Event overview
Goldsmiths Literature Seminar
Antonio Sanna (University of Cagliari)
This paper examines Haggard’s novels, She and Ayesha: The Return of She (respectively published in 1887 and 1905). These works frequently represent the practices of Victorian spiritualists and theosophists as much as they utilize the narrative techniques and tropes of the period’s literary ghost stories. The paper will offer a close reading of several passages of the two novels which will then be compared and confronted with the reports both of Victorian spiritualists and of the members of the Theosophical Society. In this way, the very figure of She can be seen as epitomising the theosophists’ tenet of reincarnation of the human soul and their belief in the continuous and evolutionary state of flux of matter and spirit. The character of She can be seen as representing “a ghost-like apparition”, as described in many accounts of Victorian séances, and is a figure who is suspended between materiality and spirituality. In addition, the narrative also disrupts the dichotomous boundaries of life and death, matter and spirit and past and present.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 21 Nov 2013 | 6:30pm - 8:00pm |
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