One of the most known traditions of Mormons that is known to many is the practice of polygamy, a practice that has forever tainted Mormonism since its arrival. Joseph Smith experienced numerous conflicted feelings on the subject that is made apparent in both Richard Bushman's Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling and Linda King Newell's and Valeen Avery's Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith. Though the two works focus on Joseph Smith's history and motivational purposes behind polygamy, the two pieces take on contradicting analyses of the tradition and its origins.
In Bushman's Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, the perspective of the work takes on a more personalized tone directed towards Smith and his personal experiences and emotions as he came upon his revelations of polygamy. This piece focuses primarily on the devotion that Smith possessed in order to continue on with his new found, mandatory act of plural marriages. Smith's conflicted emotions on the subject are made apparent as he continuously disputes his actions with his wife and hides the numerous marriages he obtains. Throughout Bushman's piece, Smith's reasoning for committing polygamy is intensified and mentions numerous times in order to convince readers that his actions were purely religiously driven and lack any form of lust or even a love connection between himself and his wives aside from Emma. Also, Emma;s true character in this piece is made out to be an unreasonable jealous person while portraying Smith as an innocent, devout messenger from God.
In Linda King Newell's and Valeen Avery's Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, the approach used is a more modern, feminist driven analysis on the subject of polygamy and Smith's history concerning it. Smith is made out to be a lustful man who disregarded the conflict that his practice of polygamy created in society simply because he wanted numerous wives as opposed to the contrasting, strictly religious motives offered in Bushman's piece. Emma's disapproval of the practiced was justified and made very apparent in this piece as well, making Joseph seem like a selfish, uncaring husband.
Discussion Questions:
1.) Smith acknowledges the controversy that his new practice conjures up in both pieces, yet he continues marrying numerous women for varying reasons. The causes of the mysterious destruction of his revelations permitting this act are unknown but one this for certain: "If Emma destroyed the document, she did so with Joseph's permission" (Avery). Why do you believe the act of polygamy, which was encouraged as a part of salvation, was completely dismissed upon the destruction of the written document as opposed to being revived? Especially if Smith claimed that he would be punished by an angel if he did not practice polygamy?
2.) In both pieces, it is made apparent that Emma was very independent on her thoughts about Smith's practices as she focused on one in particular; polygamy. Why do you believe Smith took all of the trouble that she put him through when he had numerous wives that he could easily have left her for? Why did he devote all of his time and attention to Emma and her kids while basically ignoring his other wives?
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I believe that Joseph’s reservations about plural marriage made him hold his first marriage above the many others. In Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, Bushman states that “Joseph ordinarily followed the commandments punctiliously, as if disobedience put him at risk” (Bushman, 437). He stalled in acting on the doctrine of plural marriage, waiting years to take another wife. I think that Joseph truly loved Emma and only sought multiple wives because he “saw himself in the tradition of Abraham and Solomon, Old Testament patriarchs commanded by God to marry plurally” (Bushman, 490). Despite all of the trouble that he had to go through, I believe that Emma held a special place in his heart as his first wife, and that he took on additional wives not as a means to satisfy his lust, but as a burden that he had to carry out in God’s name.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Smith’s devotion to his first wife Emma and his emotion detachment from his other wives is most concisely explained by Bushman: “[Smith] did not lust for women so much as he lusted for kin” (Bushman, 440). Emma is the only wife that Smith took based purely on a romantic intrapersonal connection, with the intention of establishing a nuclear family unit. Polygamy, on the other hand, was the product of a divine directive to “seal” relationships that would endure through eternity. Smith’s additional wives were a byproduct of his ambition to aggregate a large number of Mormons and their descendants into a spiritually interconnected “family tree”. Therefore, it is understandable that he would devote the vast majority of his time and energy to the wife that he loved while largely ignoring the wives he viewed as sterile products of his prophecy.
ReplyDeleteAlso, it would apparently seem that I totally agree with Mike.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I agree with Michael’s and Jacob's arguments that Joseph Smith truly loved Emma, I think that Smith had a greater reason for honoring her position: she was something irreplaceable. Smith was a public figure. He had to maintain a certain image of himself at all times. Emma helped him be it through her advice or her dinner parties. Her resistance to plural marriage harmed their own relationship, but it never really harmed Smith’s image. Their quarreling was limited to the household; only Smith’s wives who lived within Emma’s house were affected. Then when word did get out about the leader couple’s domestic strife, most of Smith’s followers solely blamed Emma.
ReplyDeleteIt can also be said that Emma was very dutiful and pragmatic. Despite their arguments, she always displayed a composed front and completed all of her wifely duties before others. She agreed to the doctrine of plural marriage because it was her dissent that “prevented other women from entering as well” (Avery, 140). As the leader’s wife she had to submit so that the Church could expand. Smith must have recognized these sacrifices, and thus loved her and honored their marriage above his others.
I agree with all the comments above. I think that Smith stayed with Emma because of love. Although, in Mormon Enigma: Emma Hale Smith, he is depicted as a lustful man, evidence in “Rough Stone Rolling” shows otherwise. As Mike brought up, Smith waited many years before he married other women. As well, in “Rough Stone Rolling,” the author states that “there was no romantic talk of adoring love” and “Joseph himself said nothing about sex in these marriages (440)” The fact that Joseph said nothing about sex in the marriages uphold that his intentions may not necessarily scandalous. He wouldn’t even do the other proposals himself. His actions speak very loudly. In my opinion, if Smith had lustful intentions, he would’ve abused his visions and revelations. He would’ve justified multiple partners and had gone on to have sexual relations with the various women. The fact of the matter is that he didn’t and he was actually hesitant to because he was in love with Emma. Furthermore, if Smith wasn’t in love with Emma, he would not have remained somewhat “faithful”.
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