Lifestyle Enclave and Formal Group Housing on a College Campus, RLST 245

Robert Bellah, in his book Habits of the Heart introduces the concepts of communities, and lifestyle enclaves. He suggests that communities are groups of people tied together by geography, history, and reliance on each other. However, he clarifies that such groups are often heterogeneous in the types of people in them, often having a variety of personal interests. Lifestyle enclaves, on the other hand, Bellah identifies as groups into which people of a particular interest, passion, habit, or as suggestted by the name, lifestyle, choose to join and participate in.

Living on a college campus, I find these concepts to be very understandable. The community is easy to identify, because the University is a very strong community at its whole. These people, who come from a variety of backgrounds are all brought together by the geographical closeness of a college campus, an identity with the University's history, principles, and values, and they all rely on the wisdom and competence of each student, professor, and staff from across all disciplines to maintain the stability and momentum of the University, both as a school, and as a business.
The lifestyle enclave can also be found on a college campus, particularly in the formal group housing. Students who identify strongly with a group of people such as a fraternity, or a special interest group such as my own Gaming House, often choose to create a group specifically to enable and perpetuate that groups specific interests. In the case of Gaming House, we collect board games, have an array of personal and public computers for video games, and frequently host events that feature and celebrate various games and the values of the lifestyle of people who enjoy such interactive media. While we still rely on each other's support, the way that a lifestyle enclave differs from a community, is that it is a special interest group made up of people who are not forced together by necessity or convenience, but rather by purposeful congregation with individuals of resonant interests and values.