Becoming Mormon Men: Male Rites of Passage and the Rise of Mormonism in Nineteenth-Century America
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Theses and Dissertations 2000 Becoming Mormon Men: Male Rites of Passage and the Rise of Mormonism in Nineteenth-Century America Bruce R. Lott Brigham Young University - Provo Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd Part of the History Commons, Mormon Studies Commons, Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons, and the Sociology Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Lott, Bruce R., "Becoming Mormon Men: Male Rites of Passage and the Rise of Mormonism in Nineteenth- Century America" (2000). Theses and Dissertations. 4886. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/4886 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. BECOMING MORMON MEN MALE RITES OF PASSAGE AND THE RISE OF MORMONISM IN nineteenth CENTURY AMERICA by brucebrucerR lott A thesis submitted to the faculty of brigham young university in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts department of history brigham young university december 2000 BRIGHAM YOUNG university GRADUATE COMMITTEE APPROVAL of a thesis submitted by bruce R lott this thesis has been read by each member of the following graduate committee and by majority vote has been found to be satisfactory plosa hagimhvgim 11290011 29 00 plos4 borim tudletudlw date mary ststpallsepallballnailwaii richards chair vavevapeI1 W y date aisanlusandisansusanausaniusan sessions rugh A yak 7 b 2.020 x k jihpih 1 y5k ON I ie 20 i date david J vauttakermautVAuttaker BRIGHAM YOUNG university As chair of the candidates graduate committee I1 have read the thesis ofofbrucebruce R lott in its final form and have found that 1 its format citations and bibliographical style are consistent and acceptable and fulfill university and department style requirements 2 its illustrative materials including figures tables and charts are in place and 3 the final manuscript is satisfactory to the graduate committee and is ready for submission to the university library ljoealjoe k aqaczczq 2000 benbonHOW AA &jlvao date mary SsjlovallSjlovallvallvali richards chair graduateaduateacuate committee accepted for the department thomas G alexander graduate coordinator accepted for the college sally harlowH warlow associate dean college of family home and social science ABSTRACT BECOMING MORMON MEN MALE RITES OF PASSAGE AND THE RISE OF MORMONISM IN nineteenth CENTURY AMERICA brucebrucerR lott department of history master of arts the evidence presented in this thesis supports a view of the first mormon men as coming from the agrarian majority of early nineteenth century american farmers and artisans who embraced a set of manly ideals that differed significantly in many ways from those embraced by their middle class contemporaries these mens life writings attest to boyhood experiences of working alongside their fathers as soon as they were physically able and subsequently of acting as substitute farmers and breadwinners as well as being put out to work outside the direct supervision of their fathers such experiences enabled them to frequently follow in the occupational footsteps of their fathers and almost always to marry at ages significantly lower that those of their more upwardly mobile urban counterparts thus they were able to follow a path to manly independence that was difficult yet direct and relatively rapid early mormonism attracted an unparalleled percentage of men who in turn embraced and supported the development of a the more self confident and self assertive theology of man in early mormon doctrine compared to the other denominations of the day a disproportionate number of early mormon converts were or were led to mormonism by men although these men had received prior religious instruction in their earliest years typically from their mothers the content of that instruction was not of the feminized variety stressed by many historians and a significant portion of these men had been unable to achieve evangelical conversion experiences since many of them had previously turned to more liberal religious beliefs regarding the nature of man and his relationship to god these men undoubtedly supported mormonismsMormonisms development of similar doctrines their rejection of revivalist rites of passage which stressed submission and self abnegation is also consistent with their enthusiastic participation in more traditional physically assertive unrestrained and combative passages to manhood and rites of male bonding such beliefs and behaviors were in marked contrast to the manly self restraint increasingly enjoined by the northeastern middle class which has provided the model for most previous studies of nineteenth century american manhood acknowledgments in working on this thesis I1 have become indebted to several members of the academic community I1 particularly want to thank the members of my committee david J whittaker susan sessions rugh and especially my committee chair mary stovall richards whose generous contributions of time advice and encouragement have helped to make what follows a much better work I1 am also indebted to several members of my family I1 am grateful to my wife and children for their patience during this project I1 also want to thank my mother for her example and teachings which included the determination and perseverance particularly necessary during a project such as this and more recently for frequently providing a quiet and comfortable haven in which to work Finafinallyfly I1 wish to thank my father whose example especially has taught me just about every good and true thing I1 know about being a man CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES viiiviii CHAPTERS 1 introduction 1 2 ECONOMIC PASSAGES TO MANLY independence 20 3 RELIGIOUS PASSAGES TO EARLY MORMON MANHOOD 68 4 BOYISH STRIFE andmartialAND MARTIAL SPIRIT IN EARLY MORMON MALE CULTURE 115 conclusion 155 bibliography 158 viivilvilVII TABLES table page I11 average age at first marrimarriageage for nineteenth century native born american males by place of marriage 29 2 average age at first marriage for once married nineteenth century mormon males 31 3 average age at first marriage for males married 183218451832 1845 after mormon baptism by region of birth 34 4 average age at first marriage for males married 182018401820 1840 before mormon baptism by region of birth 36 5 american born pre mormon male intergenerational occupational persistence 39 viiivilivin CHAPTER I11 introduction it is the contention of this study that historians of early mormonism have yet to completely investigate the significance of the gender constructs and socioeconomicsocio econoneconomeconomic& conditions of its first adherents the evidence presented in the chapters which follow support the view that the economic passages to manhood of the first mormon men were difficult yet direct and relatively rapid that men joined the mormon church in proportions unparalleled in other denominations of the time that the large proportion of male members corresponded to a more self confident and self assertive theology of man in early mormonism and that the above phenomena also reflected and reinforced martial elements in early mormon male culture including emphasis on the defense of manly honor even by physical combat the present chapter reviews the historiography on the rise of mormonism in early nineteenth century america as it bears on the above topics the church of jesus christ of latter day saints hereafter LDS or mormon church was officially organized by joseph smith jr and five other young menmeni at fayette new york on april ath6th 1830 the mormon church thus had its official the oldest was josephs brother hyrum smith then aged 3311 the church was originally called simply the church of christ and its members soon became known as Morcormonsmormonsmons beginning withinaritkeltkeitnrit hin an area and an era which historians have affirmed was experiencing rapid fundamental and often disconcerting social change A number of studies have suggested that concerns about family and gender roles which such change seemed to threaten or call into question led many early converts into mormonism 2 yet as recently as 1994 a review of the historiography of mormonism decried its inadequate treatment of gender issues while acknowledging the significant strides made in the area of mormon womens history 3 roger launius stressed the need to address the parallel question of how male ideals and experiences were translated into mormonism as an essential prerequisite 2for example see marvin S hill the rise of mormonism in the burned over district another view new york history 61 oct 1980 411430411 430 lawrence foster religion and sexuality three american community experiments of the nineteenth century new york oxford university press 1981 128146128 146 melodie moench charles the need for a new mormon heaven dialogue 21 fall 1988 738773 87 rex E cooper promises made to the fathers mormon covenantCovenatU organizorganicorganizationzationbation salt lake city university of utah press 1990 charles sellers the market revolution jacksonianJacksoman ameikaamerkaamerica 181518461815 1846 new york oxford university press 1991 217225217- 225 dorice williams elliott women the mormon family and class mobility nineteenth century victorian ideology in a twentieth century church sunstone 15 dec 1991 192619 26