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Uncle Tom's Cabin: Or, Life Among the Lowly (The Penguin American Library)
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Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Author: Harriet Beecher Stowe
Publisher: Penguin Classics
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Our Price: $8.95
You Save: $ ( % )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Author: Harriet Beecher Stowe
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Average Customer Rating:
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Uncle Tom's Cabin: Or, Life Among the Lowly (The Penguin American Library) Description
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.3
EAN: 9780140390032
ISBN: 0140390030
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 640
Publication Date: 1981-06-25
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Studio: Penguin Classics
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.3
EAN: 9780140390032
ISBN: 0140390030
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 640
Publication Date: 1981-06-25
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Studio: Penguin Classics
Editorial Review of Uncle Tom's Cabin: Or, Life Among the Lowly (The Penguin American Library)
Arguably the most influential novel in American history, Uncle Tom's Cabin fanned the embers of the struggle between free states and slave states into the fire of the Civil War-and is as powerful and relevant today as when it was first published a century and a half ago.
Customer Reviews of Uncle Tom's Cabin: Or, Life Among the Lowly (The Penguin American Library)
Customer Rating: 
Review Summary: Penguin Edition, edited by Douglas, is Not Reliable
Review: My one-star rating applies only to the Penguin edition of Uncle Tom's Cabin. The Penguin edition, edited by Ann Douglas, has a high rate of transcription error. So it is not suitable for serious study.
I listed a selection (over 100) of the transcription errors in the Penguin edition for a presentation at the 2007 American Literature Association conference. For example, the Penguin edition on page 619 (in the 4 copies that I've examined) has the following line:
"If the laws of New England were so arranged that a master could [it]now and then[/it] torture an apprentice to death, would it be received with equal composure?"
In the 1852 Jewett edition (the first printing in book form), the sentence included an additional clause:
"If the laws of New England were so arranged that a master could [it]now and then[/it] torture an apprentice to death, without a possibility of being brought to justice, would it be received with equal composure?"
This error--the omission of "without a possibility of being brought to justice"--diminishes a key theme in Stowe's work. I encourage scholars, teachers, and students to purchase Ammons's or Sklar's editions of UTC. Among editions that I've examined, those editions have more reliable texts. I have not examined the new Bedford edition (Railton) or the new Norton edition (Gates and Robbins).
If you choose to buy some other edition, perhaps your choice will encourage Penguin to publish a corrected edition. This edition was ranked 41,945 at Amazon when I wrote this review in July of 2007.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A must book for Everybody
Review: I found this book very well written. It is interesting that the author chose not only to show the terrible suffering that came from slavery, but also she revealed how slavery extracts a toll on the master. Personally it exemplifies how religion can (as in many cases throughout history) support and justify cruelty and violence. This book should stir everyone at the gut level. I don't want to forget to add that I like the Modern Library Classics format. At the end of the book is discussion questions and commentary by other famous authors.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: patronizin and preachifyin
Review: I wasn't ready to enjoy this novel and the first 60 pp reinforced this prejudice. The beginning is filled with Stowe's rendition of slave's speech--"ah's gwyne ter make corn pone fer Mas'r"--which most modern readers will find demeaning. Fortunately this tones down.
As a non-religious person I have a low tolerance for preachifyin, but it bothered me less as the novel progressed, as it became obvious that the most effective argument against slavery at the time was righteous Christianity. The issue was not the equality of the races, though Stowe does allow for that (not bad for 1850!), but that a Christian should not own humans, period. Whether the slaves were happy-go-lucky, sentimental, childlike, superstitious--all these supposed attributes of one race or another--all these were irrelevant to her.
Through the character of St Clare she argues that the greater sin of slave owners was their hypocrisy rather than the ownership per se. That owners might claim justification from some obscure passage in the Bible was an outrage. Better to simply admit that you hold slaves because you have the power to do so, and it makes your life easier. If you are to be wicked, admit it at least--don't hide behind some nonsensical religious rationalization. If the slave owners could be honest about their reasons, then there might be hope of winning the moral argument.
The characters are one-dimensional--pure good, pure evil, not much in between. Most are what we now see as stereotypes. They merely function as tools of the plot and the point. What I didn't expect was that the story itself would be as exciting as it was. It moves right along. This overcomes the preachiness and the simplicity of the characters, and is the reason so many read the book. Even for all its patronizin and preachifyin, it's a page-turner.
As others have noted it is amazing to see how "Uncle Tom", portrayed as noble and saintly, has become such a term of derision.
Finally, if you are going to read this, don't read the Introduction until after you've read the novel, as it gives away several plot points that you are better off encountering for yourself in the novel.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The unreadable classic- or Greatness of Influence vs. Literary quality
Review: When Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe he reportedly said, "This is the little woman who made the great war". The tremendous influence of this book on Anti-Slavery attitudes are considered to be a very real factor in leading to atmosphere which helped bring about the Civil War. This work is thus in terms of its 'real effect' in the 'real world ' far more important than 'Moby Dick' or " Leaves of Grass' or 'The Scarlet Letter ' or 'Walden', the greatest books of the American Renaissance.
The literary quality of the book is in no proportion to the Influence which it had.
I have found it an almost impossible read, in good part because of its language.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The book that started the Civil War
Review: Throughout history, few books have garnered more controversy than Harriet Beecher Stowe's UNCLE TOM'S CABIN. When he met Mrs. Stowe in 1861, President Lincoln proclaimed, "So you're the little woman that wrote the book started this great war." That may be a bit of an overstatement, but the book certainly had enormous social and political consequences.
In the social structure that has evolved since the emancipation of slaves in this country, few labels have a more derogatory intent to the black person than being called an "Uncle Tom". We hear it repeatedly used to indicate a black person who chooses not to follow in lockstep with the direction of radical black anarchist leaders. For the life of me, I can't grasp that concept. What greater compliment than to be referred to as a man who faced such immense adversity yet who remained steadfast in his faith.
I realize the argument is that Tom did as he was told and refused to stand up for himself, but that argument only portrays the shallowness of a society that has been more and more anti-Christian as time goes by. Those who would make that argument fail to see the strength and courage it takes for a true Christian to resist temptation and consistently put personal challenge into the Lord's hands.
This book, today, receives a tremendous amount of criticism for Stowe's constant Christian "preaching" throughout the book. Stowe, born in 1811, is of the founding daughter generation. Her strong portrayal of Christian virtue is yet another reminder that America was founded on Christian principles. People today, in our society where Christianity is under constant criticism, hate to admit that America once was, and was intended to be, a Christian nation. At the time of its publishing, Stowe's work was criticized for being biased towards anti-slavery, but was never criticized for its expression of Christian virtues.
For me, and I'm sure others, the book does have one great flaw. Mrs. Stowe was well known for accurately depicting the vernacular of a particular region. While that may add authenticity to a story, it also creates a painfully tedious read. That is the case here. This is not a book that most people could pick up and read at once. For me, it was a long daily process of 10-20 pages at a time.
Here is an example of what I'm referring to;
"I'm thinkin' my old man won't know de boys and de baby. Lor'! she's de biggest gal, now, -good she is, too, and peart, Polly is. She's out to the house, now, watchin' de hoe-cake. I's got jist de very patern my old man liked so much a bakin'. Jist sich as I gin him the mornin' he was took off. Lord bless us! How I felt, dat ar mornin'!"
I'm sure there are readers who appreciate such authenticity, but for me, and I'm sure untold masses of high-school students who once found this on their "required reading" list, that is just plain tedious. My only other knock on the book is the "happily ever after" ending which Stowe gave to several of the main characters. For those once trapped in the bondage of slavery, I don't believe too many of them lived out that kind of scenario.
That said, if you've not read this book, do so. Find a way struggle through it. Stowe gives portrayals of both sides of the slavery coin. By that I mean, she managed to portray that many slave owners considered their slaves as family members and treated them with respect and kindness, while there were also other owners who viewed slaves as mere possessions to be abused and defiled.
This book may not have started the Civil War, but it most certainly had a profound effect upon society like few books in history have ever had. That fact, in and of itself, makes this book a must read for everyone.
Monty Rainey
www.juntosociety.com
Review Summary: Penguin Edition, edited by Douglas, is Not Reliable
Review: My one-star rating applies only to the Penguin edition of Uncle Tom's Cabin. The Penguin edition, edited by Ann Douglas, has a high rate of transcription error. So it is not suitable for serious study.
I listed a selection (over 100) of the transcription errors in the Penguin edition for a presentation at the 2007 American Literature Association conference. For example, the Penguin edition on page 619 (in the 4 copies that I've examined) has the following line:
"If the laws of New England were so arranged that a master could [it]now and then[/it] torture an apprentice to death, would it be received with equal composure?"
In the 1852 Jewett edition (the first printing in book form), the sentence included an additional clause:
"If the laws of New England were so arranged that a master could [it]now and then[/it] torture an apprentice to death, without a possibility of being brought to justice, would it be received with equal composure?"
This error--the omission of "without a possibility of being brought to justice"--diminishes a key theme in Stowe's work. I encourage scholars, teachers, and students to purchase Ammons's or Sklar's editions of UTC. Among editions that I've examined, those editions have more reliable texts. I have not examined the new Bedford edition (Railton) or the new Norton edition (Gates and Robbins).
If you choose to buy some other edition, perhaps your choice will encourage Penguin to publish a corrected edition. This edition was ranked 41,945 at Amazon when I wrote this review in July of 2007.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A must book for Everybody
Review: I found this book very well written. It is interesting that the author chose not only to show the terrible suffering that came from slavery, but also she revealed how slavery extracts a toll on the master. Personally it exemplifies how religion can (as in many cases throughout history) support and justify cruelty and violence. This book should stir everyone at the gut level. I don't want to forget to add that I like the Modern Library Classics format. At the end of the book is discussion questions and commentary by other famous authors.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: patronizin and preachifyin
Review: I wasn't ready to enjoy this novel and the first 60 pp reinforced this prejudice. The beginning is filled with Stowe's rendition of slave's speech--"ah's gwyne ter make corn pone fer Mas'r"--which most modern readers will find demeaning. Fortunately this tones down.
As a non-religious person I have a low tolerance for preachifyin, but it bothered me less as the novel progressed, as it became obvious that the most effective argument against slavery at the time was righteous Christianity. The issue was not the equality of the races, though Stowe does allow for that (not bad for 1850!), but that a Christian should not own humans, period. Whether the slaves were happy-go-lucky, sentimental, childlike, superstitious--all these supposed attributes of one race or another--all these were irrelevant to her.
Through the character of St Clare she argues that the greater sin of slave owners was their hypocrisy rather than the ownership per se. That owners might claim justification from some obscure passage in the Bible was an outrage. Better to simply admit that you hold slaves because you have the power to do so, and it makes your life easier. If you are to be wicked, admit it at least--don't hide behind some nonsensical religious rationalization. If the slave owners could be honest about their reasons, then there might be hope of winning the moral argument.
The characters are one-dimensional--pure good, pure evil, not much in between. Most are what we now see as stereotypes. They merely function as tools of the plot and the point. What I didn't expect was that the story itself would be as exciting as it was. It moves right along. This overcomes the preachiness and the simplicity of the characters, and is the reason so many read the book. Even for all its patronizin and preachifyin, it's a page-turner.
As others have noted it is amazing to see how "Uncle Tom", portrayed as noble and saintly, has become such a term of derision.
Finally, if you are going to read this, don't read the Introduction until after you've read the novel, as it gives away several plot points that you are better off encountering for yourself in the novel.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The unreadable classic- or Greatness of Influence vs. Literary quality
Review: When Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe he reportedly said, "This is the little woman who made the great war". The tremendous influence of this book on Anti-Slavery attitudes are considered to be a very real factor in leading to atmosphere which helped bring about the Civil War. This work is thus in terms of its 'real effect' in the 'real world ' far more important than 'Moby Dick' or " Leaves of Grass' or 'The Scarlet Letter ' or 'Walden', the greatest books of the American Renaissance.
The literary quality of the book is in no proportion to the Influence which it had.
I have found it an almost impossible read, in good part because of its language.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The book that started the Civil War
Review: Throughout history, few books have garnered more controversy than Harriet Beecher Stowe's UNCLE TOM'S CABIN. When he met Mrs. Stowe in 1861, President Lincoln proclaimed, "So you're the little woman that wrote the book started this great war." That may be a bit of an overstatement, but the book certainly had enormous social and political consequences.
In the social structure that has evolved since the emancipation of slaves in this country, few labels have a more derogatory intent to the black person than being called an "Uncle Tom". We hear it repeatedly used to indicate a black person who chooses not to follow in lockstep with the direction of radical black anarchist leaders. For the life of me, I can't grasp that concept. What greater compliment than to be referred to as a man who faced such immense adversity yet who remained steadfast in his faith.
I realize the argument is that Tom did as he was told and refused to stand up for himself, but that argument only portrays the shallowness of a society that has been more and more anti-Christian as time goes by. Those who would make that argument fail to see the strength and courage it takes for a true Christian to resist temptation and consistently put personal challenge into the Lord's hands.
This book, today, receives a tremendous amount of criticism for Stowe's constant Christian "preaching" throughout the book. Stowe, born in 1811, is of the founding daughter generation. Her strong portrayal of Christian virtue is yet another reminder that America was founded on Christian principles. People today, in our society where Christianity is under constant criticism, hate to admit that America once was, and was intended to be, a Christian nation. At the time of its publishing, Stowe's work was criticized for being biased towards anti-slavery, but was never criticized for its expression of Christian virtues.
For me, and I'm sure others, the book does have one great flaw. Mrs. Stowe was well known for accurately depicting the vernacular of a particular region. While that may add authenticity to a story, it also creates a painfully tedious read. That is the case here. This is not a book that most people could pick up and read at once. For me, it was a long daily process of 10-20 pages at a time.
Here is an example of what I'm referring to;
"I'm thinkin' my old man won't know de boys and de baby. Lor'! she's de biggest gal, now, -good she is, too, and peart, Polly is. She's out to the house, now, watchin' de hoe-cake. I's got jist de very patern my old man liked so much a bakin'. Jist sich as I gin him the mornin' he was took off. Lord bless us! How I felt, dat ar mornin'!"
I'm sure there are readers who appreciate such authenticity, but for me, and I'm sure untold masses of high-school students who once found this on their "required reading" list, that is just plain tedious. My only other knock on the book is the "happily ever after" ending which Stowe gave to several of the main characters. For those once trapped in the bondage of slavery, I don't believe too many of them lived out that kind of scenario.
That said, if you've not read this book, do so. Find a way struggle through it. Stowe gives portrayals of both sides of the slavery coin. By that I mean, she managed to portray that many slave owners considered their slaves as family members and treated them with respect and kindness, while there were also other owners who viewed slaves as mere possessions to be abused and defiled.
This book may not have started the Civil War, but it most certainly had a profound effect upon society like few books in history have ever had. That fact, in and of itself, makes this book a must read for everyone.
Monty Rainey
www.juntosociety.com