Abstract
In the 19th century, Harriet Beecher Stowe’s famous novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin once had huge influence upon the American Civil War. This thesis is to discuss and analyze the religious ambivalence of Harriet Beecher Stowe in her novel when it comes to the question of salvation of slaves and the causes of it, which will be divided into two perspectives. One is objective or the consideration of its social influence, which forced the writer to consider the indoctrination function of Christianity when she wrote the novel. The other is subjective or the uncertain attitude that the writer hold towards Christianity. The thesis consists of three chapters. Chapter One is the general summary of the background of Mrs. Stowe and the unilateral understanding of Mrs. Stowe’s attitude towards slavery. Chapter Two focuses on the description of the cruelty of slavery, from which the writer’s attitude towards slavery and the question of salvation of slaves are drawn out, and furthermore, on the discussion of the question of the slaves’ salvation and the religious ambivalence the writer shows towards it. Chapter Three is the brief analysis of the causes of the religious ambivalence of the writer. Through the brief discussion, the veil of Mrs. Stowe’s deep thought about slavery and religion will be revealed.
Keywords: Mrs. Stowe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, slavery, religious ambivalence, salvation, Christianity
Contents
Introduction1
Chapter One The cruelty of slavery3
1.1 The ignorance of human emotions.3
1.2 The violation of slaves’ rights as an individual man4
1.3 The trample on slaves’ dignity and self-respect5
Chapter Two Two ways of salvation—Mrs. Stowe’s religious ambivalence7
2.1 Christianity — the tranquilizer of the devilish slavery7
2.2 Self-rescue — the practical way of ending slavery9
2.3 The ambivalence of Mrs. Stowe’s religious belief 11
Chapter Three Causes of Mrs. Stowe’s religious ambivalence13
Conclusion15
Bibliography 16
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