Is Uncle Tom A Christ Like Figure?

Mr. Douglass had many experiences during his time enslaved that would have been typical for a Southern slave. His early childhood was like most Southern slaves in multiple ways. The master and slave relationship was designed to make slaves feel “… broken in body, mind and spirit” (Douglass, 74). Like all slaves, Mr. Douglass and his fellow slaves “were all ranked together at the valuation. Men and woman, old and young, married and single, were ranked with horses, sheep and swine. There were horses and men, cattle and women, pigs and children, all holding the same rank in the scale of being, and were all subjected to the same narrow examination” (Douglass, 58). Furthermore, in order to perpetuate a system of inequality slave families would be treated differently than white families. For example, to “hinder development of the child’s affection toward its mother, and to blunt and destroy the natural affection” (Douglass, 20). Slave masters

“Uncle Tom’s Cabin has a chapter dedicated to white trash, I did not buy the book yet, which addressed the differences between the north and south, how the slaves, free black people, and whites viewed them, and how many looked down on black people because they wanted someone lower than them (Stowe, 1854).” “T. Wise asked what stereotype is working against me as a white person (Mann, 2013).”

In one area of the chapter, Shelby mentions that, “Tom is an uncommon fellow; he is certainly worth that sum anywhere,—steady, honest, capable, manages my whole farm like a clock.” (Uncle Toms Cabin). Mr. Shelby also continues on to praise the fact that Tom is a devoted Christian, and that is why he can be trusted. What image that is typically portrayed in slavery is nothing but negative, and sometimes truly disturbing at times type of aspects. It is extremely odd that Mr. Shelby displays a sense of trust, and devotion to a slave. Many imagine that slave owners were terrible, violent, and cruel people. Yet oddly enough, Mr. Shelby doesn’t come off that way whatsoever.

“You've always stood it out agin me: now, I'll conquer ye or kill ye!-one or t' other. I'll count every drop of blood there is in you, and take 'em, one by one, till ye give up!” (Uncle Tom's Cabin, page 467) This quote was said by an evil master named Simon Legree to Uncle Tom. From this one quote, I could feel the intense anger and hatred against slaves. Moreover, this is just coming from one person. Knowing that there were thousands of Simon Legree during the Civil War era can leave you flabbergasted.

Perhaps one of the strongest elements of slavery is honor. Honor has had a wide range of impact in history, whether it was shaping major dynasties and hierarchies, deciding an individuals’ role in society, or family ties and marriages. This sense of worth, high esteem, or virtue was also manipulated by slave masters in order to control their slaves. “The slave could have no honor because of the origin of his status, the indignity and all-pervasiveness of his indebtedness, his absence of any independent social existence, but most of all because he was without power except through another” (p 6). This element is not just a physical force, such as coercive power, which one can heal and

He wanted to show his authority and how he was superior to the natives. The natives were forced into slavery and made to do whatever their captors told them.This reflects back to Stowe’s novel. In “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” the slaves, like the natives, did not have any choices. African-Americans did not get to choose slavery or not, they were born into it. The only way an African-American could be free is if he or she was born in a state or territory where slavery was banned or if they got papers saying they were a free man, which was rare. Slaves were often hunted down if they ran away. Slave owners rarely treated their slaves decently, just because they did not believe they deserved the same quality of life as them. The slaves were sold like cattle. The slaveowners would take the slaves and put on a show to buy or sell their slaves. They demoralized them, only because their skin color was different. Just like how Christopher Columbus treated the natives, slaves were often beaten if they did not cooperate. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Tom is whipped out of frustration for his unbreakable belief in God. The theme of these two incidents is that Columbus and the Americans believed they were better than the natives or the slaves. This is just one example of how Stowe supported ideals of American exceptionalism from earlier period in American literature.

Throughout American history, minority groups were victims of American governmental policies, and these policies made them vulnerable to barbaric and inhumane treatment at the hands of white Americans. American slavery is a telling example of a government sanctioned institution that victimized and oppressed a race of people by indoctrinating and encouraging enslavement, racism and abuse. This institution is injurious to slaves and slave holders alike because American society, especially in the south, underwent a dehumanization process in order to implement the harsh and inhumane doctrine. In the episodic autobiography Narrative of the

(3) When first reading these narratives one would often assume, by what history tells us, that slave owners were cruel, hated men who often beat slaves severely if they committed even the slightest infraction. While this depiction does stand true for some slave owners, I was surprised to find that most of the former slaves interviewed in the “Slave Narratives” often held their masters in high regards, referring to them as kind and good. Former slave Harriett Gresham even goes as far to say that her master, Mr. Bellinger was “exceptionally kind”. Many slaves in the narratives described their masters as good to his slaves and never whipping them unless it was absolutely necessary. However, when the former slaves spoke of the “paterollers”, white men who roamed the roads in search of runaway slaves often beating them and returning them to their owners, they were described as being very cruel to slaves showing no sympathy to any slave found running away from a

Why would it matter if your master was rich or poor, you all are slaves their is no difference in the way that you are treated. You both are deemed as cattle, meaning that you are considered being less than a human being! “it was worth a half- cent to kill a "nigger," and a half-cent to bury one.” This quote evoked a lot of emotion,because if you sit and ponder on it they(slave masters) pay hundreds of dollars for them(slaves) and in return the slaves make hundred or thousands of dollars for their master(s). Even though, they pay money for them and go through a lot to retrieve the slaves they can be quickly replaced because of how quickly slaves are brought over from their home to the united states which makes the death of a slave equal nothing. "there is no flesh in his obdurate heart." This quote really gives you somewhat of an insight on how the slaves felt about a particular overseer who was merciless on the slaves, he was deemed as the worse overseer they had ever encountered many said that he was every where around every corner and under every tree. Everywhere they looked he was their waiting and watching

Tom Robinson’s case, in which we see in that time period how a white man’s word goes against a black’s, is perceived as unfair by Scout, Jem, Atticus, and many of their neighbors. As Atticus says to Jem, “As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it–whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash.”(295) This quote explains that there is great injustice and extortion for personal gain. This is disturbing in its own right; The fact that Atticus needs to even make a comment like that is disturbing in its own right, let alone that any person would do that to another, also tells Jem this: “So far nothing in your life has interfered with your reasoning process. Those are twelve reasonable men in everyday life, Tom’s jury, but you saw something come between them and reason. You saw the same thing that night in front of the jail. When that crew went away, they didn’t go as reasonable men, they went because we were there. There’s something in our world that makes men lose their heads–they couldn’t be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it’s a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins. They’re ugly, but those are the facts of life.”(295) Even a man like Atticus, a sort of rebel in that time period, accepts that the system is

Since Christianity rests on the principle of universal love, no Christian should tolerate slavery. If all people were to put the principle into practice it would be impossible for the oppression and enslavement of one section of humanity. Throughout the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe has illustrated the fact that the system of slavery and principles of Christianity oppose each other. The novel exposes the evils of slavery—its incompatibility with Christian principles—and points the way to its transformation through Christian love through the characterization of some characters in the novel. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the Christian principles of forgiveness, compassion, and belief in an afterlife is embodied though the character

‘The Tom' represented the African-American who was badgered and controlled by the white population. This person was the one who endured all of the abuse from any white person who was in the position of superiority. Bogle defines him as, the harassed hounded, flogged, enslaved, and insulted. They keep the faith, and stay true to their masters always remaining kind and selfless. Thus they endear themselves to white audiences and emerge as heroes of sorts (6). One of the most prevalent plays where this type of black characters emerged was given the name, Uncle Tom's Cabin. This theatrical production came about during the 1850's. It gave an overview of Harriet Beecher Stowe's (a white women who was against slavery) claim that white Americans imagine themselves as suffering slaves. In this production whites in blackface played Tom, Eliza, and Topsy . This construction was very controversial; Michael Rogin gives a brief summary and comment on this in his book, Blackface, Whitenoise:

The inconsistencies and importance of religion are reocurrences in both The Narrative and Life of Frederick Douglass and Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Augustine St Clare (a character from Uncle Tom’s Cabin) and Frederick Douglass (who is at this time is a slave) seem to have similar viewpoints on religious slave owners. Both St Clare and Douglass see religion as being defiled by the twisted words of slave owners. Frederick describes an incident of a slave beating to portray his message. “I have said my master found religious sanction for his cruelty. He’d tie up a lame young woman and whip her...cutting her in places already made raw with his cruel lash.(p33)” All off this Master Thomas justifies by quoting scripture. “He that knoweth his master’s will, and doeth it not, shall be beaten with many stripes.(p33)” This

What is characterization? It is defined as the portrayal of a fictional character. Although not fictional in the least, Christianity is a strong character, with a profound influence that takes a form of many different characters in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. From the hypocritical, fraudulent, self-absorbed, wholly indifferent, so called Christians, like Marie St. Claire; to the professed non-Christians who have turned their backs on God and all that he is and represents, like Cassie. Finally there are the genuine, soul encompassing, and gut wrenchingly faithful Christians like Uncle Tom and Eva. No book ever read from this writer has ever had such a profound effect on his soul (save for the bible) as this book.

The first character we will discuss is Emily Shelby who is the wife of Arthur Shelby who is a Kentucky Plantation owner and the owner of Uncle Tom. Mrs. Shelby is a kind, loving, and Christian woman who is strongly opposed to slavery and takes it upon herself to treat them with most respect. Mrs. Shelby from a spiritual standpoint cares about her slaves relationship with God and teaches his word to them. Mr. Shelby and Mrs. Shelby treat the slaves with kindness but differ significantly in regards to slavery. Unlike other women of this time period, Mrs. Shelby stands by her views and morals regardless if her