The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer by Louis Kaplan

Thus, as digital photography continues to call into question faith in the truth of photographic evidence, and religious fundamentalism continues to play a central role in contemporary politics, spirit photographs have just as much to tell us about our contemporary experience as they do about one 'strange case' from the nineteenth century.' - Photography and Culture, 'Kaplan's book is particularly relevant because he asserts that spirit photographs bring to the surface our deep connection with photography itself. Thus, as digital photography continues to call into question faith in the truth of photographic evidence, and religious fundamentalism continues to play a central role in contemporary politics, spirit photographs have just as much to tell us about our contemporary experience as they do about one â€œstrange caseâ€� from the nineteenth century.' - Photography and Culture, 'Kaplan's book is particularly relevant because he asserts that spirit photographs bring to the surface our deep connection with photography itself. 'Kaplanâ€™s book is particularly relevant because he asserts that spirit photographs bring to the surface our deep connection with photography itself. The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer is the definitive resource for this unique and fascinating moment in American history and provides insights into today's ghosts in the machine. Mumler's case was an early example of investigative journalism intersecting with a criminal trial that, at its essence, set science against religion. Kaplan also contributes two extended essays, which offer a historical perspective of the Mumler phenomena and delve into the sociocultural and theoretical issues surrounding this vivid ghost story. Barnum's famous indictment of Mumler in Humbugs of the World. In The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer, Louis Kaplan brings together, for the first time, Mumler's haunting images, his revealing memoir, and rich primary sources, including newspaper articles and P.

Mumler's insistence that his work brought back the dead led to a sensational trial in 1869 that was the talk of the nation. Skeptics, however, called it a fraudulent trick on the gullible, taking advantage of the grieving at a time of suffering and loss. The practice came to be known as spirit photography, and some believed Mumler was channeling the dead. Faint images of the dearly departed lurked in the background with the living, like his well-known photo of the recently assassinated Abraham Lincoln comforting Mary Todd.

In the 1860s, William Mumler photographed ghosts-or so he claimed.

The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer by Louis Kaplan