Uncle Tom

There are many books in the canon of American Literature that most people are pretty sure that they know, even though they may never have read the book. Between children's versions, movies and other (read Cliff Notes) means; they have been exposed and have a fully formed opinion. A recent article in NYT points out that the common perception of Uncle Tom as a bungling, old stooped servent is not the character that Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote about.

Because of the connections that various member of the Beecher-Stowe clan had in this area of Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana, associations with "Uncle Tom's Cabin, or Life Among the Lowly" are regularly cited for many locations. At least two different communities in two states claim the original of the crossing the river on the ice story, and in that era before dams and locks the Ohio River did freeze some winters. There was even a Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin published by the author because she had so many queries about her story.

Gone with the Wind

Today's NYT has a story about "missing" chapters of Gone With The Wind showing up in the collection of the Pequot Library in Connecticut--quite a ways from Atlanta. It seems that the president of Mitchell's publisher left it to the library along with other materials from his career at Macmillan. Mitchell had wanted the early drafts and all pre-publishing material destroyed because she had a conviction that books should only be judged as the final product, and it is not known how these chapters survived. It may have been oversight, it may have been deliberate, those involved are all beyond asking.

Also from that story, this June is the 75th anniversary of the publication. We'll have to make note of that at Words & Images.