Phantasmagoria: Ghostly Entertainment of the Victorian Britain
Phantasmagoria: Ghostly entertainment of the Victorian Britain Yurie Nakane / Tsuda College / Tokyo / Japan Abstract Phantasmagoria is an early projection show using an optical instrument called a magic lantern. Brought to Britain from France in 1801, it amused spectators by summoning the spirits of ab- sent people, including both the dead and the living. Its form gradually changed into educational amusement after it came to Britain. However, with the advent of spiritualism, its mysterious na- ture was re-discovered in the form of what was called ‘Pepper’s Ghost’. Phantasmagoria was reborn in Britain as a purely ghostly entertainment, dealing only with spirits of the dead, be- cause of the mixture of the two notions brought from France and the United States. This paper aims to shed light on the role that phantasmagoria played in Britain during the Victorian period, how it changed, and why. Through observing the transnational history of this particular form of entertainment, we can reveal a new relationship between the representations of science and superstitions. Keywords Phantasmagoria, spiritualism, spectacle, ghosts, the Victorian Britain, superstitions Introduction Humans have been mesmerized by lights since ancient times. Handling lights was considered a deed conspiring with magic or witchcraft until the sixteenth century, owing to its sanctified appearance; thus, some performers were put in danger of persecution. At that time, most people, including aristocrats, were not scientifically educated, because science itself was in an early stage of development. However, the flourishing thought of the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century altered the situation. Entering the age of reason, people gradually came to regard illusions as worthy of scientific examination.
[Show full text]