Uncle Tom’s Cabin: Dominion and Degradation
An example of this is the beating and consequent death of Uncle Tom which is claimed to be “arguably the most violent of [Stowe’s] novel” (Frick 30). Though the description of the beating is not explicit in the novel, the narrator implies its severity by stating “scenes of blood and cruelty are shocking to our ear and heart” (376). This withholding alludes to the fact that had she followed these words with description the reader would not have been able to handle the scene which was unfolding.
However, the scenes with the female slaves portray an even more perverse side of violence which does not stop with the lash. An example of this is when, during a slave sale, Emmaline, a slave girl is publicly violated by a white man looking to buy: “He put out his heavy, dirty hand, and drew [her] towards him; passed it over her neck and bust”, he even refers to her as “minx” (305). Here the term “minx” conjures the stereotypical image that white men had of African American women--that they were seductresses, a fact that is ironic seeing as this young girl begins to cry after his contact. Additionally, the use of the terms “heavy” and “dirty” evoke a squirming sensation in the reader at the intrusive images that are brought to mind.
The scenes with the female slaves portray an even more perverse side of violence.
This gendered violence is further highlighted when one compares the way Uncle Tom is assessed by the same white man. Uncle Tom is subject to the routine check-up as the slaver “seized Tom by the jaw, and pulled open his mouth to inspect his teeth; made him strip up his sleeve, to show his muscle” (304). Evidently, this inspection is done in order to determine Tom’s worth as a slave and worker. As such, the fact that the slaver checks Emmaline’s bust and neck implies that the work she is being evaluated for more about physical appearance and reproduction. This clearly draws a distinction between what is expected of a male slave and what is expected of a female slave.
This situation is made all the worse because it is not just physical abuse, but it is also at the hands of a man, adding a sense of patriarchal domination. This patriarchal domination is an element that worsens the experience of the female slave; this is demonstrated when Rosa, one of the slave girls, is told she is to be whipped by men. She exclaims “I don’t mind the whipping so much if Miss Marie or you was to do it; but, to be sent to a man!..the shame of it, Miss Feely!” (293). The exclamation of the word “man” makes it sound like the word itself tastes bitter on her tongue, and coupled with the sentiment of shame, highlights how much more degrading these beatings become for the enslaved women when they are carried out by men who already hold so much power over them.
The exclamation of the word “man” makes it sound like the word itself tastes bitter on her tongue, and coupled with the sentiment of shame, highlights how much more degrading these beatings become for the enslaved women.
Further, Rosa states that she does not mind the whippings so much, a bold statement considering the violence and pain that accompanies such punishment, when women are the ones carrying out the beating. This reinforces the difference in perception and reception of violence from the perspective of enslaved women and the fact that it is not only the bodily abuse and coercion that is a source of fear and revulsion but also the beatings when they are delivered by men.
References
- Frick, John. “The Representation of Violence and the Violence of Representation.” New England Theatre Journal, vol. 21, 2010, pp. 25–46.
- Stowe, Harriet B. Uncle Tom's Cabin . 2nd ed., W. W. Norton & Company, 2010
