The Lofty and the Lowly
Author | Maria Jane McIntosh |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre | Plantation literature |
Publisher | D. Appleton & Company |
Publication date | 1853 |
Media type | |
Pages | c. 300 |
The Lofty and the Lowly, or Good in All and None All Good is a novel by
Overview
The Lofty and the Lowly is one of several examples of the pro-slavery plantation literature genre that emerged from the Southern United States in response to the abolitionist novel Uncle Tom's Cabin, which was criticised in the South for its portrayal of the evils of slaveholding. The majority of these "anti-Tom" novels often focused on the benevolence of plantation owners, and the evils of abolitionism and capitalism practised in the Northern United States. McIntosh's novel follows this latter route, although McIntosh claims in the preface of her novel that she is attempting to display a neutral image of slavery in her novel.[1]
Plot
The novel takes place along the
Characters
- Young Montrose – the son of Colonel Montrose, who inherits the plantation, slaves and land upon the death of his father.
- Daddy Cato – a loyal, pious slave of the Montrose plantation who fills the role of Uncle Tom from Uncle Tom's Cabin, comforting his master in times of stress and despair.
- Uriah Goldwire – a malevolent Northerner who is recruited as a saboteur by his employees in order to ruin the Montrose plantation and force Montrose into destitution.
- Colonel Montrose – the kindly, elderly plantation owner who passes away at the beginning of the novel of old age. His military career is not expanded in any great detail in the novel.
Reception
According to the University of Virginia, The Lofty and the Lowly was a critical success in both north and south upon its original release in 1853. In the opening weeks of publishing, 8,000 copies of the novel were sold in the entire United States.[2] This would have made The Lofty and the Lowly the most commercially successful anti-Tom novel since the publication of Aunt Phillis's Cabin in 1852, which sold between 20,000 and 30,000 copies for the entire year.[3]
Publication history
The Lofty and the Lowly was first published in 1853 by D. Appleton & Company. The novel was one of few anti-Tom novels to be published in separate volumes rather than a single, collected novel.[2] D. Appleton & Company. would later publish other anti-Tom novels, including the 1860 novel The Ebony Idol by G. M. Flanders.[4]
References
- ^ "The Lofty and the Lowly". utc.iath.virginia.edu.
- ^ a b "McIntosh: The Lofty and Lowly". utc.iath.virginia.edu.
- ^ "Eastman's Aunt Phillis's Cabin". utc.iath.virginia.edu.
- ^ "Flander's Ebony Idol". utc.iath.virginia.edu.