Uncle Tom’s Cabin was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe and first published in 1852. The book immediately became a bestseller in both Great Britain and the U.S. and had such an immense influence on its readers, that Lincoln supposedly greeted Mrs. Stowe, at her visit to the White House in 1863, as “the little woman who wrote the book that made this great war.” (qtd .in Kazin 2003: ix)Uncle Tom’s Cabinis very simply put a book about the horrors of slavery. The book has two parallel storylines: the first story is that of the pious slave Tom and his ‘adventures’ at the farms of his different slave owners. The second story is that of the slaves Eliza, George and Harry Harris who are mulattoes. Eliza and George Harris are a married couple, who are living and working on different farms in the same community. Their son Harry lives with Eliza on the Shelby farm. George, upon being deprived from his privileged work in a factory by his brutal owner, decides to flee to Canada to seek his freedom. Shortly after the escape of George, Eliza, together with her toddler son Harry, also decides to escape from the Shelby farm. Her resolve to escape is based on Mr. Shelby’s deal with the salve trader Haley, who forced Mr. Shelby to sell him Harry together with Tom. After surviving lots of perils on their escapes, George, Eliza and Harry are reunited. They reach Canada and freedom, spend 4 years in France, get another child- little Eliza, and finally go back to their ‘roots’ -to Africa/ Liberia. The story or more correctly the depiction of George and Eliza Harris as a ‘perfect white Anglo-Saxon middle class family of the 19thcentury’ will be the topic of this term paper. The description of blacks or mulattoes in terms of white categories was quite a novelty in a time in which blacks were often considered as: […]”child/savage”in counterpoint to their[whites]own self-image: The antithesis of themselves and of what they value, he lacked “incentive to industry,” “moral restraint,” the principle of “accumulation” and control over the “animal part” of man. (Takaki 1979: 126) Racial stereotypes in 19thcentury America will be further discussed in chapter 2. Chapter 3 will focus on white Anglo-Saxon gender and family concepts. Chapter 4 will present a detailed discussion on how Mrs. Stowe uses these concepts in the description of the mulattoes Eliza and George Harris. Chapter 5 will sum up the discussions of this term paper.
Table of Contents
1.Introduction
2. Racial stereotypes in 19th century America
2.1 Introduction to the concepts of race and racial stereotypes in 19th century America
2.2 In between races: The Mulattoes
3.Gender and family concepts of white middle/upper – class Anglo-Saxon Americans in the 19th century
4.The mulatto family Harris – a ‘perfect white middle – class Anglo - Saxon 19th century family’
4.1 The mulatta Eliza Harris – a ‘true woman’
4.2 The mulatto George Harris – a ‘true white 19th – century man’
5.Summary and Conclusion
6.Works cited
Research Objectives and Key Topics
This academic paper aims to examine how Harriet Beecher Stowe portrays the characters of Eliza and George Harris in her novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" by applying 19th-century white middle-class gender and racial concepts. The central research question focuses on how assigning these "white" category traits to mulatto characters served to dismantle the ideology of "otherness" and foster sympathy among white readers, thereby undermining the moral justification for slavery.
- The construction of race and racial stereotypes in 19th-century America.
- Definitions of "true womanhood" and "true masculinity" within white Anglo-Saxon society.
- Eliza Harris as an embodiment of the "tragic mulatta" and "true woman" archetypes.
- George Harris as a representation of "white masculinity" and intelligence.
- The role of literary characterization in challenging the slavery system.
Excerpt from the Book
4.1 The mulatta Eliza Harris – a ‘true woman’
Eliza had been brought up by her mistress, from girlhood, as petted and indulged favourite. The traveller in the south must often have remarked that peculiar air of refinement, that softness of voice and manner, which seems in many cases to be a particular gift to the quadroon and mulatto woman. […] Safe under the protection of her mistress, Eliza had reached maturity without those temptations which make beauty so fatal an inheritance to a slave. She had been married to a bright and talented young mulatto man, who was a slave on a neighbouring estate, and bore the name of George Harris.
That Eliza is not only pretty but must be also very light skinned – and thus could eventually pass for a white is described in chapter 9 of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. In that chapter Eliza reaches, during her escape, the establishment of the family Bird. The exclamations of Mr. Bird “I wonder who and what she is!” (Uncle Tom’s Cabin, chapter 9: 93) shows that it is not evident that Eliza is black or a slave. Another evidence of Eliza’s light skin and possibility for passing is in chapter 37 (page 439) were the slave hunter Marks says about Eliza: “You would scarcely know the woman from a white woman.”
Summary of Chapters
1.Introduction: This chapter introduces the novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and outlines the research objective: to explore how the Harris family is depicted through the lens of white 19th-century societal norms.
2. Racial stereotypes in 19th century America: This section establishes the historical context of racial construction and the concept of "otherness" used to justify the system of slavery.
3.Gender and family concepts of white middle/upper – class Anglo-Saxon Americans in the 19th century: This chapter defines the ideals of "true womanhood" and "true masculinity" that governed the white middle and upper classes during this era.
4.The mulatto family Harris – a ‘perfect white middle – class Anglo - Saxon 19th century family’: This section applies the previously defined gender and racial categories to analyze the characters of Eliza and George Harris.
5.Summary and Conclusion: This final chapter synthesizes the arguments, explaining how Stowe’s characterization strategy successfully integrated the Harris family into the white "us" category, making the defense of slavery untenable.
6.Works cited: A list of academic sources and references used to support the analysis throughout the paper.
Keywords
Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Mulatto, Race, Gender, True Womanhood, Slavery, Otherness, Passing, Anglo-Saxon, 19th Century, Stereotypes, Eliza Harris, George Harris, American Literature.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper examines Harriet Beecher Stowe’s portrayal of the Harris family in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" as a representation of a white, middle-class Anglo-Saxon family of the 19th century.
What are the primary thematic fields addressed?
The study covers racial construction, 19th-century gender ideologies, the socio-legal status of mulattoes, and the literary representation of enslaved people.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine how aligning black characters with white societal ideals helped Stowe influence contemporary readers and shift perceptions regarding the morality of slavery.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses a qualitative literary analysis approach, drawing upon historical and sociological concepts of race and gender to interpret character depictions.
What is discussed in the main part of the paper?
The main body focuses on the historical context of racial stereotypes, the definition of white middle-class gender norms, and a detailed character analysis of Eliza and George Harris.
What keywords characterize the work?
Key terms include "tragic mulatta," "true womanhood," "passing," "otherness," and "Anglo-conformity."
How is Eliza Harris categorized in the analysis?
Eliza is analyzed as an embodiment of the "tragic mulatta" who simultaneously fulfills the requirements of the "true woman" ideal: purity, piety, submissiveness, and domesticity.
What distinguishes George Harris from other male slave characters?
George is portrayed as active, educated, and courageous—traits traditionally reserved for white men—which allows him to challenge his status as a slave.
Why did Stowe's depiction of George Harris trigger criticism?
Contemporary critics from the South argued that the character was overdrawn and improbable, as it challenged the prevailing justification for slavery by depicting a slave with superior intelligence and character.
- Quote paper
- Annett Göltenboth (Author), 2006, Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin: The Depiction of the Mulatto Family Harris as a 'Perfect White Middle - Class Anglo-Saxon Family', Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/60705
