So, I'm leaving everything to go live in a hippy commune in the country. Seriously now, I just watched a French movie with Laetitia Casta on the French Art channel about a woman leaving Paris to start a commune in the country, in the late 1960's, and the movie is about their life and struggle up until the 1990's - but the first part stops at the election of socialist Francois Mitterand in France in 1981. It was very interesting and very well made, and it reminded me of this old fantasy I had a few years back to live in a hippy commune, with animals to raise and vegetables to grow.. to be polygamous and.. have kids.. and no know or care who the father is.. haha.. I think I'd like that for a VACATION now. What are your thoughts on communal living?
i wanted to move to one, i even picked one out close, but now my hub has a really great job down the street and we have a year lease. but i researched a hippie commune that i really liked. my family thought i was crazy, and didnt want me to go.
they have showed time and again to be doomed from the beginning. the idea is nowhere close to new, nor was it new or revolutionary in the 60s and 70s. its often a religious or a political exercise, and almost all cases are miserable failures. in some cases some rather undesirable people end up there, as a result of overly idealistic belief in inclusiveness. communes are often started by idealistic people who want to see the good in everybody. these people are sometimes blind to the extreme bad in others. communes have often been plagued by sexual/physical abuse when it comes to the children living there. all in all, its an ok idea, and its not impossible for it to work. the shakers made it work VERY well, but due to the nature of their religion the number of people left aren't even in the double digits. but the track record is very, very bad i'm sure there are a few pearls in a sea full of crap, though
the one i picked out has just has families, not just fuck anyone and have kids, and were all one big family. thats a bit wierd to me.
If the living arrangements involve sleeping in the same bed as Laetitia Casta I think I would consider it. Other than that, I am a little skeptical. It would really depend on the people living in the commune because you would be dealing with them on such a close basis. If you got stuck with naive hippy hicks that don't specialize in stimulating conversation it would be hell.
In Tennessee there is one of the longest existing communes in the country...The Farm. It's been around since 1970.
My husband and I have researched it a lot. We found one we really liked, but there are some things that stop us. First of all, we own several properties, vehicles, businesses, etc. The communes we have looked into do not allow you to own any personal property. Reason being is that they want everyone to be equal in the commune. That's really the biggest hurdle. We love the idea of communal living, and we understand the concept of why they don't allow you to own anything, but we aren't really at a good place to liquidate our assets. It's something we will probably do in the future. We've strongly considered starting our own. The one that we liked the best had several businesses that they ran. Each member was expected to work 30 hours a week, which includes housework, etc. (Which is a lot less than standard society.) Each person is given an allowance each month for personal needs, which was about $150.00. But all of their needs are taken care of by the commune. They grow their food organically, including livestock, veggies, herbs, etc. They also have a large piece of land, over 1000 acres, with plenty of fishing and hunting. The share everything, including clothing, musical instruments, etc. There is a lot of entertainment within the commune from music, art, theater, etc. This particular commune is open-minded about relationships and welcome gay and lesbian couples, as well as traditional relationships, and they don't tell you what to do, or who you can or can't love. I wouldn't say it's necessarily a free-love commune, but I'd say it's pretty friendly to open lifestyles. Some of the things that appeal to us about the lifestyle is everyone depending on each other to survive. Each and every person is important to the survival of the group. It's a self-sustaining community. It's so much healthier to grow your food, and to live off the land. The sense of community and family is so much stronger. I could go on for hours about this. It's a very rich way of life...in a way that most of us are never able to experience in traditional living.
i'm confused. so all the women are involved with each other and the guys don't get any? you live in the communal suburbs of a matriarchal lesbian commune?
I think the women just "find 'em, fuck 'em, leave 'em, cuz they don't fucking need 'em" --- the guys that is.
Sounds interesting.. always has interested me. But yea there's the point nesta rised, a lot if not most FAIL for some or all the reasons he listed.. but with the right people and the right work, I believe it's possible! I may wanna live in one for a year or 6 month, someday. I mean it. In the movie, the commune starts great, with 10 people.. who all leave one after the other.. new ones come back.. and they go.. in the end, Laetitia Casta is the one who keeps wanting it and believing in it.. no matter all the problems they encounter.. money struggle, animal struggle, family struggle - she has kids from 3 different dads.. And it talks about the time, too, the late 60's, 70's.. what changed in France and in the world at the time.. I can't wait to see the second part.
This is the movie (it's in French with no-subtitles, sorry) http://es.youtube.com/watch?v=VySEtgs6XNg
It sounds pretty cool except for the polyamorous part. I would want to be exclusive with my woman, otherwise I would have to beat some hippies ass.
I wouldn't mind the polygamy for 6 months or a year if I wasn't attached to anyone. I wouldn't like going to a commune as a couple.