The Way to Peace

In Short

Margaret Wade Campbell Deland’s The Way to Peace is a quiet, tragic novel exploring the unforeseen consequences of emotional self-indulgence and spiritual restless movement. When Athalia Hall impetuously insists on joining a secluded Shaker settlement to find peace, her patient husband, Lewis, reluctantly follows to protect her. Over two years, as Athalia’s initial zeal turns to boredom and irritation, Lewis undergoes a genuine conversion to the Shaker faith. When Athalia decides to return to the world, she discovers to her horror that Lewis cannot follow her back. The work endures as a delicate study of marital estrangement and spiritual irony.

The Story

The story opens on an August morning as thirty-four-year-old Athalia Hall and her older husband, Lewis, climb a steep hill after leaving their train. Athalia is impulsive, earnest, and constantly driven by fleeting passions, while Lewis is scholarly, patient, and deeply devoted to satisfying her every mood. At the top of the hill, they discover a Shaker burial ground and meet Brother Nathan Dale, who invites them to visit the nearby community. Athalia is immediately captivated by the village’s tranquil order, spotless cleanliness, and communal devotion. Despite Lewis’s quiet observation that the celibate, selfless Shaker life seems unnatural, Athalia becomes obsessed with the idea of joining.

Over the next few months, Athalia insists that living with the Shakers is her spiritual calling. Recognizing the futility of arguing and determined to protect her from her own instability, Lewis surrenders his quiet life, rents out his lumber mill, and moves with her to the settlement. There, they occupy separate quarters in accordance with Shaker doctrine, living as brother and sister. While Athalia immerses herself in the novelty and external details of the community—wearing the net cap, sorting herbs, and adoption of their mannerisms—Lewis performs hard manual labor for the three elderly brothers and eight sisters who remain.

As the months pass, Lewis begins studying Shaker theology and reading the Prophecies to understand the faith. During a severe winter illness, he is nursed by Eldress Hannah and Brother Nathan, forming a deep bond with the aging community. Gradually, his skepticism melts into genuine conviction; he comes to view his unexpected path as divine providence and finds deep, peaceful certainty in the doctrine.

Conversely, by the end of the second winter, Athalia’s enthusiasm wanes. Wearied by the heavy spring work, annoyed by the lack of appreciation, and jealous of the return of a former member, her desire for the world returns. She seeks out Lewis at his cottage, announcing impetuously that she wants to go home. To her horror, Lewis reveals that he has truly become a Shaker in his heart. When she tearfully demands if he still loves her, he gently offers only the kindliest feelings for her as a sister. Devastated by the realization that she has destroyed her husband's love, Athalia leaves the settlement alone. Ten years later, as Athalia lies dying in a bustling city hotel, Lewis visits her bedside. Though initially distant in his Shaker habit, the old love briefly pierces through his calm demeanor at the very end, allowing him to comfort his former wife in her final moment.

How It Unfolds

A chance encounter While resting during a steep morning walk from a train station, Athalia and Lewis Hall stumble upon a Shaker graveyard and meet an elderly member picking herbs. Intrigued by his simple happiness and description of communal life, Athalia insists on visiting the nearby settlement instead of taking her scheduled train.

The growing obsession After touring the spotless herb-sorting rooms and speaking with Eldress Hannah, Athalia becomes obsessed with Shakerism, reading its texts and romanticizing its peaceful self-sacrifice. Lewis worries that this is merely another temporary whim, yet he indulges her reading and discussions despite his belief that the doctrine is fundamentally unhuman.

The ultimate surrender When Athalia announces her firm determination to join the community to save her soul, Lewis realizes he cannot dissuade her without causing lasting pain. Rather than let her go alone, he arranges his financial affairs, leases his lumber mill, and agrees to move into the settlement beside her as a brother.

Life in the community Athalia delights in the outward novelties and spiritual drama of Shaker life, while Lewis quietly works the fields alongside the aging brothers. When Lewis suffers a life-threatening fever during his first winter, the tender care of Eldress Hannah and Brother Nathan brings him closer to the community.

The unexpected conversion While recovering, Lewis deeply studies the Shaker Prophecies and scripture to refute their claims, only to find himself genuinely persuaded by their teachings. By the end of two years, he experiences a profound spiritual awakening, embracing the simple, celibate life and viewing his arrival there as divine intervention.

The reversal and departure Exhausted by hard labor and disillusioned by the community's domestic realities, Athalia announces she is ready to return to their former home. She is shattered when Lewis confesses he cannot leave because he is now a true Shaker, leaving her to depart the village alone in quiet despair.

The final reconciliation A decade later, Eldress Hannah grants Lewis permission to visit Athalia as she lies dying in a city hotel. Though his long years of Shaker detachment initially make him seem remote, the sight of her tears suddenly awakens his old tenderness, and he holds her head and comforts her as she passes.

The People

• Athalia Hall: A thirty-four-year-old woman of intense, volatile emotions and child-like prettiness. She craves novel sensations and spiritual drama, convincing herself that her shifting passions represent deep principle. What stands in her way is her own unhumorous self-centeredness and inability to anticipate the consequences of her choices. By the end of the novel, her restless seeking leaves her utterly alienated from the husband whose devotion she took for granted.

• Lewis Hall: A scholarly, patient, and loose-limbed man several years older than his wife, possessed of mild eyes and a singular tenacity of purpose. He desires above all else to protect Athalia from suffering, even at the cost of his own comfort, reputation, and marital happiness. When he follows her to the Shakers to guard her, his analytical mind and yearning for rest lead him to accept the faith himself, transforming him into a committed Shaker brother who cannot turn back.

• Eldress Hannah: The calm, shrewd leader of the dwindling Shaker family. She views worldly newcomers with a mixture of skepticism and practical compassion, offering wholesome good humor and steady guidance to Lewis during his spiritual transition.

• Brother Nathan Dale: An elderly Shaker brother who tends the fields and collects herbs. Simple, Whimsical, and sociably shrewd, his cheerful acceptance of life and gentle discussions regarding the Prophecies help guide Lewis toward his ultimate conversion.

In Its Own Voice

“In her slim prettiness Athalia Hall looked like a girl, but she was thirty-four.”

Athalia’s youthful appearance masks a restless, impulsive nature that continuously seeks new emotional outlets.

“Lewis Hall’s heart contracted with an almost physical pang.”

Upon receiving Athalia’s letter declaring her desire to remain with the Shakers, Lewis feels the agonizing onset of fear regarding his wife's escalating obsession.

“Athalia, I have to confess to you that when you came I didn’t think it would last with you.”

When Athalia finally expresses a desire to abandon the settlement, Lewis reveals how completely their roles have inverted over their two years among the Shakers.

What It's Really About

The Way to Peace is a poignant meditation on the nature of commitment, the selfishness of emotional instability, and the unexpected paths of spiritual conviction. It examines how individual choices, made under the guise of piety or self-fulfillment, can erode the foundation of human relationships. Athalia treats spiritual seeking as a personal indulgence, oblivious to the sacrifices made by those around her. Lewis, entering the community purely out of marital loyalty, discovers that the detachment and machine-like tranquility of communal life offer a real sanctuary from emotional turmoil. The novel argues that peace cannot be lightly picked up and discarded at will; once chosen, true spiritual peace may transform a person so entirely that the past can never be reclaimed.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy quiet character studies, psychological irony, and historical fiction centered on unique American religious communities will find much to admire in this short novel. Margaret Wade Campbell Deland writes with an effortless, graceful precision that brings both the lush New England landscape and the stark, yellow-painted interiors of the Shaker village vividly to life. The narrative carries a somber, understated power, avoiding melodrama while ruthlessly exposing the tragic blind spots of human egotism.

The story moves at a deliberate, measured pace that reflects the somnolent tranquility of the Shaker lifestyle itself. Modern readers should note that the novel contains archaic communal terminology, formal period dialogue, and brief discussions of nineteenth-century theological doctrines such as spiritualism and prophetic interpretation. Furthermore, the emotional restraint of the characters requires attentive reading, as the most devastating shifts occur beneath polite conversations and silent gestures. Yet, the central tragedy—of a person realizing too late that they have destroyed the very love that sustained them—remains timeless, haunting, and deeply moving long after the final page.

<ElicitationsGroup message="If you would like to explore this book further:">

<Elicitation label="Analyze the character of Athalia Hall" query="Provide an in-depth character analysis of Athalia Hall in Margaret Wade Campbell Deland's The Way to Peace, focusing on her psychological motivations."/>

<Elicitation label="Explore Shaker representation in 19th-century literature" query="How does Margaret Wade Campbell Deland's depiction of the Shakers in The Way to Peace compare to historical reality and other literature of the period?"/>

<Elicitation label="Discuss the irony in the title 'The Way to Peace'" query="Analyze the thematic significance and irony of the title 'The Way to Peace' in Margaret Wade Campbell Deland's novel."/>

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