ANABAPTIST TO ZWIEBACK: TEXTUAL ACCESS AND EXCLUSION IN RUSSIAN MENNONITE COMMUNITY COOKBOOKS OF SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS by Amy Harris-Aber A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of English Middle Tennessee State University August 2020 Dissertation Committee: Dr. Rhonda McDaniel, Chair Dr. Julie A. Myatt Dr. Kate Pantelides Dr. Jordynn Jack ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am thankful for my Mom, who kept reminding me that finishing this degree and this dissertation is an accomplishment that no one can ever take away. I am thankful for my Dad who is a gentle, supportive, strong force of good in this world. I am thankful for the evenings before bed when he’d tell stories about The Wizard of Oz. It included, among other things, being scooped up and whirled around in a “tornado.” I realize now that Dad told me stories so that someday, I’d tell my own. I am thankful for my chosen sisters who believed in me when I couldn’t believe in myself. Stephanie Owen-Aiken, Maggie Borders, Jessy Changstrom, and Rachel Donegan – four names that mean home to me. I am thankful to my advisor Dr. Julie Myatt, who gave me her time and guidance and care throughout this process. I am thankful to my committee members, Jordynn and Kate. I am thankful to Rhonda McDaniel whose warmth and intellect are unmatched. I am thankful for Jeremy. You cannot find people like Jeremy. They simply find you and bless you forever. He’s the reason my heart beats. I’m the reason for at least half of his gray hair. Last but not least, I hold this line – this space – in gratitude of my grandmother, Lila. In all the ways that matter, this project is for her. ii ABSTRACT Russian Mennonite immigrants who settled south central Kansas in the late 19th century and their descendants naturally developed a discourse community that differentiates them from the dominant culture in which they reside. Changing regional dynamics regarding diversity along with continued acculturation impacts this ethnoreligious community in a kind of dual displacement; the descendants of these Russian Mennonites not only live in the shadow of their ancestors’ collected memories and traumas related to migration, but have and are currently witnessing further shifts away from the once agricultural lifestyle they previously observed. Therefore, heritage preservation is increasingly vital for stakeholders engaged with the history of Anabaptist life in Kansas. My dissertation attempts to elucidate aspects of the Russian Mennonite discourse community of south central Kansas by engaging with regional foodways as they appear in community cookbooks. I combine interview and text analysis data with John Swales’ concepts of discourse communities to further define how cultural insiders worked in previous decades to create community through the production of food focused texts. By analyzing the Zwieback recipes from eight community cookbooks produced within the same cultural group, I examine which texts exclude certain audiences, and which are meant to provide an access point for cultural “outsiders.” I maintain that due to acculturation and shifting population demographics in the region, long term regional and familial proximity to the Russian Mennonite community of south central Kansas determines understanding of high-context cultural practices. Establishing digital archives for Kansas Mennonite community cooking texts is also the most accessible form of preservation for all stakeholders. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ANABAPTIST TO ZWIEBACK: TEXTUAL ACCESS AND EXCLUSION IN RUSSIAN MENNONITE COMMUNITY COOKBOOKS OF SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS ............................................................................................................................. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................. ii ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................... iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................ iv LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................... viii CHAPTER I – ANABAPTISTS TO ZWIEBACK AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN: AN EXPLORATION OF DISCOURSE, COOKBOOKS, AND COMMUNITY IN KANSAS ............................................................................................1 Literature Review: Discourse, Literacies, and Place ............................................................ 8 Wider Con(texts): Many Literacies, Many Voices ............................................................. 10 Problematizing Primary Materials: Aligning Research and Archival Artifacts.............. 12 No Unsacred Places: Food and Food Texts as Home ......................................................... 15 Overview of Chapters ............................................................................................................. 20 CHAPTER II – CROSSING WATER AND CONTINENTS: THE RUSSIAN MENNONITES IN KANSAS .........................................................................................24 Memory: Ritual (8 y.o.) .......................................................................................................... 24 Dass wir ziehn nach Amerika ................................................................................................ 25 The Mennonite Game and Misperception ............................................................................ 30 Wandering and Wheat: Journey of the Mennonites............................................................ 36 CHAPTER III – WOMAN’S WORTH, WOMEN’S WORK: FOOD, COOKBOOKS, AND GENDER ....................................................................................44 Five Loaves, Two Fishes: Food and Public Consumption ................................................ 49 Communities, Cooks, and Bakers: The History of Food and Women’s Work ............... 53 Honoring Tradition, and the Trials of Trailblazing ............................................................ 57 Identity Recognition and Cookbook Collaborations .......................................................... 61 Interlude: Buak Fru ................................................................................................................ 66 iv CHAPTER IV – CLAIMING A PIECE OF TRADITION: COMMUNITY DISCOURSE IN RUSSIAN MENNONITE COMMUNITY COOKBOOKS AND RECIPES ..........................................................................................................................69 Nourishing Traditions: Food Index for Faspa ..................................................................... 69 Zwieback ................................................................................................................... 70 Borscht ....................................................................................................................... 71 Peppernuts (Pfefernuesse) ......................................................................................... 72 Fruit Moos ................................................................................................................. 73 Verenika (Verinike) ................................................................................................... 74 Communities, Clauses, and Recipes ..................................................................................... 74 Recipe Content and Evaluation Clauses ............................................................................... 75 Cookbook Analysis: Construction, Content, and Contributors ......................................... 83 Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread (1964) ............................................................... 87 Goessel Centennial Cook Book [sic]: Including Traditional Low German Recipes Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Coming of Mennonites 1874-1974 ... 93 Kitchen Medley: A Collection of Recipes from the Congregation (1981) ................. 97 Book for Cooks: Favorite Recipes From [sic] Ladies Attending Koerner Heights Church of the Mennonite Brethren (1982) .............................................................. 101 T.G.Y.F. Cookbook: Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread (1982) ............................ 106 Sharing Together: Hesston Mennonite Church Cookbook (1984) .......................... 110 From Pluma Moos to Pie, 3rd ed. (2007) ................................................................. 113 Reminisce Cookbook: 110 Recipes Celebrating 110 Years. (2008) ........................ 117 Recipe Engagement .............................................................................................................. 120 Narrative Structures of Zwieback Recipes: ............................................................. 123 Implications of Recipe Analysis ......................................................................................... 140 CHAPTER V – THE MORE (WITH LESS) THINGS CHANGE: ALTERATIONS, ENCULTURATION, AND PRESERVATION OF RUSSIAN MENNONITE FOOD TRADITIONS IN KANSAS..........................................................................................145 Mindfulness and Mennonites: Conducting Research and Applying an Ethics of Care145 The Interviews ......................................................................................................................