Supernatural Entertainments
Victorian Spiritualism and the Rise of Modern Media Culture
Seiten
2017
Pennsylvania State University Press (Verlag)
978-0-271-07105-3 (ISBN)
Pennsylvania State University Press (Verlag)
978-0-271-07105-3 (ISBN)
Explores the proliferation of spiritualist séances in mid-nineteenth-century Europe and the United States, and the connection to the contemporary evolution of the media entertainment industry.
In Supernatural Entertainments, Simone Natale vividly depicts spiritualism’s rise as a religious and cultural phenomenon and explores its strong connection to the growth of the media entertainment industry in the nineteenth century. He frames the spiritualist movement as part of a new commodity culture that changed how public entertainments were produced and consumed.
Starting with the story of the Fox sisters, considered the first spiritualist mediums in history, Natale follows the trajectory of spiritualism in Great Britain and the United States from its foundation in 1848 to the beginning of the twentieth century. He demonstrates that spiritualist mediums and leaders adopted many of the promotional strategies and spectacular techniques that were being developed for the broader entertainment industry. Spiritualist mediums were indistinguishable from other professional performers, as they had managers and agents, advertised in the press, and used spectacularism to draw audiences.
Addressing the overlap between spiritualism’s explosion and nineteenth-century show business, Natale provides an archaeology of how the supernatural became a powerful force in the media and popular culture of today.
In Supernatural Entertainments, Simone Natale vividly depicts spiritualism’s rise as a religious and cultural phenomenon and explores its strong connection to the growth of the media entertainment industry in the nineteenth century. He frames the spiritualist movement as part of a new commodity culture that changed how public entertainments were produced and consumed.
Starting with the story of the Fox sisters, considered the first spiritualist mediums in history, Natale follows the trajectory of spiritualism in Great Britain and the United States from its foundation in 1848 to the beginning of the twentieth century. He demonstrates that spiritualist mediums and leaders adopted many of the promotional strategies and spectacular techniques that were being developed for the broader entertainment industry. Spiritualist mediums were indistinguishable from other professional performers, as they had managers and agents, advertised in the press, and used spectacularism to draw audiences.
Addressing the overlap between spiritualism’s explosion and nineteenth-century show business, Natale provides an archaeology of how the supernatural became a powerful force in the media and popular culture of today.
Simone Natale is Lecturer in Communication and Media Studies at Loughborough University, UK.
Contents
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part 1: Configurations of Séances
1The Medium on the Stage: Theatricality and Performance in the Spirit Séance
2Parlor Games: Play and Social Life in the Haunted House
Part 2: How to Sell a Spirit
3Breaking the News: Controversy, Sensation, and the Popular Press
4Mediums and Stars: Religion, Consumerism, and Celebrity Culture
Part 3: Spirit and Matter
5Stranger than Fiction: Print Media, Automatic Writing, and Popular Culture
6The Marvels of Superimposition: Spirit Photography and Spiritualism’s Visual Culture
Afterward
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Erscheinungsdatum | 03.06.2017 |
---|---|
Zusatzinfo | 31 Halftones, black and white |
Verlagsort | University Park |
Sprache | englisch |
Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
Gewicht | 363 g |
Themenwelt | Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Gesundheit / Leben / Psychologie ► Esoterik / Spiritualität |
Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Neuzeit (bis 1918) | |
Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte | |
Sozialwissenschaften ► Kommunikation / Medien ► Kommunikationswissenschaft | |
Sozialwissenschaften ► Kommunikation / Medien ► Medienwissenschaft | |
ISBN-10 | 0-271-07105-2 / 0271071052 |
ISBN-13 | 978-0-271-07105-3 / 9780271071053 |
Zustand | Neuware |
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