The Kansas-Nebraska Act was one of the most polarizing issues in American political history. Proposed in 1854 by Illinois Senator Stephen A. Douglas, it suggested that the issue of slavery in the territory west of Missouri and Iowa be …show more content…
Published in 1852 by Harriet Beecher Stowe, the book portrays the titular character Uncle Tom as a loyal, long-suffering faithful servant to his white masters. The novel emphasizes the cruelty of slavery, fueling the abolitionist cause and acting as a precursor to the Civil War. Decried and banned across most of the South, the book was a best-seller throughout the rest of the country, exhibiting the harsh realities of slavery to the general public. The questionable morality of slavery came to the forefront of politics, featuring prominently in Republican-Democrat debates and sectionalizing the parties strictly to the North and South. America truly was, as Abraham Lincoln described it, a house