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Call for Papers Edited Multi-Volume Series on the Spiritualist Movement
Modern Spiritualism as a religious movement finds its roots in
mid-nineteenth century upstate New York during a time of great
spiritual fervor in New England. Since then, Spiritualism has
flourished and spread world-wide. Studies of Spiritualism have largely
focused on the movement’s relationship to emergent feminism and gender
issues or on its relationship to the paranormal and psychical
research. The present series a 3 volume edited collection titled,
The Spiritualist Movement: Speaking with the Dead in America and
Around the World to be published by Praeger seeks to broaden the
scope of the study of Spiritualism, and to bring together diverse
perspectives on this American-made global religion.
I am seeking the broadest possible range of topics,
methodologies, and approaches to the subject. The series will be
roughly divided into three volumes representing: The History of the
Spiritualist Movement in America and the World; Debates over the
Evidential Claims Made by Spiritualism and Spiritualists; and Other
Forms of Mediumship in Relation to Spiritualism. Possible proposals
might include:
• American origins of the Spiritualist movement and its cultural and
political ramifications
• Feminist perspectives on the Spiritualist movement and its leadership
• In-depth overviews of important figures in the history of
Spiritualism (i.e. the Fox sisters, Patience Worth, Arthur Conan
Doyle, William James, Frederic Myers, Harry Houdini, or William Lyon
Mckenzie King)
• The spread of Spiritualism and the Spiritualist movement in
non-American contexts (i.e. Iceland, England, Brazil, Europe, East
Asia)
• Ethnographic studies of Spiritualism
• Evidence-based claims made by Spiritualism and Spiritualists
• Debates over the findings of psychical research and
parapsychological studies of mediums
• Mediumship as a phenomenon of human experience throughout history
and across the globe.
• Spiritualism in relation to other new religious movements like the
Theosophical Society, the Thelemic Orders, or Wicca
• Spiritualism and mediums as portrayed in popular media and the
popularity of the movement generally
• Death, grief, and the role of Spiritualism in bereavement
• Christian and other dominant religions’ responses to Spiritualism
I encourage proposals from a range of methodologies, including
but not limited to those from the fields of history, religious
studies, anthropology, sociology, gender studies, literature,
philosophy, and psychology.
Chapter proposals should be approximately 200-250 words,
submitted by e-mail to Christopher M. Moreman: [log in to unmask] on
or before April 15th, 2011.
--
Christopher M. Moreman, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Philosophy
California State University, East Bay
Hayward, CA
