Calculus, Martha and The Sulanna Tribe
When is commune not a commune?
Martha has this book about communes of the 1960’s, a serious academic study whose author, Timothy Miller defines a commune as having seven features that (unlike the deadly sins) are to facilitate what is, perceived to be, the good life.
In no order of importance they are: a sense of common purpose; the downplaying of individualism; living within geographic proximity; exercising personal interaction; economic sharing; real existence. All such features easy to recognise. This is not the case with Miller’s seventh requisite feature: having a certain critical mass.
Could the living arrangements at the château truly be described as conforming to that of a commune?
Miller stipulates no absolute size threshold but he says that family members are not to count. Ruling out the relationship between me and Calculus. Martha is not related to us, but Miller’s critical mass condition was only truly met with the arrival of The Sulanna Tribe, a folk trance band. A commune as defined by the academic then came into being. Hurrah. This was really important for Calculus and Martha. i don’t really know why.