It has been said that Harriet Beecher Stowe danced in the streets when President Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. [1]
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin was first published in The National Era, a weekly abolitionist newspaper. The first instalment appeared on 5th June 1851 on the paper’s front page. Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly appeared serially over the next 39 weeks, 40 instalments in all.
The novel focuses on the plight of enslaved African Americans and their brutal treatment in the American South. Its portrayal of Uncle Tom, a devout and noble slave, and the villainous character of Simon Legree stirred passionate reactions on both sides of the debate. While many readers and abolitionists praised the novel for its powerful portrayal of the horrors of slavery and its call for emancipation, pro-slavery advocates condemned it as propaganda.
The early reception was both powerful and polarising, and after its initial serialisation Uncle Tom’s Cabin was published in book form by John P. Jewett and Company in March 1852. Despite some differences in the text, the book edition retained the same powerful narrative and characters as the serialised version and allowed readers to experience the entire story in one volume. It became a bestseller, with thousands of copies sold within days of its release, and contributed to the growing momentum of the abolitionist movement.
The book’s impact can still be felt today, and it remains a testament to the power of literature to effect social change and provoke meaningful conversations about important social issues.