History 12 Reading Guide
The Community of True Inspiration at Amana
- Jonathan G. Andelson, "The Community of True Inspiration from Germany to the Amana Colonies," in Pitzer, America's Communal Utopias, 181-203. (e-reserve)
- Charles Nordhoff, "The Amana Society," American Utopias, 25-59.
Further reading:
- Herbert A. Wisbey, Jr., "Research Note: Rufus Rockwell Wilson's Tour of Five Utopian Communities in 1888," Communal Societies 3 (1983), 140-146.
- Jonathan G. Andelson, "The Gift to be Single: Celibacy and Religious Enthusiasm in the Community of True Inspiration," Communal Societies5 (1985), 1-32.
- Metin M. Cosgel, "Market Integration and Agricultural Efficiency in Communal Amana," Communal Societies 14 (1994), 36-48.
- Henry Schiff, "Before and After 1932: A Memoir," Communal Societies 4 (1984), 161-164 [on reserve with Cosgel].
Questions:
Consider the Community of True Inspiration (A’mana) as the third wave of the Radical German Pietist impulse of the pre-Revolutionary and early national years. Ask the same comparative questions that we addressed about the Rappites and the Separatists:
- the significance of the community's Germanic origins in its utopian vision.
- the economics of communal sharing.
- the hierarchy and authority of the leadership.
- the "boundaries" of the community.
- the evolution of the community (its "success" and/or transformation).
Recall the comparisons and contrasts that we drew between Nordhoff's and Arndt's accounts of the Rappites.
- How do Andelson's and Nordhoff's accounts compare?
- On which aspects of the evolution of this enduring community does Andelson focus? Why?
- What comparisons did Nordhoff set up between Amana, Harmony/Economy, and Zoar? Why
- What similarities in their ideas and practices can we discern about the German Pietist communal societies as a whole?
- What is utopia?