The original medium who was observed “calling forth” ectoplasm was Eva C., a medium who would enter a trance and bring forth a matter which Roach notes one observer described by saying, “’That there stuff is just gauze!’” (126). Roach describes ectoplasm as “a link between life and afterlife, a mixture of matter and ether, physical and yet spiritual…that unfortunately photographed very much like cheesecloth” (124). The search for the soul led to the “discovery” of ectoplasm in 1914, the result of photographers’ attempts at capturing souls on film. Roach goes on to explore the history of attempts to observe the soul, which have been instigated through the use of scales, x-rays, a device called the “Snook tube” (113), and electrographs. Rawat took the villagers’ statements with a grain of salt, but did not attempt to dispel these attitudes. They want only for others to believe as they do. Those who have blind faith in the supernatural do not want to contribute to a scientific discussion of the matter. This contrast illustrates one of the reasons that studying the afterlife can be so difficult. Rawat, who uses a scientific approach to a field that many of his colleagues write off as nonsense, and the villagers, who want so badly to believe that they are witnessing reincarnation that they fabricate evidence and give dramatized accounts. Roach’s attitude toward the subject matter contrasts with the attitudes of Dr. Roach experiences the ways that villagers she encounters think of reincarnation as fact, and states, “I’m not saying the events of these cases are untrue I’m saying that no villager is likely to judge them with an especially critical eye or ear” (45). Rawat travels to see Indian children who are rumored to be the reincarnation of recently deceased people.

Kirti Rawat, the director of the International Centre for Survival and Reincarnation Searches.

The first chapter of the book focuses on the trip that Roach took with Dr. Spook is no different, which Roach conveys in the introduction when she writes, “his is a book for people who would like very much to believe in a soul and in an afterlife for it to hang around in, but who have trouble accepting these things on faith” (14). In her other books, such as Bonk (2008) and Stiff (2003), Roach takes a scientific approach to the subjects of sex and the life of cadavers, respectively. Spook (2005) by Mary Roach is a detailed investigation into cultural attitudes toward the idea of the afterlife. Issue 6: Brave New Worlds: Utopias and Dystopias.Issue 1: Historical Hauntings & Modern-Day Manifestations.

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Spook by mary roach summary