The Darkened Room : Women, Power, and Spiritualism in Late Victorian England

Rating:
Summary: A very good over view of Victorian Spiritualism
Review: I finally finished "The Darkened Room: Women, Power, and Spiritualism in Late Victorian England." Once I started reading it went quickly, I don't know why it sat on my shelf for so long. The author, Alex Owen, does a very good job of grounding the reader in the period and issues of the day before going on to explore possible meanings.

Two chapters are devoted to case studies, one of a Spiritualist household and one of a woman who was confined to a lunatic asylum against her will. There is an execellent chapter on the lunacy system in England of the time and of some of the reformers that were active. The author used a lot of primary source material and it shows, but not in a way that over-burdens the narrative.

The final chapter falters a bit as it is slips into analsys from a modern perspective rather than letting the narrative carry the day. However the rest of the book stands on it's own and is very well written.

A good book for people interested in the 1850's -1890's, for people interested in the history of Spiritualism, or in power dynamics and social mores. The end notes alone are worth reading for little mini-biographies of some of the main players and for little stories that the author couldn't fit into the main narrative.