The use of literary dialect in Uncle Tom's Cabin

Abstract

This article explores Stowe's use of dialect in her controversial novel. Though some critics have mentioned the 'colorful language' of Stowe's characters, most debates about Uncle Tom's Cabin have not centered on the dialect representation in the speech of her characters. This article provides an objective analysis of Stowe's use of literary dialect in the speech of three characters (Aunt Chloe, George and Mr Haley) using the methods of quantitative linguistics. The frequency of occurrence of linguistic features and the distribution of non-standard features among Stowe's characters demonstrates that Stowe was, in several respects, remarkably accurate, both linguistically and historically. Stowe's characters' dialects illustrate an interesting period in the history of American dialect formation. Recent studies in African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) and the investigation of its origins have suggested a close relationship between AAVE and Southern White Vernacular English (SWVE) as a result of the sociohistorical context in which AAVE began. This relationship is reflected in the similarities between the speech of Aunt Chloe and Mr Haley and shows Stowe's portrayal of these dialects to be historically accurate. Stowe's linguistic accuracy is evidenced by the fact that each character's use of linguistic features mirrors that of actual speakers, in terms of specific dialect features and their frequency of use, and her distribution of features across social variables matches that found in sociolinguistic research.