With a revolution behind them, a continent before them, and the First Amendment protecting them, religio-sexual pioneers in antebellum America were free to strike out on their own, breaking with the orthodoxies of the past. Shakers followed the ascetic path; Oneida Perfectionists accepted sex as a gift from God; and Mormons redefined marriage in light of new religious revelations that also redefined God, humankind, spirit, and matter. Sex became a powerful way for each group to reinforce their sectarian identity as strangers in a strange land. Sex and Sects tells the story of these three religiously inspired sexual innovations in America: the celibate lifestyle of the Shakers, the Oneida Community's system of controlled polyamory, and plural marriage as practiced by the Mormons. Stewart Davenport analyzes why these bold experiments rose and largely fell over the course of the nineteenth century within the confines of the new American republic. Moving beyond a social-scientific lens, Davenport traces for the first time their fascinating shared trajectory as they emerged, struggled, institutionalized, and declined in tandem-and sheds historical light on the way in which Americans have discussed, contested, and redefined the institutions of marriage and family both in our private lives and in the public realm.
Stewart Davenport is Associate Professor of History at Pepperdine University and author of Friends of the Unrighteous Mammon: Northern Christians and Market Capitalism, 1815-1860.
For teaching undergraduates this book would serve as a highly readable introduction to any of these groups and a useful meditation on sex and sectarianism.-- "Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought" What is most unique about Davenport's work is primarily an effect of the structure of the book and Davenport's commitment to story alongside his sense of the ineffability of religion. He deliberately lays all three movements alongside the others throughout, enabling new connections and an assemblage of narratives enfolded within each other like Russian matryoshka dolls, facilitating new connections about how all three sects were born, changed over time, and ultimately 'succumbed to both external hostility and internal waning commitment' (9). . . Written in a more conversational style than most academic books, it is a delightful read that sometimes feels a bit like romantic fiction. Readers interested in religious and sexual history, as well as more layered questions of belief and identity, will find this book a useful contribution to thinking about those themes.-- "Mormon Studies Review" By examining the key practices of each religious group side by side, this engaging study offers valuable new insights. --Christian Goodwillie, Hamilton College, coauthor of Richard McNemar, Music, and the Western Shaker Communities Stewart Davenport's Sex and Sects is a remarkable account of three extraordinary religious communities: the Shakers, the Oneida Perfectionists, and the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons). His braided narrative deftly shows how stories about God and Creation shaped how believers understood themselves and acted as sexual beings. Shaker celibacy, Oneidan complex marriage, and Mormon polygamy are explained within the comprehensive sacred stories each group told about itself. Juxtaposing each sect's genesis, institutional stabilization, transformation through crisis, and ultimate decline or compromise, Sex and Sects is a powerful depiction of religion in nineteenth-century America. --Christopher Grasso, Brown University, author of Skepticism and American Faith: From the Revolution to the Civil War Stewart Davenport's new book is history of the highest order, yet at the same time illuminates contemporary debates about sex and family structure. It's hard to read this book without changing one's mind about something. Also, it's funny: it's the first book ever to have me laughing on the dedication page. Read it! --Mark Oppenheimer, Yale University, author of Squirrel Hill: The Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting and the Soul of a Neighborhood
