Uncle Toms Cabin

[A face]

Has anyone read the book 'Uncle Toms Cabin'? Was it any good? I mean, would it be worth reading?

[stann]

Purely as a literary "classic" it should be read, I'd say.
Also as it apparently caused such a genuine uproar when it was published. It really, really p***ed off many in the American South, and was hugely influential as an anti-slavery novel. It was an important work in a way that few books really are when referred to in that way by critics.
However, the pendulum has kind of swung back since then and it is now as much criticised for its latent racism and lazy stereotyping. I seem to remember Public Enemy having some choice words on one of their LPs.
The pretty condescending descriptions of the black characters might well put you off after a time, and in addition, like many such books when all is said and done, it's not really that good.
An interesting read though.

[osarusan]

Wow!!

I read it last week.

From a literary point of view, it was pretty melodramatic, with very unlikely plot scenarios, and ridiculously simplistic characters.

It gained its fame because of the subject matter it dealt with. Although the characters seem, in this more enlightened age, to fulfill many of the racial stereotypes we have seen and read before (it was the origin of the phrase "Uncle Tom N*****r", apologies for using that word), in its day it was a revelation in terms of portraying the African-American as human, and especially as being in posession of a soul,and portrayal of the slave-owner as a (sometimes) viciously cruel master. It criticises religion, or to be more exact, interpretartion of the Bible, for its part in justifying slavery, and criticises northern abolitionists for their hypoctitical NIMBY attitude to African-Americans.

A recommended read, if only so you can say you've read it.

[A face]

A recommended read, if only so you can say you've read it.

Y'see that the thing, i dont really want to read it just to say so. We know the content already and its significance and how it was used. I'm just wondering is there anything in the plot and story etc. that i should read? I'll probably read it anyway, even if people reference it all the time who probably haven't read it. I wonder did the author know it would have had that sort of impact when first published.