Nature and the environment in Amish life / David L. McConnell and Marilyn D. Loveless.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McConnell, David L., 1959- author.

Loveless, Marilyn D., author.

Series:

Young Center books in Anabaptist & Pietist studies

Young Center books in Anabaptist and Pietist studies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Human ecology--Religious aspects--Amish.

Human ecology.

Human ecology--United States.

Amish--Customs and practices.

Amish.

United States.

Physical Description:

xiv, 294 pages : illustrations, map ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Baltimore, Maryland : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018.

Summary:

The Amish relationship to the environment is much more complicated than you might think. -- The pastoral image of Amish communities living simply and in touch with the land strikes a deep chord with many Americans. Environmentalists have lauded the Amish as iconic models for a way of life that is local, self-sufficient, and in harmony with nature. But the Amish themselves do not always embrace their ecological reputation, and critics have long questioned the portrayal of the Amish as models of environmental stewardship. In Nature and the Environment in Amish Life, David L. McConnell and Marilyn D. Loveless examine how this prevailing notion of the environmentally conscious Amish fits with the changing realities of their lives. Drawing on 150 interviews conducted over the course of 7 years, as well as a survey of household resource use among Amish and non-Amish people, they explore how the Amish understand nature in their daily lives and how their actions impact the natural world. Arguing that there is considerable diversity in Amish engagements with nature at home, at school, at work, and outdoors, McConnell and Loveless show how the Amish response to regional and global environmental issues, such as watershed pollution and climate change, reveals their deep skepticism of environmentalists. They also demonstrate that Amish households are not uniformly lower in resource use compared to their rural, non-Amish neighbors, though aspects of their home economy are relatively self-sufficient. The first comprehensive study of Amish understandings of the natural world, this compelling book complicates the image of the Amish and provides a more realistic understanding of the Amish relationship with the environment.

Contents:

Preface

Deciphering the Amish relationship with nature

Part I. Growing up rural. Raising children at nature's doorstep

THe Amish ecological footprint

Part II. Working with nature. The transformation of Amish agriculture

The forest for the trees : the wood-products industry

Tinkering with creation : alternative animal breding

Part III. Reconfiguring leisure and the outdoors. Brining nature home : from gardening to herbal and natural medicines

Fin, fur, and feather : nature-based recreation

Observing and writing nature : Amish as travelers and authors

Part IV. The Amish as environmentalists. Acting locally : Amish responses to regional environmental issues

Thinking globally : the Amish ecological imagination

Parochial stewards : the Amish encounter with nature and the environment.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 249-283) and index.

ISBN:

9781421426167

1421426161

OCLC:

1019854233

Publisher Number:

99978863489