Bringing Out the Dead: Gender and Historical Cycles of Spiritualism

Abstract

Interest in the spirit world has blossomed since the 1990s. Four in 10 Americans claim to have been in touch with the dead. Mainstream movies featuring ghosts have made millions, television shows featuring mediums are broadcast throughout the country, books concerning the spirit world have made the New York Times bestsellers list, and the deceased have been increasingly put to work by Madison Avenue. Developed here is a theory of the relations between historical cycles of spiritualism, women's interest in that movement, and how that is related to women's visibility and power within society. It is argued that women have historically had a fairly constant interest in the spirit world. Spiritualism's current popularity is a result of women having more power and visibility, giving the spirit world a prominence in society that it previous only had during spiritualism “boom” periods when men became interested.