Harriet Beecher Stowe: an Introduction

January4

The Classics Reading Challenge hosted by November’s Autumn is the one I’m calling “Classics with a Twist” – the twist being that on the fourth of each month, Katherine posts a prompt to act as a basis for my discussion of the classic I’m currently reading.

I’m nearing the end of Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Stowe. Stowe was born in 1811 in Connecticut USA. She lived for a time in Cincinnati Ohio where she met her husband, Calvin Ellis Stowe who was a professor at the Lane Theological Seminary there. The Stowes later moved to coastal Maine.
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Both Stowes were deeply religious and fierce critics of slavery. It’s no surprise that they supported the Underground Railroad and offered their home as a stop on it.

Her writing is typical of the 19th century writers I have read: great descriptive detail and slow plot advancement. I understand that readers expected in the 1800s to be entertained at length by a single book that could be savored slowly. In my 21st century life, I often read through books just so that I can get to the next one, so I admit that I have been at times frustrated by Stowe’s writing.

I think that Stowe’s novel, published in installments in The National Era in 1851 & 1852, and in book form in March of 1852, was met with the same sort of attitudes that fomented the American Civil War: strident voices both for and against slavery. Anecdotal history says when Stowe met Abraham Lincoln in 1862, he greeted her by saying, “so you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war.”

posted under Reading Challenges 2012

18 Comments to

“Harriet Beecher Stowe: an Introduction”

On January 4th, 2012 at 11:36 pm Angela Simmons Says:
I couldn’t get interested in this book, but I did finish it.
On January 5th, 2012 at 1:32 pm Debbie Says:
I’ve finished it now, too, Angela – and I think it was mostly so I could say I’ve read it. After all, it’s a classic…Thanks for dropping by.
On January 5th, 2012 at 12:30 pm JaneGS Says:
I am planning to read this book myself later in the year as part of the Classics Challenge. I like to savor books so long, slow, descriptive books are right up my alley, thought sometimes a quick, light read fits the bill too!

I’ve always loved the Lincoln quote–I admire this generation of writers who really tried and did change the world with their words.
On January 5th, 2012 at 1:35 pm Debbie Says:
You will likely really enjoy, Jane. She was really making a point and did stir things up!
On January 6th, 2012 at 1:20 am Jillian Says:
I’ve started this book and intend to finish it this year. I visited the Harriet Beecher Stowe House in Cincinnati a couple months ago — surreal. 🙂
On January 6th, 2012 at 9:42 am Debbie Says:
I hope you enjoy it, Jillian. I think it’s one that you can be easily distracted from because it does tend to go on so….
On January 6th, 2012 at 3:53 pm Katherine Says:
Haven’t read her work yet but I tend to like 19th century literature.
Thank you for your post, Debbie! 🙂
On January 6th, 2012 at 7:08 pm Debbie Says:
Thanks for posting such an interesting prompt, Katherine.
On January 6th, 2012 at 4:36 pm Cat Says:
I haven’t read this either but maybe one day I’ll get to it. I agree that pre 20th century literature invites us to slow down and savor the reading experience. I certainly have been with Mr Hardy and am reluctant to my book end.
On January 6th, 2012 at 7:09 pm Debbie Says:
Stowe doesn’t have anything on Hardy, Cat. If you like him, you’ll sail through this book.
On January 6th, 2012 at 6:52 pm Nicki Says:
I’ve long been intrigued by this book. Thanks for the introduction.
On January 6th, 2012 at 7:09 pm Debbie Says:
Thanks for dropping by, Nicki!
On January 7th, 2012 at 5:53 pm Heather Day Gilbert Says:
Thanks for this post (btw–LOVE your background, I’m forever changing my blog around!). This is one of those books that I’ve always MEANT to read but never have. Since you said it’s easier than Hardy, and I LOVE Hardy, maybe I’ll try to read it sometime!
On January 7th, 2012 at 6:39 pm Debbie Says:
Thanks, Heather! Funny, I was just looking at it the other day, wondering if it still held appeal…guess I’ll leave it alone, for now anyway. 😉
On January 11th, 2012 at 9:54 am Kell Smurthwaite Says:
I’ve not read her, but I plan to. 🙂
Here’s myClassics Challenge post on Anne Brontë
On January 11th, 2012 at 12:12 pm Debbie Says:
Kell, I see from your posts that these authors were contemporaries – and yet, they wrote on such different topics. Thanks for dropping by!
On January 12th, 2012 at 10:06 pm Shelley Says:
I remember this being rather exciting, so maybe I was in just the right mood. I love how influential this book was, and the quote by Lincoln. I know some people who think fiction is pointless, and this book is just one example of how untrue that is.
On January 12th, 2012 at 11:35 pm Debbie Says:
Shelley, I agree – fiction can (and has) shaped people’s attitudes and made history, for as long as human kind has been around. Thanks for dropping by – good to meet you!