Facile Criticism of Literary Classics

To quote from the Afterword to my edition of Uncle Tom's Cabin: "For the literary critic, the problem is simply how a book so seemingly artless, so lacking in apparent literary talent, was not only an immediate success but has endured." Th...usually Usually, I am loathe to criticize books that are part of the cannon. This is entirely different from criticizing the cannon itself, which has been the subject of plenty of legitimate criticism. But though the cannon should include more works by women and minorities, the works that are typically included are generally there for a reason. Who would I be to suggest that Shakespeare is overrated? What value would there be in me listing my ill founded complaints about Oedipus Rex or Paradise Lost? Mostly I just accept that these are great books and if I didn't fully enjoy them, it's likely that the problem is with me, not the book. I am especially loathe to criticize a canonical book that is written by a woman author. Nonetheless, here I go.

To quote from the Afterword to my edition of Uncle Tom's Cabin: "For the literary critic, the problem is simply how a book so seemingly artless, so lacking in apparent literary talent, was not only an immediate success but has endured." That is a good question, indeed.

Uncle Tom's Cabin is a melodrama written with the best of intentions. If its publication brought about the end of slavery even one minute sooner than otherwise would have been the case--and my understanding is that the book did have a significant propaganda impact--then for that I give it the highest praise I possibly can.

But it is not really suitable for modern readers except for those reading to try to understand the relationship between literature and current events. Judging solely by literary standards, the book is a failure. Characters are badly drawn, the plot depends on random coincidence, and the mood of the writing is melodramatic to unbearable degrees. Harriet Beecher Stowe's perspective, while progressive for her time, is clearly informed by her own cultural baggage that puts distance between the author and her characters. There is a reason that being called an Uncle Tom has become a insulting epithet.

Racial issues have become enormously complex, and this book no longer furthers the conversation. Get some Frederick Douglas or Toni Morrison instead.