In a discussion between Mr. and Mrs. Shelby, the text shows how Mrs. Shelby never felt that slavery was right and how she fought against it. “This is God’s curse on slavery! – A bitter, bitter, most accursed thing! – a curse to the master and a curse to the slave! I was a fool to think I could make anything good out of such a deadly evil. It is a sin to hold a slave under laws like ours, – I always felt it was, – I always thought so when I was a girl, – I thought so still more after I joined the church; but I thought I could gild it over, – I thought, by kindness, and care, and instruction, I could make the condition of mine better than freedom – fool that I was!” (Stowe, Chapter V). This discussion is about selling Tom and Harry and separating them from Eliza. In this passage, the ability to communicate Mrs. Shelby’s pain, regret, and believed sinfulness comes through in the personal and passionate words that Stowe uses. The reader can understand the sorrow and feel the struggle is this dialogue. The vocabulary is so simple and is in a tone that shows the grief and heartlessness of selling people and destroying families.
Stowe shows the anguish and mourning of families being torn apart in acts that are unimaginable. “ At midnight, Tom waked, with a sudden start. Something black passed quickly by him to the side of the boat, and he heard a splash in the water. No one else saw or heard anything. He raised his head, – the woman’s place was vacant” (Stowe, Chapter XII). This passage, which is about a 10-½ month old baby being sold away from his mother, would definitely help persuade readers that slave trade is wrong. In this dramatic scene the mother jumps off the boat and takes her own life because of her sorrow. When the trader shows no remorse or responsibility, the reader of the text would be outraged that a slave’s life is so unimportant.
I really resonated with your blog post, and noted some of the strategies you wrote about too, such as appealing to emotion and the character Mrs. Shelby. I especially liked your summary of the use of emotions shared through Mrs. Shelbys remorse over selling Tom where you state “The reader can understand the sorrow and feel the struggle is this dialogue. The vocabulary is so simple and is in a tone that shows the grief and heartlessness of selling people and destroying families”. I completely agree with you and feel you summarized this point very thoughtfully. I feel like this was clearly something Stowe wanted the reader to understand and feel sympathy for in an attempt to persuade the reader that slavery is such a terrible thing, with tremendous consequences.
I agree with you in how Stowe is able to reach her audience by using shock tactics, and her use of specific vocabulary meant to entice action among st the population.
This Mrs. Shelby paragraph is a fantastic quotation. I think this is more than just pathos, though, that she’s conveying. Emily Shelby is deciding that even the most conscientious slave holder is ultimately acting in sin, in her views — a direct refutation of the view that “good” slave owners are doing a favor to their slaves, helping them. So, great start, but I think you can take this discussion even further!