[Anonymous]

What was the impact of Uncle Tom’s Cabin on changing people’s view about slavery? Was it really a factor in bringing about the Civil War?

[gutzmank]

Though long said to have been quite efficacious, Uncle Tom’s Cabin has been shown by recent research to have had little effect. There’s little by way of correspondence to congressmen about it, for example.

[hood.roman]

Professor that’s really interesting to hear. I’ve read a lot of accounts, some from the time period, that it basically swept the nation and did a lot to influence public opinion. Of course, it would not be “surprising” if this was exaggerated.

Could you point me to the recent research which talks about this?

[gutzmank]

Michael F. Holt, unquestionably the foremost expert on antebellum political history, told me so.

[hood.roman]

Thank you for originally encouraging me to email him. Took me like 6 months to work up the courage the first time.

This time he gave me this nugget: after Uncle Tom’s Cabin was published (in 1852) and selling like crazy, the Free Soil Party got less than half the northern votes it got in 1848, thus it may have impacted the public mind but “had far less POLITICAL impact than has been alleged, certainly far less than the Kansas-Nebraska Act two years later.”

He sends his best to you, Dr. Gutzman!

[Author]

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