Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Chapter 35 summary

What happens

1. Cassy confronts Legree over his treatment of Tom, but Legree insists that he must force Tom to submit.
2. Sambo brings a packet containing a silver dollar and fair hair; Legree burns the hair and throws the coin outside.
3. The narrator explains that Legree rejects his loving mother, whose death brings him a similar lock of hair and lasting terror.
4. A hymn about judgment deepens Legree’s fear, and he declares that he intends to leave Tom alone.
5. Legree summons Sambo and Quimbo for drunken entertainment, which Cassy witnesses after tending Tom.
6. Cassy wonders whether killing Legree would be sinful, then goes upstairs and knocks at Emmeline’s door.

In this chapter

What to notice

Legree treats his fear as supernatural interference rather than facing its source in his own cruelty. His terror interrupts his threats against Tom.

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