MARROWMAN

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It is certainly in keeping with the spirit of the season!

[Eater of Clowns]

It is certainly in keeping with the spirit of the season!

Which reminds me, I need to work on my third annual PD Holiday poem.

[Aucoq]

Wow!  That's great, EoC!  I couldn't wait until you posted the next part of the poem.  The idea of the Marrowman is so creepy.  And you certainly delivered!

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Bump

[Nephew Twiddleton]

I got something brewing for Brook Farm.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

There's a neighborhood in Boston called West Roxbury. It doesn't border the neighborhood of Roxbury, but that's because Boston annexed Roxbury piecemeal. Jamaica Plain, Roslindale and Hyde Park were all part of West Roxbury at some point, but all were absorbed into Boston at earlier times. Now a fairly suburban section of the city, mostly made up of middle class and upper middle class Irish- and Italian- Americans, it was once all farmland. Like other places in Boston the old pops up here and there, like the Westerly Buryial Ground, where the youngest interred are Civil War veterans, but dates back to the late 17th century.

Back in the early 19th Century, the same Congregationalists that branched out of the Puritan movement started bouncing these ideas around against the ideas of rationalism, sensualism and strangely enough, the Calvinist idea of predestination, and started drawing inspiration from Hinduism and Idealism. This eventually evolved coherently into the Transcendental Movement, which pretty much meant that hippies showed up 130 years late to the party. Transcendentalism was a New Englander philosophy, that lead to well intentioned but perhaps misguided attempts to get back to nature, like Henry David Thoreau building his cabin by Walden Pond in the name of withdrawing from society and becoming self-sufficient, all the while getting his mom to do his laundry whilst snarfing down her apple pie.

Against this backdrop of well intentioned ideas was an attempt in 1840 at creating a utopian socialist community in West Roxbury called Brook Farm. The idea behind Brook Farm was simple, everyone balanced out labor with leisure, so that everyone contributed to the commune. People could choose whatever labor they liked best, and all were given equal pay—including the women. Indeed, the well meaning George Ripley hoped that it would serve as an example to the rest of the world and eventually transform society, as is typical of a utopian. And typical of a utopian project, it was doomed.

Ripley became increasingly interested in the ideas of Charles Fourier, which revolved around creating specific structures, as well as assigning organized roles for the members of a commune.  Ripley came up with a new constitution for Brook Farm in 1844, and the Brook Farmers set themselves to the task of creating this ideal Fourier community called a Phalanx, and the erection of their Phalanstery. One member went so far as to toast Fourier as the Second Coming of Christ. Interestingly, Brook Farm took over two newsletters associated with their ideas- The Phalanx and The Social Reformer, and combined them into one. Renaming the combined publication turned out to be a difficult task, with one member going so far as throwing out a series of possible names, two of which were Beelzebub and The Devil. Ultimately, one of his suggestions, The Harbinger, was chosen. It was, around this time, that some of the Brook Farmers began to leave the community.

After the restructuring, Brook Farm went into rapid decline. Upon his visit, Orestes Brownson stated, "The atmosphere of the place is horrible." He later renounced Transcendentalism, and became a Catholic, and a rather zealous one at that. He quite earnestly attacked Transcendentalism, and warned his former colleagues that they risked eternal damnation. In 1845, there was an outbreak of smallpox, but interestingly, no one died from it. Construction on the Phalanstery continued at a steady pace until it was completely destroyed by fire in 1846. A faulty chimney was blamed. It was also in 1846 that Brownson convinced Sophia Ripley, George's wife, to convert to Catholicism, eventually leading her to becoming a nun. One Brook Farmer complained, "We are beginning to see wooden crosses around and pictures of saints... and I suspect that rosaries are rattling under aprons." One must wonder what Brownson and Sophia Ripley saw to spook them so bad.

[minuspace]

Posting here cause the sticky on the notify is suspect, and I'm gonna make darn sure to find this thread again.  Intoxicatingly oracular.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

There's a neighborhood in Boston called West Roxbury. It doesn't border the neighborhood of Roxbury, but that's because Boston annexed Roxbury piecemeal. Jamaica Plain, Roslindale and Hyde Park were all part of West Roxbury at some point, but all were absorbed into Boston at earlier times. Now a fairly suburban section of the city, mostly made up of middle class and upper middle class Irish- and Italian- Americans, it was once all farmland. Like other places in Boston the old pops up here and there, like the Westerly Buryial Ground, where the youngest interred are Civil War veterans, but dates back to the late 17th century.

Back in the early 19th Century, the same Congregationalists that branched out of the Puritan movement started bouncing these ideas around against the ideas of rationalism, sensualism and strangely enough, the Calvinist idea of predestination, and started drawing inspiration from Hinduism and Idealism. This eventually evolved coherently into the Transcendental Movement, which pretty much meant that hippies showed up 130 years late to the party. Transcendentalism was a New Englander philosophy, that lead to well intentioned but perhaps misguided attempts to get back to nature, like Henry David Thoreau building his cabin by Walden Pond in the name of withdrawing from society and becoming self-sufficient, all the while getting his mom to do his laundry whilst snarfing down her apple pie.

Against this backdrop of well intentioned ideas was an attempt in 1840 at creating a utopian socialist community in West Roxbury called Brook Farm. The idea behind Brook Farm was simple, everyone balanced out labor with leisure, so that everyone contributed to the commune. People could choose whatever labor they liked best, and all were given equal pay—including the women. Indeed, the well meaning George Ripley hoped that it would serve as an example to the rest of the world and eventually transform society, as is typical of a utopian. And typical of a utopian project, it was doomed.

Ripley became increasingly interested in the ideas of Charles Fourier, which revolved around creating specific structures, as well as assigning organized roles for the members of a commune.  Ripley came up with a new constitution for Brook Farm in 1844, and the Brook Farmers set themselves to the task of creating this ideal Fourier community called a Phalanx, and the erection of their Phalanstery. One member went so far as to toast Fourier as the Second Coming of Christ. Interestingly, Brook Farm took over two newsletters associated with their ideas- The Phalanx and The Social Reformer, and combined them into one. Renaming the combined publication turned out to be a difficult task, with one member going so far as throwing out a series of possible names, two of which were Beelzebub and The Devil. Ultimately, one of his suggestions, The Harbinger, was chosen. It was, around this time, that some of the Brook Farmers began to leave the community.

After the restructuring, Brook Farm went into rapid decline. Upon his visit, Orestes Brownson stated, "The atmosphere of the place is horrible." He later renounced Transcendentalism, and became a Catholic, and a rather zealous one at that. He quite earnestly attacked Transcendentalism, and warned his former colleagues that they risked eternal damnation. In 1845, there was an outbreak of smallpox, but interestingly, no one died from it. Construction on the Phalanstery continued at a steady pace until it was completely destroyed by fire in 1846. A faulty chimney was blamed. It was also in 1846 that Brownson convinced Sophia Ripley, George's wife, to convert to Catholicism, eventually leading her to becoming a nun. One Brook Farmer complained, "We are beginning to see wooden crosses around and pictures of saints... and I suspect that rosaries are rattling under aprons." One must wonder what Brownson and Sophia Ripley saw to spook them so bad.

I felt iffy about it too. I grew up in West Roxbury, and wanted to include it in this, but it's a bit tricky on account of West Roxbury.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

I probably could do better if I dig deeper.

[minuspace]

Interesting.  I only had time to skim that the first time.  The architecture must have been solid because I was unaware of how I may have mistakenly posted in your drawing thread to have been lead back here again

On a second meta level, I also feel as though you could dig deeper round that...  Thing is the collateral. (beyond the ha-ha's).  I feel as though what one may come up with will damage those in need more than the parties primarily responsible, to whom they are per force indentured  It's like a trap.  If you dig, you end up displacing the beholden so that the real perps can move in.  I think that's what they want and it explains all veils.

But I don't know.  It also seems like it could just be a con?