The central issue Bush finds in these works is how their authors have dealt with the authority of Mormon Church leaders. As she puts it in her preface, "I use the phrase 'faithful transgression' to describe moments in the texts when each writer, explicitly or implicitly, commits herself in writing to trust her own ideas and authority over official religious authority while also conceiving of and depicting herself to be a 'faithful' member of the Church." Bush recognizes her book as her own act of faithful transgression. Writing it involved wrestling, she states, "with my own deeply ingrained religious beliefs and my equally compelling education in feminist theories that mean to liberate and empower women."
Faithful Transgressions examines a remarkable group of authors and their highly readable and entertaining books. In producing the first significant book-length study of Mormon women's autobiographical writing, Bush rides a wave of memoir publishing and academic interest in autobiography and other life narratives. As she elucidates these works in relation to the religious tradition that played a major role in shaping them, she not only positions them in relation to feminist theory and current work on women's life writings but ties them to the long literary tradition of spiritual autobiography.
"Faithful Transgressions" - an unexpected journey I was interested to learn that someone apparently familiar with Mormon culture and teachings would write a book about Mormon pioneer women with the paradoxical title "Faithful Transgressions." I was curious to learn how the title applied in these women's lives. I was also curious to discover more about the author - who is she, and why is she saying these things?
The book turned out to be much different from my expectation. I naively imagined a compilation of selections from the six autobiographies, book-ended with short intros and conclusions giving Bush's personal views and interpretations on each story. I was not prepared for the amount of careful, detailed analysis or the effort that would be needed to get through it - this was not "light" or casual reading!
I thoroughly enjoyed Bush's own (too short) autobiographical preface, "Gender Trouble and My Hybrid Life." It helped answer some of my questions and established a solid credibility, even trust, which in turn motivated me to continue reading. That trust and motivation became essential in the next section, "Autobiographical Constructions of the Mormon Self(s)." This was not so much an introduction to the rest of the book, as to the entire field of autobiographical analysis and related literary theories. Fine for the academically inclined, but rather heavy for casual readers (go ahead and skip past it if you like; the rest of the book will still make sense - and you can always come back to it later).
Things lightened up once I got into the heart of the book - the actual stories of these six women. The detailed, academic analysis persisted, but made much more sense when wrapped around the actual narratives. Ultimately, it made the experience much more interesting and enlightening. By the time I reached the last chapter, "Training to Be a Good Mormon Girl While Longing for Fame", I found myself again reading slower and slower - but this time it was because I didn't want the book to end, I was enjoying it so much.
I benefited in several ways from reading this book. My understanding of the field of study of "autobiographical acts" was greatly expanded (it didn't exist before). It was interesting to look at familiar themes (Mormon pioneer struggles) from a different perspective - even from a "feminist scholar's" perspective. My appreciation for the challenges and perspectives facing pioneer LDS women in polygamous marriages (and other challenges in more recent times) was opened up enormously, and (best of all) not in the ways I had anticipated. I was not "surprised" at anything I read, but I was enlightened, and gained new appreciation for each of these women, not so much as icons or characters from stories, but as 'ordinary' (i.e., real, like you and me) people.
In her preface, Bush states that she has "tried ... to strike a balance between celebrating Mormon women's writing accomplishments while also critiquing the Mormon context within which each of them writes." She did a very good job of maintaining that 'balance.' Clearly she has her own perspectives, but her objective and well-documented approach builds opportunities for understanding, and avoids needless polarization. Rather than seeking to antagonize or attack, she chooses to illuminate.
As an "active/practicing" member of the "Mormon" Church, I found the book and many of its ideas challenging, but not "threatening;" Bush explores both sides without "taking sides." I did not agree with all of her views ... but I found myself respecting them and appreciating their origins and potential. Her even-handed and well documented approach made it much easier to allow my mind to open and contemplate new perspectives, ideas and opinions.
My favorite quote from the book is found in the preface (p. xvii): "... Ulrich declares, 'Feminism may be larger than they imagined and Mormonism more flexible'." To me, that quote represents a profound statement of faith and hope (although it may be a long time before the different 'camps' realize its truth).
Sometimes you know that you are unlearned and uninformed of a particular subject, but assume you know what it is that you would learn, if you were to study that topic in more depth. Its fun to take that step and discover something completely new and different. That happened with "Faithful Transgressions."
A Rare, Balanced Treatment of Mormon Women's Autobiographies Laura L. Bush examines six twentieth-century autobiographies by Mormon women--Mary Ann Hafen, Annie Clark Tanner, Wynetta Willis Martin, Terry Tempest Williams, and Phyllis Barber--each of whom adopts a sympathetic, yet critical view of the Mormon religion. In documenting their lives, these women wrestle with issues of gender, (...), family, and marriage (either monogamous or polygamous). Individual autobiographers also address such diverse matters as pioneer life in the West, the relation between the Mormon church and African Americans, and the ecosystem of the Great Salt Lake.
Bush uses advanced theoretical frameworks--feminism, ecofeminism, and critical race theory among them--and harnesses them effectively while investigating the six texts. While environmentally minded readers will be especially interested in Bush's astute treatment of Terry Tempest Williams's REFUGE--one of the best autobiographies ever written by an American--Bush writes very cogently and sensitively about all these women's accounts of their lives.
Not the least advantage of this book is its combination of incisiveness and fairness in its treatment of Mormonism. Balanced appraisals of the LDS church are difficult to find, and Bush's book is one of the very best.
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