Summary

Uncle Tom's Cabin opens on the Shelby plantation, where Arthur Shelby is facing debt. He is forced to sell two of his slaves, Uncle Tom and Harry, for money. The rest of the Shelby family is unhappy about the news since they maintain a good relationship with their slaves and Harry would be separated from his mother, Eliza, who also works on the plantation. The novel splits into two plot lines as Eliza escapes with Harry, while Tom is taken by the slave trader Haley down the Mississippi River.

As Eliza travels north, she meets up with her husband, George Harris, who previously escaped from another plantation. However, a slave hunter, Tom Loker, has been hired by Haley to find them. Eliza and George seek refuge in a Quaker settlement, but Loker finds and confronts the couple. George shoots Loker in order to protect his family and leaves him in the care of the Quakers.

Meanwhile, Tom befriends a young white girl named Eva, saving her from drowning when she falls off the ship. Her father, Augustine St. Clare, is very grateful and buys Tom from Haley. St. Clare's cousin, Miss Ophelia, accompanies them to their home in New Orleans. The family owns many slaves, though Ophelia and Marie, St. Clare's second wife, only tolerate them. To reconcile Ophelia's prejudice against blacks, St. Clare buys a young slave, Topsy, for her to raise.

After two years, Eva becomes quite ill. On her deathbed, she shares a vision of heaven, and her death affects the entire household. Ophelia now appreciates Topsy, and St. Clare wants to set Tom free. However, St. Clare is unexpectedly stabbed in a bar fight and dies. With Marie in charge of the household, all of the slaves are sold.

Tom's new owner is Simon Legree, a plantation owner who is vicious to his slaves. He abuses and beats Tom after Tom refuses to beat a fellow slave as a punishment. Cassy, a fellow slave on the plantation that has some influence over Legree, attempts to help Tom.

Back in Eliza's story, Loker has become a changed person after being healed by the Quakers. He warns Eliza and George that they should leave for Canada soon since his correspondents were looking for the two slaves, and the pair disguise themselves. At last, the family successfully reaches Canada and is free.

For Tom, the situation is worse, though he remains a devout Christian and refuses to fight Legree. He gives Cassy his blessing to escape with Emmeline, another female slave. They do so, but Legree tortures Tom when he refuses to give Cassy's whereabouts. Legree's overseers beat Tom to near death, though he forgives them and inspires the overseers to become Christians.

As Tom is dying, George Shelby arrives at the plantation in hopes of buying him back. Unfortunately, he only hears Tom's last words, and he takes him back to his plantation to bury him. To honor Tom, Shelby sets all of his slaves free.

Cassy escapes to the north, encountering Shelby. She tells her story to him and realizes that Eliza is her long-lost daughter. Cassy reunites with Eliza and George Harris in Canada, and the family decides to move to Liberia.

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