The History of Spiritualism - Softcover

Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1410102432 ISBN 13: 9781410102430

Publisher: Fredonia Books (NL), 2003

Synopsis

Arthur Conan Doyle's very well received story of Modern Spiritualism, acting as a spokesman for the cause. One of Doyle's last literary efforts, this work traces the history of spiritualism through the early 20th century, and includes profiles of such prominent spiritualists as Emmanuel Swedenborg, Edward Irving, D. D. Home, Sir William Crookes, and Eusapia Palladino. Best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) dedicated himself to the cause of spiritualism in later life. His passion for the paranormal led Doyle to such excesses as the ill-advised endorsement of Elsie Wright's and Frances Griffith's clumsily faked photographs of the "Cottingley fairies" in 1922.

About this title

Book Description

This two-volume history was published in 1926 by the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930), who, like many of his contemporaries, was fascinated by spiritualism. Volume 2 focuses on celebrated mediums from 1870 to World War I, and topics including 'ectoplasm' and 'spirit photography'.

About the Author

The life of Arthur Conan Doyle illustrates the excitement and diversity of the Victorian age unlike that of any other single figure of the period. At different points in his life he was a surgeon on a whaling ship; a GP; an apprentice eye-surgeon; an unsuccessful parliamentary candidate (twice); a multi-talented sportsman; one of the inventors of cross-country skiing in Switzerland; a formidable public speaker; a campaigner against miscarriages of justice; a military strategist; a writer in a range of forms; and the head of an extraordinary family. In his autobiography, he wrote: 'I have had a life which, for variety and romance, could, I think, hardly be exceeded.' He was not wrong. But Conan Doyle was also a Victorian with a twist, a man of tensions and contradictions. He was fascinated by travel, exploration, and invention, indeed all things modern and technological; yet at the same time he was also very traditional, voicing support for values such as chivalry, duty, constancy, and honour. By the time of his death in July 1930 he was a celebrity, achieving worldwide fame and notoriety for his creation of the rationalist, scientific super-detective Sherlock Holmes; yet at the same time his later decades were taken up with his advocacy of the new religion of Spiritualism, in which he was a devoted believer.

Edition details

• Publisher: Fredonia Books (NL)
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1410102432
• ISBN 13: 9781410102430
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 704