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George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:07 pm
by _Ray A
I don't know if anyone has done a thread on this recently, but I just got a clue from why me on MAD about George D. Smith's new book,
Nauvoo Polygamy.
I notice that he claims that Joseph Smith had 38 wives.
Excerpt from the jacket flap:
This same pattern is also apparent in the example of Bishop Edwin Woolley, who in 1843, as a missionary in Connecticut, met Louisa Rising and convinced her to marry him. She did so without first divorcing her legal husband. Other men courted potential plural wives on their missions: William Clayton, Heber Kimball, and Parley Pratt, all of whose stories are related in this volume as part of the curious saga of the initiation of plural marriage.
According to Klaus J. Hansen:
"This is a thorough investigation of sexual politics in the City of the Saints, the 1840s Mormon headquarters in the U.S. State of Illinois, written with precision, clarity, and ease. It is a major contribution to Mormon history, groundbreaking in detailing the other polygamists who followed the lead of their prophet, Joseph Smith, in taking multiple partners." —Klaus J. Hansen, Professor Emeritus of History, Queen's University, Ontario; author of Mormonism and the American Experience
And a report in the
Chicago Tribune (13 Feb, 2009)
George D. Smith's accounting of marriages adds five to the 33 that most scholars agree can be documented for Joseph Smith. The actual number may never be known.
Some church Sunday school manuals have also eliminated or glossed over references to the plural wives of 19th century church presidents, including Brigham Young, who by George D. Smith's accounting had 56 wives.
That denial of history in part drove George D. Smith's curiosity and the book.
"I guess I was intrigued by the obvious forgetting," said the author, whose research is largely based on documents and diaries held in the Mormon church archives.
"Here is something that was so elemental to the organization of the Mormons and yet there is this obvious lack of understanding. So the question is, why is the institution trying to forget?" he asked. "They are really trying to rinse the color out of LDS history."
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:16 pm
by _Daniel Peterson
The next FARMS Review, at press, features two reviews of this book.
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:18 pm
by _cinepro
I just finished it. It's good, but it draws very heavily on "In Sacred Loneliness". The chapters on Joseph Smith consist almost entirely of material referenced from Compton's book. There's a lot of statistics and graphs about who was practicing polygamy and when, and a lot of information about the other men in Nauvoo who practiced polygamy. He also discusses the origin of the Church and its attitudes towards polygamy, and there's even a chapter about European polygamous communities centuries before Joseph Smith came along.
There are some good anecdotes and quotes, but it's a long book to read just for that reason.
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:21 pm
by _Ray A
Daniel Peterson wrote:The next FARMS Review, at press, features two reviews of this book.
I know, I saw your comment on MAD.
Here's a real zinger from Ipso Facto on the same thread:
Do you foresee a possibility of printing any subsequent reviews of the book, beyond those to be printed in the next issue of the Review? Having just started the book, and feeling a strong urge to contribute to the dog-pile, I'm just hoping that there's no statute of limitations when it comes to serving up critiques to any offering by the erstwhile Brother Smith and his cohorts at Korihor's Apothecary.
(Original emphasis.)
Is he related to Professor Robinson?
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:27 pm
by _truth dancer
Just ordered the book last week... expect it any day!
~td~
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:28 pm
by _Nevo
Daniel Peterson wrote:The next FARMS Review, at press, features two reviews of this book.
Can you tell us who the authors are?
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:31 pm
by _Ray A
Todd Compton also has an article (1996) about Fanny Alger in
The Journal of Mormon History, Volume 22, Issue 1, Spring 1996. (J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah)
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:33 pm
by _Ray A
truth dancer wrote:Just ordered the book last week... expect it any day!
~td~
You'll probably require an ice-pack on your head to cool down while reading it, TD.
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:33 pm
by _Daniel Peterson
Nevo wrote:Can you tell us who the authors are?
Gregory Smith wrote the long one. Richard White wrote the short one.
Re: George D. Smith, Nauvoo Polygamy (new book)
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 9:46 pm
by _truth dancer
Ray A wrote:truth dancer wrote:Just ordered the book last week... expect it any day!
~td~
You'll probably require an ice-pack on your head to cool down while reading it, TD.
Hi Ray,
Thanks for the heads up. I'll have to double my yoga and meditation practice next week; light a few extra candles and engage in some serious pranayama!
Actually I tend to get really,
really sad when reading about the treatment of girls and women by early LDS leaders. I could only read one chapter of
In Sacred Loneliness at a time due to the tears. It was a heart wrenching experience for me.
In my extended family we have records from valiant, dedicated LDS women who describe the horror that was/is polygamy. Hard to read for sure!
So, I'll go slowly! ;-)
~td~