Amanda Montell,
Cultish: The Language of FanaticismSeptember 3, 2025
8:00-9:30 p.m. in Bender Arena

Get Cultish at AU Bookstore

To set the stage for your first year here at AU, we have chosen a book that we call our “community text” for you to read before you arrive in August. Early in the fall semester, you and your peers from your College Writing class will have the chance to hear the author of this year’s book speak about their experiences with writing and publishing, as well as answer your questions! You’ll discuss the book and the author’s insights from the live interview with your peers in class, and you’ll write from inspiration or more questions that arise from these discussions. The Writing Studies Program and the Campus Store will also sponsor an essay contest to honor student writing inspired by the community text.

We believe the dialogue we develop around the challenging themes that define our community texts unifies our students and faculty in an intellectual experience. When we ask tough questions, consider what’s at stake for all involved, and listen to one another respectfully, we can develop our own positions and ideas about the world and participate in building an academic community. Welcoming our text’s author to discuss their work is an essential part of this shared intellectual experience.

We’re delighted to announce this year’s choice: Amanda Montell’s Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism. We will meet with Ms. Montell this fall for the twenty-eighth annual Writer as Witness Colloquium on Wednesday, September 3, from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. in Bender Arena. She will address the American University community and meet with students and faculty to discuss the book, as well as the craft, artistry, and research that went into its creation.

In Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism, Montell analyzes the social science of cult influence — how “cultish” groups, from Jonestown and Scientologists to SoulCycle and social media gurus, use language as the ultimate form of power. She argues that the key to manufacturing intense ideology community, and us/them attitudes all comes down to language. In ways both positive and shadowy, cultish language is something we hear — and are influenced by — daily. Through provocative storytelling and original research, Montell exposes the language that makes a wide spectrum of communities “cultish” revealing how they affect followers of groups as notorious as Heaven’s Gate but as commonplace as Peloton leaderboards and our Instagram feeds. Montell has appeared in Netflix’s How to Become a Cult Leader and Breath of Fire on HBO. She holds a degree from New York University in Linguistics and lives in Los Angeles.

The American University Campus Store is offering Cultish at a discounted rate. You may order the book directly through the Campus Store Website. Copies will also be available for purchase at the Campus Store over the summer, when you’ll have your first opportunity to talk with classmates about Cultish.

As you read, think about possible questions for the author to address during the September Event. You may email questions or comments to lit@american.edu, or share them through social media on Instagram (@auwritingstudies). You also will have the chance to ask your questions directly at the Writer as Witness event on September 3. We look forward to meeting you there to hear your responses to the provocative questions raised by Ms. Montell’s work.