填空题
Little Lady Starts Big War
Harriet Beecher Stowe had poured her heart into her anti-slavery (反对奴隶制度)
book Uncle Tom's Cabin. {{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}The
publisher was so doubtful that he wanted her to split the publishing costs with
him, and all she hoped was that it would make enough money for her to buy a new
silk dress.
But when the first 5,000 copies were printed in
1852, they sold out in two days. In a year the book had sold 300,000 copies in
the United States and 150,000 in England. {{U}} {{U}} 2 {{/U}}
{{/U}}Within six months of its release, a play was made from the book which ran
350 performances in New York and remained America's most popular play for 80
years. It might appear that Uncle Tom's Cabins was universally popular,
but this was certainly not true. Many people during those pre-Civil War
days—particularly the defenders of the slavery system—condemned it as false
propaganda (宣传) and poorly written melodrama (传奇剧作品).
Harriet
did have strong religious views against slavery (When asked how she came to
write the book, she replied: "God wrote it."), and she tried to convince people
slavery was wrong, so perhaps the book could be considered propaganda. {{U}}
{{U}} 3 {{/U}} {{/U}}
Though she was born in
Connecticut in 1832, as a young woman, she moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, when her
father accepted the presidency (任期) of newly founded Lane Theological Seminary
(神学院). Ohio was a free state, but just across the Ohio River in Kentucky,
Harriet saw slavery in action. She lived 18 years in Cincinnati, marrying Calvin
Stowe, professor of a college. {{U}} {{U}} 4 {{/U}}
{{/U}}
{{U}} {{U}} 5 {{/U}} {{/U}}Today some
historians (历史学家) think that it helped bring on the American Civil
War.
In fact, when Abraham Lincoln met Harriet at the White
House during the Civil War, he said, "So, this is the little lady who started
this big war."
A．She had read a lot about the slavery
system.
B．Its vast influence strengthened the anti-slavery
movement and angered defenders of the slave system.
C．But if
so, it was true propaganda, because it accurately described the evils of
slavery.
D．For a while, it outsold every book in the world,
except the Bible.
E．But neither she nor her first
publisher thought it would be a big success.
F．In 1851, Harriet
Beecher Stowe began her book.