A Day With the Shakers (1843)

AUTHOR: Lane, Charles

PUBLICATION: The Dial. Vol. IV, no. 2 (October 1843): 165-174.
https://archive.org/details/dial03riplgoog/page/164/mode/2up

While the text does not explicitly advocate for ethical veganism, it does explore an attempt at alternative communal living. Implicitly and in passing, Lane broaches questions of animal welfare, diet, and women's status in society.

KEYWORDS: food, animal welfare, women’s rights, religion and spirituality, property and economy

RELATED TITLES:

Alcott, A. Bronson. The Doctrine and Discipline of Human Culture
Anon. A Brief Account of the First Concordium, or Harmonious Industrial College

SUMMARY (Ridvan Askin, edited Deborah Madsen):

This short piece published in The Dial gives an account of life in a small Shaker village not far from Fruitlands. Lane's first impression of  is dominated by “a large stone barn, having very much the appearance of a prison, which for the animals contained therein probably it is” (165). Lane is particularly impressed by the village's “orchards and gardens,” which he thinks are “the most striking achievements” (166). He also notes the readiness with which the Shakers are happy to engage in conversations about their “distinguishing practice of self-sacrifice,” namely “abstinence from marriage” (166, 165). As to other customs and habits, Lane explicitly mentions that “most of the members, except the children, consume flesh-meat; much milk is used; and the aged amongst them still drink tea, or coffee, and the like” (167). While disagreeing with the way they do business, which he believes requires “more extensive interchanges of money, and more frequent intercourse with the world, than seems compatible with a serene life,” Lane is impressed with the “repose, quiet, and cleanliness” of the place (167). After describing the settlement buildings, he provides both a brief history of the Shakers and a somewhat longer account of their “theological system” (169), which leads him to conclude:

To literary minds the Shaker principles may present little of an attractive nature; as to the artist their external appearances may indicate but a moderate love for the beautiful. Yet the truth must be affirmed that in the absence of much literature, of the fine arts, and of those studies which are thought to be essential in human progress, they seem to be far on the road, if they have not already attained the solution of a chaste, scientific, and self-sustained life (171-172).

Overall, Lane thinks “[t]heir simplicity has not descended to rigid forms, nor to ungracious deportment” (172). In this respect, they compare favorably to the Quakers. For Lane, the Shakers are a good example of a “successful experiment of associate life, and community of property” which, notably, was founded by “a woman” (172). It is in these points that Lane is most interested. In his view, the way the Shakers' communal life combines “simplest domestic labors” with “the most exalted spiritual sentiments” is particularly commendable (172). Thus, for Lane, “in a record of associative attempts for the actualization of a better life,” the Shakers' “designs and economies should not be omitted” (173).

 

Last updated on February 9th, 2024

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