So far while reading Uncle Tom's Cabin, I've been thinking about the public versus private spheres and the roles of men and women. We've had a brief discussion in class about the spheres so in this blog post I'll be focusing mainly on the spheres. 

I don't know much about what it was like living back in the 19th century or about the life of slaves, but I do know that women were often silenced. Last week I mentioned in class that religion was given to women like a toy is given to a child. The main purpose of the toy is to keep the child quiet and busy. Little do we know that the toy can also be used as a tool for manipulation. A woman is given religion because it's their "duty" as a housewife, along with other "duties" like house work, taking care of the children, and cooking and cleaning. As we see in Uncle Tom's Cabin, the main characters that are women always refer back to an event in the Bible. Unfortunately, their opinions don't seem to matter to their husbands. 

On the bottom of page 72 and the top of 73, where John and Mary are arguing about how fugitive slaves should be treated, Mary makes a point using religion as a weapon. "Obeying God never brings on public evils" (73). Throughout the course of the argument, Mary is told to keep her opinions to herself because they won't be helpful against the law (the fugitive slave law). Mary makes very good points about the public and private spheres during the argument with John. 

Mary's private opinion is considered nonsense when it involves the law and anything to do with the public. Ultimately, in this time, it is the men's job to make the final decision. In class we've discussed the topic of these spheres and how they impact the lifestyles of not just the slave owners, but also the traders, the women, and the slaves themselves.