Harriet Beecher Stowe stepped out of the traditional role of women and ignited a national debate on the injustice of slavery. She grew up hearing sermons convincing the congregation to help the misfortunate and knew that slavery was wrong. But as a woman in the 1800’s voicing an opinion and changing the law was not supported. Her aptitude with a pen, determination, and a deep sense of right over wrong lead her to write about the mistreatment of slaves. Although Harriet Beecher Stowe faced gender inequality and social stratification, she knew the fight for the abolishment of slavery would improve the quality of life for blacks. The role of women was Harriet’s first challenge. As a young woman, Harriet was expected to attend to household chores,
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While in church, she envisioned how to tie the theme of her writings to the reader’s emotions. According to Bland (1993), Harriet’s sister-in-law sent encouragement, saying “If I could use a pen as you can, I would write something that will make this whole nation feel what an accursed thing slavery is.” (p.12) With her writing talent and the visions from God, she began her novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Her style of writing brought a human side to the black characters. Harriet used human emotions to portray the brutal treatment of slaves, and the understanding that blacks experience the same feelings of hurt, love, and loss, as do …show more content…
The book sold over 300,000 copies improving Harriet’s finances and opening doors to more writing and speaking engagements. This book stirred many emotions among the public. Harriet compared her emotional loss of her son to the slave’s families torn apart by the selling and beating of their children. The Fugitive Slave Act, a law that made it a crime to help slaves escape, furthered Stowe’s ambition to finish her novel. After reading Uncle Tom 's Cabin, people acknowledged the human qualities of blacks, yet others used it as ammunition to continue the fight against slavery. People from the South questioned Harriet’s sources, stating the research as unreliable with embellished stories. (Cornell University Library, 2002) From those accusations she wrote The Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin to back up her research, however many believed this information was not used during the writing of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and continued to criticize the authenticity of the book. Although criticisms were disheartening, for Stowe the main issue was religious and treating human beings with dignity, not for political gain or
While in church, she envisioned how to tie the theme of her writings to the reader’s emotions. According to Bland (1993), Harriet’s sister-in-law sent encouragement, saying “If I could use a pen as you can, I would write something that will make this whole nation feel what an accursed thing slavery is.” (p.12) With her writing talent and the visions from God, she began her novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Her style of writing brought a human side to the black characters. Harriet used human emotions to portray the brutal treatment of slaves, and the understanding that blacks experience the same feelings of hurt, love, and loss, as do …show more content…
The book sold over 300,000 copies improving Harriet’s finances and opening doors to more writing and speaking engagements. This book stirred many emotions among the public. Harriet compared her emotional loss of her son to the slave’s families torn apart by the selling and beating of their children. The Fugitive Slave Act, a law that made it a crime to help slaves escape, furthered Stowe’s ambition to finish her novel. After reading Uncle Tom 's Cabin, people acknowledged the human qualities of blacks, yet others used it as ammunition to continue the fight against slavery. People from the South questioned Harriet’s sources, stating the research as unreliable with embellished stories. (Cornell University Library, 2002) From those accusations she wrote The Key to Uncle Tom’s Cabin to back up her research, however many believed this information was not used during the writing of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and continued to criticize the authenticity of the book. Although criticisms were disheartening, for Stowe the main issue was religious and treating human beings with dignity, not for political gain or