Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp

By Harriet Beecher Stowe

Book Overview

Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp (1856) is a historical novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Although her career peaked with the publication of abolitionist novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), Stowe continued to work as a professional writer throughout her life. A tale of greed, betrayal, and rebellion, Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp displays her impressive imaginative range and admirable moral outlook while illuminating aspects of early American life that would otherwise be consigned to history. Nina Gordon is a young heiress who senses a change in southern plantation culture. Living in her family's estate, she sees their land losing value through her brother's drunkenness and aversion to work. Entrusting the plantation to Harry, one of their slaves, she attempts to maintain some normalcy by accepting suitors. She soon falls for Clayton, an idealistic young man who accepts the need for social change and disdains her brother's cruel mistreatment of Harry. Outside of the estate, the Gordon family's slaves live in fear of the state's brutal slave laws alongside a family of poor whites. Despite the culture of silence holding them in place, they hear of a preacher named Dred, a maroon who leads a group of escaped slaves in the Great Dismal Swamp of Virginia and North Carolina. Is he a symbol of hope, or merely an illusion made up by greedy slavecatchers looking to collect bounties? As life on the Gordon plantation becomes more and more unbearable, the prospect of freedom seems worthy of any great risk. Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp is an underappreciated masterpiece from the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin, the most influential American novel of the nineteenth century. This edition of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp is a classic of American children's literature reimagined for modern readers.

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• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1513282573
• ISBN13: 9781513282572
• Release Date: May 2021
• Publisher: Mint Editions
• Length: 570 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

WOW!!!!

I am shocked at how many of the "modern" views were actually in writing over an hundred years before I became acquainted with them. A great bit of liberal understanding. She presents the arguments pro and con about slavery.

Dred; a Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp

I just read that Harriet Beecher Stowe's second book was as popular as her first, so I wanted my book club to read it as one of the selections for the coming year. But, the price of the book was quite prohibitive and I will have to choose another book for my selection. I am happy to have it in my book collection though.

The conflict between the races is cleverly demonstrated in this novel.

A Tale Of The Great Dismal Swamp is the story of Nina Gordo the mistress of a slave plantation and Dred a black revolutionary. Stowe demonstrates the differing attitude concerning slavery. Many slaves escaped to the swamp. They would find a high ground area and hide. Harriet Beecher Stowe is well known as the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Unfortunately Dred was not well recognized, for Dred is a much stronger worker of art. Both novels' theme was antislavery. Stowe allowed the scenes of Dred to speak for themselves. Dred is a black revolutionary. The other lead character is the mistress of the slave plantation. The conflict between the races is cleverly demonstrated in this novel.

The other book by Harriet Beecher Stowe

While Uncle Tom's Cabin will likely remain Harriet Beecher Stowe's best known work, her 1856 novel Dred should not be overlooked. If you like this time period, you should like Dred. Stowe avoids the heavy-handed authorial commentary that characterizes Uncle Tom's Cabin; in other words, she lets the events of the story speak for themselves. The story is slow-burning plantation drama--again, if you're a fan of 19th century literature, you'll love Dred. Dred compares favorably to Moby-Dick, as both novels turn on gradual plots where the reader's bond to the characters becomes crucial. Because the plot takes awhile to develop, the true reward of the novel comes from watching the characters grow and evolve. This edition features an introduction and notes by Robert Levine, which do a great job of placing Stowe's work in a historical context. Dred should appeal to students of 19th century literature, and anyone else with an interest in slavery and abolition.

Right On, Harriet

A compelling and highly readable indictment of slavery in America, "Dred" takes risks that "Uncle Tom's Cabin" did not. The ending of "Dred" is powerful and strong, unlike that of "Uncle Tom", which seemed to advocate ultimately that the slaves should be freed and encourged to return to Africa. Harriet Beecher Stowe is just as sharp in her criticism of the North and she is to the South. She is quick to condemn the passive profiteers of slavery as she is the slaveholder himself. I throughly enjoyed this book. I will read it a secod time.