Much of the attention that readers and critics have given to Uncle Tom's Cabin has been directed to its content — the development of its themes, the significance of its characters and incidents. Increasingly, however, there has been focus on the book's structure, which is generally now recognized as strong and balanced. Above all, we can see ways in which that structure is effectively and integrally related to features of the novel's plot movements and thematic conflicts — including ironically revealing symmetries and juxtapositions of incident.
Stowe herself was aware of the relationship between her structural choices and her purposes. Although the manner of its initial publication (in serial form) was certainly a determining factor in the novel's episodic nature, Stowe knew that — in order to persuade readers actively to oppose slavery — she would have to touch their emotions. Thus she chose to write what she called "a series of sketches" (Stowe's emphasis; quoted in Donovan's "Uncle Tom's Cabin": Evil, Affliction, and Redemptive Love). Having had considerable success in this popular literary form, Stowe must have felt confident with it; but she used the term sketches metaphorically as well in this case, for she went on to say "there is no arguing with pictures" (Donovan 30). Stowe had, in fact, been trained as a visual artist, and it is easy to see her eye for detail, color, movement and composition in her written work. She knew, too, that the reason "there is no arguing with pictures" has to do with the fact that people take in visual stimuli on a much more basic level than they do intellectual arguments; as much as possible, she wanted to hit her audience hard and directly at that level.
