Abstract

This project examines the motivations behind Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin (UTC), focusing on how her desire for both financial gain and moral reform shaped her writing. Stowe’s use of religious themes to expose the moral and human costs of slavery positioned her novel at the center of national debate, forcing both defenders and opponents of slavery to confront uncomfortable truths. Her book ultimately made her the best-selling author of the 19th century, selling 300,000 copies mostly by door-to-door subscriptions. This is equivalent to about 4.4 million Americans today who do not have access to Amazon or bookstores. Even more amazing, in the same year it sold 1.5 million copies in Great Britain.

Drawing on Stowe’s literary work and personal correspondence, this project shows how her writing emerged from a complex interplay of faith, political action, and family obligations. It argues that Stowe’s religious convictions and her family’s influence not only inspired the moral force of her work but also contributed to its immense commercial success. Her letters to family and close friends reveal her plans, motivations, and hopes for her books, highlighting how her personal struggles, experiences, and narratives from past novels, shaped the story that awakened the conscience of a divided nation.