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...ty of partners and their ability to do this without developing attachments showed that to them sex was not about lust (Wills). Miller’s letter shows a conflict with this doctrine. She seems open to having different sexual partners, but her letter hints at an attachment to George Noyes. In her letter, Miller discusses the actions of Ann Eliza and J.H.C. Her discussion of this couple shows that not everyone is able to follow the dictates of the community. Ann Eliza and J.H.C. seem to have developed an attachment to each other which is described as a “chronic state of weakness.” Her word choice shows her feelings on the matter. Miller feels that weak people are the ones unable to abide by the rules. The community also saw the development of personal attachments between the sexes as a sign of weakness. In describing an encounter between John Noyes and Ann Eliza, Miller quotes Noyes as telling Ann Eliza to “make an end of that thing in Heart.” That thing in heart was “love” that had sprung up between Ann Eliza and J.H.C. The interesting thing about the conversation is that Ann Eliza thinks about it and asks what external thing she can do. This is important because she knows that she cannot help the way that she feels, she can only change her behavior. Ann Eliza willingness to change her behavior shows the commitment that people felt to the community. She is willing to deny her true feelings for the good of the community. The story that is related about Ann Eliza can be seen as a parallel for the actions of Miller. She may be trying to communicate to George Noyes that she has feelings for him, but that those feelings are secondary to her duties to the community. The Oneida Community has her loyalty. In the anecdote about Ann Eliza, Noyes tells Ann Eliza that she needs to have a child by someone other than J.H.C. Miller herself had her first child by George Noyes and after that she had two other children while in the Oneida Community. The anecdote about Ann Eliza was a veiled reference to her own situation. George Noyes must have realized this and that is why he saw fit to pass the letter on to John Noyes. The letter reveals a lot about the cultus of the Oneida Community. It references complex marriage, which has already been discussed. It also brings in the issue of mutual criticism when she writes that the members of the community have been watching Ann Eliza and that Noyes criticized her. The Oneida Community practiced mutual criticism as a way to let people know what they were doing wrong (Wills). Once a week the Community would gather and someone would sit in the center. The other members of the Community would all tell them what they felt needed to be changed. From the letter, it seems that Ann Eliza is a prime candidate for a session. The letter also opens up the discussion of male continence. The sentence that brings the issue of male continence to mind is “Theodore and others continually feel somewhat obligated to watch Ann Eliza and J.H.C. lest their chronic state of weakness get them into some difficulty.” The 'difficulty' referred to is most likely pregnancy. The community encouraged the sexual act, yet they did not encourage propagation unless the community agreed that a couple could propagate. Noyes advised was that males did not ejaculate during intercourse. John Noyes detailed the practice of male continence in response to a letter in 1866. Noyes felt that it was unnecessary for male to reach a point of climax. They should control themselves and not continue the sexual act to the state where they would experience discomfort if it were not completed (Noyes, 3-6). Miller...