ABSTRACT
Harriet Beecher Stowe developed a theory of national literature that hinged on iconic translation, a form of translation by which a text maintained its linguistic and national identity even as it passed into other languages. Stowe's theory was fraught with anxieties over the instability of texts and the effect that immigrants — among whom Stowe numbered slaves — would have on American literary identity. The connection Stowe establishes between the circulation of goods, people, and languages indicates her nascent understanding of polyglot consumer markets and the importance that language plays for the production and distribution of books as commodities. Stowe acknowledges that the national scene is deeply transatlantic, but she struggles to find the appropriate vocabulary for conceptualizing these relations and describes the American scene in conflicted terms. Stowe argues that the distinction between a "Hungarian youth" and a "youth of African descent" lies in the social perception of their actions.
