequences of the evils of slavery is also one of the grounds t present the dialectical part of slavery system
• The knocking of George against Simon legree because of legree’s act of killing uncle Tom and Georg’s action of frecing the slaves in the name of Uncle Tom, are some of the evidences how the slave master themselves are fed up with slavery and are involving themselves to abolish slavery. This is also the negative aspect of slavery system.