A Western Esoteric Understanding of Screens and Cinema: John Dee and Edward Kelley’s Scrying Practices Student: Sascha J. van der Meer Master: Master Media Studies: Beroepsgeoriënteerde Specialisatie (Film Studies) E-mail: [email protected] University of Amsterdam Date: 07-11-2016 Master Thesis Supervisor: dhr. dr. F.J.J.W. (Floris) Paalman Word Count: 22541 Second Reader: dhr. dr. F.A.M. (Erik) Laeven 1 A Western Esoteric Understanding of Screens and Cinema: John Dee and Edward Kelley’s Scrying Practices By Sascha J. van der Meer, B.A. A thesis submitted to The faculty of Humanities In fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Media Studies University of Amsterdam Amsterdam November 7th, 2016 ©copyright 2016, Sascha Joëlle van der Meer 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................................... 4 KEYWORDS .......................................................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 1: Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 5 1.1 Scrying and Western Esotericism .................................................................................................. 7 1.2 Imaginary Media: The Influence of the Supernatural on Media Culture and the Possibilities of the Entanglement of Dee and Kelley’s Past Practice and Present-day Screens ................................ 11 1.3 Interdisciplinary Research and One Audiovisual Tradition: Scrying as a means to Comprehend to the Turn to Digital Cinema ............................................................................................................ 15 1.4 Parallel Research of Pre- and Post-Enlightenment: Changed Manifestations and Discursive Transitions ......................................................................................................................................... 18 1.5 Methodology ............................................................................................................................... 20 CHAPTER 2: A Western Esoteric Understanding of Cinema’s Dispositif ........................................... 23 2.1 Dee and Kelley’s Scrying Practices: Western Esoteric Discourses of Light and Dark ............... 23 2.2 A Western Esoteric Understanding of Cinema’s Dispositif in the Context of Plato’s Cave ....... 25 2.3 Esoteric Dispositif: Light and Dark in the Cinematic Dispositif ................................................. 30 2.4 Esoteric Dispositif: Prior Experience Enhancing Environments in the Cinematic Dispositif ..... 34 CHAPTER 3: A Western Esoteric Understanding of Screens .............................................................. 39 3.1 The Materiality of Dee and Kelley’s Scrying Practice ................................................................ 39 3.2 The Origin of Screens .................................................................................................................. 41 3.3 Material Similarities in Regard to Digital Screens and Scrying Screens .................................... 43 3.4 The Esoteric Screen ..................................................................................................................... 43 CHAPTER 4: Cinema, Screens and Scrying as Part of the Same Audiovisual Tradition ..................... 48 4.1 The Audiovisual Aspects of Dee and Kelley’s Scrying Screens: an Inherited “Language” ....... 48 4.2 Contemporary Manifestations of the Scrying in Fiction as Imaginary Media ............................ 50 4.3: A “New” Audiovisual Experience: Virtual Reality.................................................................... 54 CONCLUSION ..................................................................................................................................... 61 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................................................. 65 Media ................................................................................................................................................. 70 Images ............................................................................................................................................... 71 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank several people who helped me through the course of writing and researching this thesis. Firstly, I would like to thank my parents for giving me the opportunity and the resources to go to University and all the support they gave me while writing this thesis. Secondly, I would like to thank my boyfriend Iwan for his excellent memory of film titles and his support during stressful times. Thirdly, I would like to thank dhr. prof. dr. W.J. (Wouter) Hanegraaff and dhr. dr. P.J. (Peter) Forshaw from the Western Esoteric department of the department of Religion Studies of the University of Amsterdam, for their enthusiasms of the subject I have chosen and for the advice they gave me about finding useful sources. Finally, I would like to thank my supervisor dhr. dr. F.J.J.W. (Floris) Paalman for his support regarding my chosen subject and for helping me out to find a focus is the chaos of my enthusiasm. I can’t imagine a better way to apply for my master degree in Media Studies. I’ve experienced the process of writing this thesis as a personal enrichment, a better understanding of myself, my past experiences and my existence, as well as the beginning of my future. All in all, I’m very grateful for this opportunity. KEYWORDS Western Esotericism, Scrying, Media Archaeology, Screens, Cinema 4 CHAPTER 1: Introduction Mortlake, 16 November 1582. John Dee and Edward Kelley are preparing the room for a magic ritual (see figure 1 and 2). An obsidian stone is placed at the table in front of the window. Prayers can be heard as the light hits the stone. Kelley’s eyes focus on the surface of the stone. Then suddenly, a crowned angel wearing a red robe appears. Seven angels carrying a copper star with seven points, follow after him. One of the angels speaks out to John Dee “I am he which have powre to alter Figure 1: John Dee the corruption of NATURE, with [sic] my seal, I seale her and she [nature] is (Cleyn, Francis. John Dee. 1658. Line becom[m]e perfect. I prevayle in metalls: in the knowledge of them.” Then another Engraving. Welcome Library, London.) angel speaks: “I am Prince of the Seas: My powre is upon the waters. I drowned Pharao . My name was known to Moyses. I lived in Israel. Beholde the tyme of Gods visitation.” The angel’s speech continues in prophetic speaking of “the destructive powers of the sea”. Suddenly the angel opens his robe and feathers are revealed along with a golden girdle (belt worn by Elizabethans). Dee and Kelley watch as the stone shows a black cloth drawn, indicating the conversation has ended.1 Figure 2: Edward Kelley From the year 1582 till 1589 magus, natural philosopher (a precursor of (Cleyn, Francis. Sir Edward Kelley. 1659. scientists), alchemist, mathematician and astrologer of Queen Elizabeth I, John Dee etching and line engraving, 105 mm x 108 (1527-1608) and Edward Kelley (1555-1597) claimed to have been communicating mm. National Portrait Gallery, London.) with angels and spirits by gazing into a quartz crystal ball and an obsidian stone, to which is often referred to as a “black mirror”. These practices were performed as a result of John Dee’s quest for a revelation of the true wisdom and as “a means to increase the understanding of the cultural and intellectual issues in the period”,2 which he, in his opinion, could not satisfy enough by studying literature only.3 This quest was part of Dee’s idealistic aspiration to “unify the peoples, religions, and languages of the world through universal knowledge.”4 Whereas Kelley’s function was to gaze at the obsidian stone and crystal ball, to mediate between Dee and the angels and spirits and to pass on to Dee what he’d perceived, Dee made use of his extensive knowledge to 1 (Harkness John Dee’s Conversations 206) 2 (Harkness “Shows in the Showstone” Abstract ) 3 Dee wrote: “I could fynde no other way, to such true wisdom atteyning, but by thy extraordinary gift: and by no vulgar Schole doctrine, or human Invention.”(Peterson 58) 4(Peterson 9) Why John Dee believed he could reach this goal by means of scrying is stressed by Peterson: Dee seems to have had an almost obsessive fascination with the lost Apocrypha, especially the Book of Enoch, which is mentioned and even quoted in the Bible (Jude 14), and Esdras. He is told by the angels that the Apocrypha are not lost, but in keeping of the Jews. Most of his mystical exercises are focused on recovery of the lost wisdom that these books represented to him. The core of this book describes the revelation of the book of angelic wisdom, Liber Loagaeth […].The truth it contains will end religious disputes and restore religious unity. In short, it will usher in the new age. Since this book is so central to these angelic communications, it is amazing that it has remained unpublished. (Peterson 31-32) 5 interpret the symbolical information that was delivered to them and documented their findings and experiences.5 During their sessions Dee and Kelley were mostly alone and in private spheres. Sometimes a guest of higher social status joined the magic ritual and took over the task of Dee for the occasion.6 Dee and