Subsistence Modes and Their Impact on the Amish Culture - Research Paper Example

? Subsistence Modes and Their Impact on the Amish Culture During the study of culture, one of the more important elements to take into consideration is the method by which the people subsisted. Subsistence generally refers to the means by which an individual or group of people supports themselves at a minimum level. There are a number of ways survival can be accomplished, including foraging, horticulture, pastoral, agricultural, agrarian, or industrial. While several of these distinctions may seem very similar, each has its own strengths and weaknesses. For example, foraging refers to seeking out and exploiting naturally occurring food resources. It does not require settlement, but it is also not reliable and makes it difficult to prepare for difficult times. Horticulture refers to the science of cultivating plants for human use which requires a great deal of knowledge regarding which plants are the most useful for which activities and how to make them grow. Pastoral lifestyles are characterized by herding large numbers of livestock around open land areas according to the seasons and availability of water. This type of lifestyle requires the availability of open land and the ability to move around. An agricultural form of subsistence can be thought of as farming, raising both animals and crops to support human life. This is different from an agrarian lifestyle only in that the agrarian lifestyle focuses on an entire community working together, all of them relying on agriculture as the base means of support but not all being engaged in farming as their personal means of support. An industrial society is recognizable to most of us simply because it is closest to the type of society we live in today in the modern world dominated by businesses, technology, mass production, and masses of people everywhere. However, there are still some societies that have managed to hold onto older forms of subsistence even in the face of widespread industrialization. By studying societies such as the Amish, it is possible to understand how a cultural group's form of subsistence helps to shape other elements of their culture such as their attitudes to religion, family life, and marriage. The Amish are a relatively isolated group of horticulturalists living in scattered pockets throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. According to Powell (2012), "The first sizeable group of Amish arrived in America around 1730 and settled near Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, as a result of William Penn's 'holy experiment' in religious tolerance" (p. 1). This group of people disagreed with the Anabaptists in Switzerland regarding some foundational religious concepts associated with their selected lifestyle, causing them to move to the Americas and begin their own religious sect. As a group, the Amish are dedicated to the horticultural way of life, which works to grow fruits, vegetables, and other plant materials necessary for survival within a self-contained, self-sustaining community of close-knit individuals. They believe in living as close to the land as they can, doing things naturally and depending on nature to meet their various needs. "Two key concepts for understanding Amish practices are their rejection of 'huchmut' (pride, arrogance) and the high value they place on 'demut' or humility and 'gelassenheit' (German, meaning: calmness, composure, placidity)" (Scully, 2007, p. 30). This natural approach to life was easy back when they first moved to America and the land was mostly wilderness, but as the land became more populated and particularly once it began to industrialize, it was their dedication to their traditional means of subsistence that led them to isolate themselves further and further from the rest of the world, as they found it necessary to create rules that would govern and protect their way of life. "All aspects of Amish life are dictated by a list of written or oral rules, known as Ordnung, which outlines the basics of the Amish faith and helps to define what it means to be Amish. For an Amish person, the Ordnung may dictate almost every aspect of one's lifestyle, from dress and hair length to buggy style and farming techniques" (Powell, 2012, p. 2). Thus, horticulture has strongly influenced everything from their religion to their family life and attitudes concerning marriage. Within Amish communities, religion plays a huge role in the lives of all of the inhabitants, actually requiring them to remain dedicated to the same form of subsistence their ancestors depended on prior to modernization. "Their church rules require people to be farmers or to work at form-related occupations, and they believe that working the land keeps them closer to God" (Ennis, 2010, p. 30). Dedication to the land requires a high level of discipline and patience, much of which Amish people learn from their earliest memories. "Amish children learn obedience as toddlers when they sit through four-hour preaching services" (Ennis, 2010, p. 30). In addition, this kind of subsistence living requires a high level of community involvement and cooperation, which is actually written into the religious laws of the community. While church rules forbid any kind of different behavior, even down to wearing different clothing or using a different type of hem in a skirt (Ennis, 2010, p. 30), the level of interdependence within the group is so high that church retention rates are estimated to be around 80% (Powell, 2012, p. 1). "From a mainstream American perspective, their beliefs are highly group-oriented. In all important areas of life and decision-making, they strive for consensus within the church. Church size is dictated by the capacity for Amish families to meet comfortably in one home for worship" (Graham & Cates, 2006, p. 61). Their lifestyle does not require a high degree of modern-level education either, as most of the information children need to know can be learned as they contribute to the welfare of their families and communities, so religion limits the level of education children receive and strongly discourages critical thought or questioning. "The Amish limit formal education for several reasons. Excessive education is considered an effort to mimic omniscience, a state only God enjoys. A less clearly articulated, but equally powerful consideration is the reliance on tradition and folklore over critical thinking" (Graham & Cates, 2006, p. 61). Rather than relying on science and technology like the modern world, the Amish depend instead on "the 1st century Biblical teachings, and accumulated tradition and folklore serve as the guiding principles for life and problem-solving" (Graham & Cates, 2006, p. 61). God created the world to be perfect and their job is simply to exist within it as perfectly as they can while tending to God's garden. The strong tie Amish people have to their horticultural way of life also requires a high level of community togetherness, which starts at the level of the family. In many ways, it can be said that "the Amish are the guardians of old-fashioned American values, foils to change and optimism about the future" (Issenberg, 2004, p. 40). Most families are large, consisting of mother, father and, on average, seven to ten children. These children grow up with very strong work ethics and a strong sense of community because of the close-knit nature of their upbringing. "Although child rearing is primarily the role of the parents, there is close and continuous interaction with the extended family that includes grandparents, aunts, uncles, as well as neighbors. The children are taught that they constitute a vital part of their community" (“Amish Children”, 2012, p. 1). Within the Amish home, everyone contributes to producing the things the family needs to survive, including growing the food, building the structures, butchering any animals, and canning or baking the food that they eat all while rejecting the modern conveniences of electricity, cars, and telephones that reduce their dependence on the land and increase their dependence on other men. "By age four, [children] help their parents with chores. Family members work together on the farm, and the children have a sense of security knowing that they will grow up to be like their parents" (Ennis, 2010, p. 30). In a typical home, everyone rises at 5 am to start their various chores and, when one family needs a little extra help, the community comes together to provide it. Children are trained not to be selfish and to help each other as much as they can. "The Amish are averse to any technology which they feel weakens the family structure. The conveniences that the rest of us take for granted ... are considered to be a temptation that could cause vanity, create inequality, or lead the Amish away from their close-knit community and, as such, are not encouraged or accepted in most orders" (Powell, 2012, p. 2). Although Amish teenagers rebel as much as any other teenagers, this is understood and accepted within the community. Adults consider it a means for young people to explore their options and make their own choices about where they want to go in life. Most choose to remain or return to the Amish community after gaining some experience in the larger modern cities. Unsurprisingly, the horticultural lifestyle also has an effect on Amish concepts of marriage. As soon as Amish youth decide to remain within the community, they begin thinking about getting married. Since they finish school with eighth grade, they are able to spend several years working and saving money to establish a home when they do get married (Ennis, 2010, p. 31). Young men are not allowed to grow a beard until they are married and "Amish marry Amish - no intermarriage is allowed. Divorce is not permitted and separation is very rare" (Powell, 2012, p. 2). This helps to keep the family lands within the Amish community and assures the community remains closely tied. According to Powell, Amish weddings are generally simple celebrations held in the bride's home. The wedding intentions are published in the local church a few weeks before the wedding takes place and the ceremony is lengthy. The bride generally wears blue instead of white, and flowers, rings, makeup, and photography are not a part of the celebrations. "Newlyweds typically spend the wedding night in the bride's mother's home, so they can get up early the next day to help clean up the home" (Powell, 2012, p. 3). Once married, there are clear roles outlined for the young people both in the examples of their elders and in the way they've been trained. "Chores are clearly divided by sexual role in the Amish home - the man usually works on the farm, while the wife does the washing, cleaning, cooking, and other household chores. There are exceptions, but typically the father is considered the head of the Amish household " (Powell, 2012, p. 2). All of this is somewhat dictated by the lifestyle they live, as the outdoor work generally takes the greater strength of the man while the caring for children, especially at the infant stage, is best performed by the woman thus suiting her for the indoor chores. A horticultural lifestyle requires a great deal of attention to the land on which one lives, including caring for it, preserving it, and living within its ability to sustain. These rules are the foundation of the Amish religion, dictating a severe lifestyle strongly dedicated to work and cooperation among neighbors. The need for cooperation is so strong that it requires stronger dedication than the church alone can provide, thus shifting the focus on the strengthening of family bonds. Having a large number of children means there is less work for each individual to do in order for the family to thrive; at the same time, it forces a sense of cooperation and sacrifice among the individuals, as everyone must do their share if everyone is to have all they need and to get along with others. Focusing on the marriage itself enables one to see how a horticultural subsistence lifestyle would also dictate some level of traditional gender roles, as greater strength is needed in the outdoors to manhandle livestock and basic farming equipment, while the biological functions of women are needed within the home with the infants. Although everyone, male and female, helps with harvesting and other chores, it is possible to see how horticultural subsistence requires a very rigid, defined way of life in all the spheres: from the sphere of social/religious life all the way down through the family and into the intimate region of the marriage itself. References Amish children. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.welcome-to-lancaster-county.com/amish-children.html Ennis, J. (March 2010). Growing up Amish. Faces, 26(6), 30-31. Issenberg, S. (October 2004). The simplest life. The Washington Monthly, 36(10), 39. Graham, L.L., & Cates, J.A. (Fall 2006). Health care and sequestered cultures: A perspective from the old order Amish. Journal of Multicultural Nursing and Health, 12(3), 60. Powell, A. (2012). Amish 101 - Amish Beliefs, Culture and Lifestyle. Retrieved from http://pittsburgh.about.com/cs/pennsylvania/a/amish.htm?p=1 Scully, T. (August 3, 2007). A culture vastly different from the rest of America. Irish Medical Times. ProQuest Health and Medical Complete, 41(31), 30. Read More

 

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