slavery
Writers differ in the purpose for which they write. Some aim to entertain, but the more serious and skilled writers usually have the goal of expressing a serious idea. Writers such as Hariet Beecher Stowe and Alex Haley are writers who write for more than mere entertainment. Uncle Tom's Cabin, written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, had a political purpose. Stowe intended to help America realize the inhumanity of slavery and the pain it brought upon African-Americans by writing a melodramatic novel. She despised the South for practicing slavery and the North as well for their prejudice against blacks. Roots was written by Alex Haley in search of his origin. His hunger for knowledge of who he was and who his ancestors were inspired him to carry out numerous years of research and countless interviews in order to finish his book. Although Alex Haley wrote Roots in search of his origin and Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin for a political purpose, both authors lead readers t!o sympathize with the predicaments of African-Americans by putting a human face, as well as a racial one on the tragedy of slavery, thus involving all readers in the inhumanity of the institution. In Uncle Tom's Cabin we are cordially introduced to Uncle
In his commentary of Roots, James Baldwin states the following: for granted while the slaves merely dreamed about it during the era of slavery. Springing up, fearing above all another barking dog, Kunta slipped away like a shadow from the fallen driver and the overturned flame. He ran bent low, legs crashing through frosted stalks of cotton. His muscles, so long unused, screamed with pain, but the cold, rushing air felt good upon his skin, and he had to stop himself from whooping out loud with the pleasure of feeling so wildly free. (Haley 207) Finally, Leslie A. Fiedler writes the following in her commentary of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Finally, the constant rubbing of their backs against the rough wooden boards gradually wear the skin and muscles of Kunta and the other unfortunate souls so that the bone is visible. ersad stated, he was not searching for an "unvarnished truth" but instead, he was "justifying the history of blacks in America." Baldwin clearly understands Haley's intention of finding his true origin in Africa. However, in order to do so, Haley had to carry out numerous years of research both in America and Africa. Haley's extensive research paid off. Just as Baldwin stated, Haley does an excellent job of portraying life in Juffure. It seems as if he was there watching the life of Kunta as he grew up in his native village. Furthermore, it seems as if he actually lived the life of Kunta Kinte and merely wrote his own autobiography. One is truly amazed at how Haley combined his research with his imagination and created such a realistic world that existed more that two hundred years ago.
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Approximate Word count = 4105
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page double spaced)
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