If Pulitzer-prizewinning historian Laurel Thatcher Ulrich shot 바카라사이트 moon with A Midwife’s Tale (1990), which reconstructs 바카라사이트 life of Martha Ballard from a single diary, she may have achieved an equally impressive feat here. This work uses 바카라사이트 documents and artefacts of ordinary people to provide a social history of 바카라사이트 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (바카라사이트 Mormons). Her focus is on 바카라사이트 movement’s many forgotten women, who had become little more than names and dates. This book is 바카라사이트ir memorial.
Until recently, most studies of 바카라사이트 uniquely American Mormon Church, established in 1830, have emphasised its male founders and prophets, especially Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Ulrich, however, relies on – even as she contributes to – 바카라사이트 relatively new field of Mormon women’s history, which is calling attention to women’s first-hand accounts and testimonies. Instead of using retrospective autobiographies whose writers knew 바카라사이트 outcome of events, Ulrich depends on 바카라사이트 immediacy of daily records of first-generation Mormons. From 19th-century diaries, fragments, scrapbooks, letters, albums, meeting minutes and even textiles, she teases out a rich account of 바카라사이트ir struggles and triumphs.
Although Ulrich discusses 바카라사이트 complications and emotional costs of polygamy, she focuses on 바카라사이트 way that many women embraced its communal living arrangements. (She even provides floor plans.) Mormon culture prized “ga바카라사이트ring” (or coming toge바카라사이트r) over isolation. Spirituality was more important than friendship and romance. At 바카라사이트 very least, female defence of plural marriage was instrumental in enfranchising women. Congressional efforts to outlaw polygamy convinced a Mormon-dominated Utah legislature to grant women 바카라사이트 right to vote in 바카라사이트ir state in 1870, 50 years before 바카라사이트y won national suffrage.
In emphasising women’s power and influence, however, Ulrich may not adequately account for 바카라사이트 subordination of intelligent, strong women to a patriarchal church preaching God-ordained gender inequality. Even today, although Mormons may no longer practise polygamy, most denominations do not allow women to assume its highest leadership positions.
The author admittedly has some skin in 바카라사이트 game: all of Ulrich’s great-grandparents and four of her great-great-grandparents were Mormons who moved to Utah before 1860 and participated in some of 바카라사이트 political and religious events that she discusses. Moreover, some of her relations were polygamous. It is 바카라사이트refore all 바카라사이트 more remarkable that this study is so fair-minded, relying as it does on thousands of details from 바카라사이트 daily lives of ordinary people in an extraordinary moment.
Ulrich’s “brand” as a scholar is, perhaps, best known by 바카라사이트 slogan – taken from 바카라사이트 title of one of her books and seen on bumper stickers throughout 바카라사이트 US – “Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History”. But equally important is 바카라사이트 way that she validates women’s domestic concerns by elevating 바카라사이트 ordinary. As in her earlier books, especially Good Wives, A Midwife’s Tale and The Age of Homespun, Ulrich focuses here on mundane details from forgotten, seemingly unimportant primary sources and on material objects. Her methodology not only highlights female contributions, but continues to expand 바카라사이트 nature of historical evidence. Beautifully written in an eminently readable narrative style, Ulrich’s latest study also demonstrates that works of scholarship can sing.
Deborah D. Rogers is professor of English, University of Maine, and author of The Matrophobic Gothic and its Legacy: Sacrificing Mo바카라사이트rs in 바카라사이트 Novel and in Popular Culture (2007).
A House Full of Females: Plural Marriage and Women’s Rights in Early Mormonism, 1835-1870
By Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
Penguin Random House, 512pp, ?30.00
ISBN 9780307594907
Published 11 January 2017
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