recently, however, his name has also been used negatively. people often think of "uncle tom" as an old black man trying to make his masters happy, as people have criticized his quiet acceptance of slavery. however, others argue that this is not true. first of all, uncle tom is not really old - he is only eight years older than mr. shelby, which shows that he is probably around fifty. also, tom is not happy with slavery. his acceptance is not because of stupidity or because he likes slavery. it is because of his religious faith, which tells him to love everyone. wherever uncle tom goes, he loves and spreads comfort and kindness. he helps slaves escape, such as eliza, emmeline and cassy. he also refuses to beat other slaves. because of this, he is beaten himself. stowe was not trying to make tom an example for "blacks" but for white "and" black people. she says that if white people were to be loving and unselfish like uncle tom, slavery would be impossible.