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Investigating the Supernatural: From Spiritism and Occultism to Psychical Research and Metapsychics in France, 1853–1931
Sofie Lachapelle
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Description for Investigating the Supernatural: From Spiritism and Occultism to Psychical Research and Metapsychics in France, 1853–1931
Hardback. In late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century France, a number of groups turned to the wondrous and occult as a means of understanding and explaining the world. This title examines these varied efforts through the phenomena witnessed at seances. Num Pages: 208 pages, 7, 7 black & white halftones. BIC Classification: HBJD; HRQX; MBX; PDX. Category: (P) Professional & Vocational. Dimension: 236 x 153 x 18. Weight in Grams: 400.
Seances were wildly popular in France between 1850 and 1930, when members of the general public and scholars alike turned to the wondrous as a means of understanding and explaining the world. Sofie Lachapelle explores how five distinct groups attempted to use and legitimize seances: spiritists, who tried to create a new "science" concerned with the spiritual realm and the afterlife; occultists, who hoped to connect ancient revelations with contemporary science; physicians, psychiatrists, and psychologists, who developed a pathology of supernatural experiences; psychical researchers, who drew on the unexplained experiences of the public to create a new field of research; and metapsychists, who attempted to develop a new science of yet-to-be understood natural forces. Lachapelle examines the practices, aims, and level of success of these five disciplines, paying special attention to how they interacted with each other and with the world of mainstream science. Their practitioners regarded mystical phenomena worthy of serious study; most devotees-with notable exceptions of physicians, psychiatrists, and psychologists-also meant to challenge conventional science in general and French science in particular. Through these stories, Lachapelle illuminates the lively relationship between science and the supernatural in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century France and relates why this relationship ultimately led to the marginalization of psychical research and metapsychics. An enlightening and entertaining narrative that includes colorful people like "Allan Kardec"-a pseudonymous former mathematics teacher from Lyon who wrote successful works on the science of the seance and what happened after death- Investigating the Supernatural reveals the rich and vibrant diversity of unorthodox beliefs and practices that existed at the borders of the French scientific culture in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Product Details
Format
Hardback
Publication date
2011
Publisher
Johns Hopkins University Press United States
Number of pages
208
Condition
New
Number of Pages
208
Place of Publication
Baltimore, MD, United States
ISBN
9781421400136
SKU
V9781421400136
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 15 to 20 working days
Ref
99-50
About Sofie Lachapelle
Sofie Lachapelle is an associate professor of history at the University of Guelph.
Reviews for Investigating the Supernatural: From Spiritism and Occultism to Psychical Research and Metapsychics in France, 1853–1931
Interesting, well-researched book. Choice Investigating the Supernatural is the product of a great many years of study and makes a solid contribution to a growing field. It will be of interest to scholars in a variety of areas, ranging from French social and religious history to the history of science.
David Allen Harvey H-France A welcome addition to the growing literature on spiritism, occultism and physical research in modern France.
Heather Wolffram French History
David Allen Harvey H-France A welcome addition to the growing literature on spiritism, occultism and physical research in modern France.
Heather Wolffram French History