# George Harris — Uncle Tom’s Cabin character guide

> George Harris in Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** George, One George Harris, Harris

**First appearance:** 0002-volume-i-iii-the-husband-and-father

## Snapshot

A self-taught inventor whose sharp mind and sharper pride make slavery unbearable, driving him to risk everything for freedom in Canada.

## Who they are

George Harris is Eliza's husband, a man whose intelligence and mechanical genius make his bondage under a crude master especially galling. Separated from his family and hired out to brutal work, he burns with a sense of his own worth that slavery cannot contain, and his decision to escape sets the novel's flight narrative in motion. His fierce self-respect and hunger for knowledge make him the story's most defiant counter-argument to the idea that enslaved people are content.

## Relationships

### [Uncle Tom](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/uncle_tom)

_friendship_

George Harris and Tom are fellow enslaved men who respect each other, though their paths diverge in resistance versus submission.

### [Eliza Harris](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/eliza_harris)

_family_

Eliza and George are a married couple, fiercely devoted to each other and their son, willing to risk everything for freedom.

### [Aunt Chloe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/aunt_chloe)

_social_

Aunt Chloe and George Harris are acquaintances within the enslaved community, sharing a common plight but not a close bond.

### [Uncle Tom](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/uncle_tom)

_friendship_

George Harris and Tom are fellow enslaved men who respect each other, though their paths diverge in resistance versus submission.

### [Uncle Tom](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/uncle_tom)

_friendship_

George Harris and Tom are fellow enslaved men who respect each other, though their paths diverge in resistance versus submission.

### [Aunt Chloe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/aunt_chloe)

_social_

Aunt Chloe and George Harris are acquaintances within the enslaved community, sharing a common plight but not a close bond.

### [Eliza Harris](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/eliza_harris)

_family_

Eliza and George are a married couple, fiercely devoted to each other and their son, willing to risk everything for freedom.

### [Eliza Harris](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/eliza_harris)

_family_

Eliza and George are a married couple, fiercely devoted to each other and their son, willing to risk everything for freedom.

### [Aunt Chloe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/aunt_chloe)

_social_

Aunt Chloe and George Harris are acquaintances within the enslaved community, sharing a common plight but not a close bond.

## In the story

### [II: The Mother](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-i-ii-the-mother)

A talented mulatto slave who invented a hemp-cleaning machine; his master, Mr. Harris, forcibly removes him from the factory and subjects him to degrading farm labor.

### [III: The Husband and Father](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-i-iii-the-husband-and-father)

Visits Eliza, shares his suffering under his master, and reveals his plan to escape to Canada.

### [XI: In Which Property Gets Into an Improper State of Mind](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-i-xi-in-which-property-gets-into-an-improper-state-of-mind)

Delivers a powerful speech about his family's suffering under slavery, his resolve to escape, and his willingness to fight for freedom.

### [The Quaker Settlement](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-i-xiii-the-quaker-settlement)

Eliza's husband, reported to be in the last company and expected to arrive at the settlement that evening.

### [XVII: The Freeman’s Defense](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-i-xvii-the-freeman-s-defense)

George expresses his longing for freedom and his resolve to live as a Christian and free man, vowing to protect his family.

### [Liberty](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-ii-xxxvii-liberty)

George is deeply contemplative and anxious as they near freedom, expressing fear of losing it all at the last moment. He is supported by Eliza's faith.

### [Results](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/chapters/volume-ii-xliii-results)

Reunited with his sister Emily (Madame de Thoux) and mother Cassy; decides to pursue education in France and later emigrate to Africa.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters/george_harris
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_tom_s_cabin_se/characters