Jim Crow

“ 'Come here, Jim Crow,’ said he. The child came up, and the master patted the curly head and chucked him under the chin. ‘Now, Jim, show this gentleman how you can dance and sing.’ The boy at once commenced a wild, grotesque song common among the Negroes, in a rich, clear voice, accompanying his singing with many comic movements of the hands, feet, and whole body, all in perfect time to the music.” (Page 3, Uncle Tom’s Cabin)
Here is a talented young boy and he is being sold as a slave to another master. The name of this boy is actually Harry but he is called Jim Crow which is a very familiar name. This gives the reader an understanding of where the Jim Crow Laws originated from. It is said that Jim Crow was a dance that white people would do to make fun of black people. Here the boy’s nickname is really Jim Crow. The master has him dance and sing to impress the buyer. It seems cruel that the boy is being forced to act like a circus animal. Mr. Shelby is the slave owner that is selling him and Tom to another slave owner named Haley. Mr. Shelby has a heart and he is not a mean slave owner. He still is pro slavery but he doesn’t treat his slave with cruelty like Haley does. However in this one part he makes the boy dance to sell him to settle his debts. Slavery was wrong no matter how it is looked upon. The slave owner could be nice but he is still a slave owner which doesn’t make him a saint. This book shows the reader that there were differences between the slave owners in the south.