Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism

Amanda Montell’s Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism analyzes the history of American cults, looking at how these cults use the power of language to shape the reality of their members. The book investigates the linguistic principles employed by different types of cults and how these principles are increasingly being leveraged by other communities, like multi-level marketing companies (MLMs), fitness-product leaderboards, and social-media groups. What emerges from this research pursuit is a shared language—what Montell calls the fanatical language of “cultish.” Cultish is a widely popular BookTok read, and NPR named the novel a Best Book of 2021.

This guide refers to the 2021 HarperCollins hardcover edition.

Content Warning: This book contains references to and depictions of suicide, homicide, racial issues, political issues, kidnapping, harm to children, gun violence, body shaming, sexual abuse, and rape.

Summary

Part 1: “Repeat After Me” examines the language around cults, including the evolution of the word and its connotations and associations over time. Montell dispels some common myths about cults—like the idea that all followers are brainwashed—while sharing the details of her life that drove her to investigate cultish language. Montell’s father was forced into a cult called Syanon as a teenager, and this experience shaped her family’s skepticism of

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