Science of the Seance

Transnational Networks and Gendered Bodies in the Study of Psychic Phenomena, 1918-40

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Other Sciences, History, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Gender Studies, Women&, Modern, 20th Century
Cover of the book Science of the Seance by Beth A. Robertson, UBC Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Beth A. Robertson ISBN: 9780774833523
Publisher: UBC Press Publication: November 28, 2016
Imprint: UBC Press Language: English
Author: Beth A. Robertson
ISBN: 9780774833523
Publisher: UBC Press
Publication: November 28, 2016
Imprint: UBC Press
Language: English

In the 1920s and ’30s, people gathered in darkened rooms to explore the paranormal through seances. They were motivated by grief, spiritual devotion, or a desire to be entertained. Beth A. Robertson resurrects the story of a small transnational group and their quest for objective knowledge of the supernatural, casting new light on how science, metaphysics, and the senses collided to inform gendered norms in this era.

Robertson draws back the curtain to reveal a world inhabited by researchers, spirits, and spiritual mediums. Representing themselves as masters of the senses, untainted by the effeminized subjectivity of the body, psychical researchers in Canada, the UK, and the US believed that they could use machines and empirical methods to transform the seance into a laboratory of the spirits and a transnational empirical project. However, mediums and ghostly subjects could and did challenge their claims to scientific expertise and authority.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In the 1920s and ’30s, people gathered in darkened rooms to explore the paranormal through seances. They were motivated by grief, spiritual devotion, or a desire to be entertained. Beth A. Robertson resurrects the story of a small transnational group and their quest for objective knowledge of the supernatural, casting new light on how science, metaphysics, and the senses collided to inform gendered norms in this era.

Robertson draws back the curtain to reveal a world inhabited by researchers, spirits, and spiritual mediums. Representing themselves as masters of the senses, untainted by the effeminized subjectivity of the body, psychical researchers in Canada, the UK, and the US believed that they could use machines and empirical methods to transform the seance into a laboratory of the spirits and a transnational empirical project. However, mediums and ghostly subjects could and did challenge their claims to scientific expertise and authority.

More books from UBC Press

Cover of the book Political Communication in Canada by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Kiss the kids for dad, Don’t forget to write by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Accusation by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Health Care and the Charter by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Claire L’Heureux-Dubé by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Griffintown by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Hunting the Northern Character by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Religion and Canadian Party Politics by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book The Iconic North by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book From Slave Girls to Salvation by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Inventing Stanley Park by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book From Treaty Peoples to Treaty Nation by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Media Divides by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Diasporic Media beyond the Diaspora by Beth A. Robertson
Cover of the book Making a Scene by Beth A. Robertson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy