Séances, Spectres & Ghost Stories

In this livestream talk, Oxford University tutor Dr Emily Vincent takes you on a literary journey into Victorian Spiritualism through beloved ghost stories, revealing what it was really like in the age of séances and spectres.

Charles Dickens, Arthur Conan Doyle and Florence Marryat were Victorian authors and public commentators on Spiritualism who took literary inspiration from the ghostly world of séances. This talk examines the connections between the popular Victorian movement of Spiritualism, which involved contacting spirits of the dead via séances, and 19th-century ghost stories, with their mystifying mediums and summoned spectres.

Your speaker, Dr Emily Vincent, is the perfect guide for this literary journey – she teaches on ghost stories and the Gothic at the University of Oxford. Her forthcoming book with Cambridge University Press explores 19th-century spiritualism, women's ghost stories and maternal grief.

What to expect

Spiritualism shaped the literary imagination of the Victorian era, and we'll trace the links between real séance culture and the ghost stories it inspired. Expect a lively, accessible exploration of the era's most haunting fiction and the beliefs that fuelled it.

Who is this talk for?

This talk is for anyone with an interest in Victorian literature, the history of Spiritualism, ghost stories and the Gothic, whether you're a longtime fan of the genre or simply curious about the séance culture that captivated 19th-century Britain.

Don't miss this fascinating exploration of Victorian ghosts and their storytellers, guided by a remarkable academic in the field. Book now.

Meet your tutor, Dr Emily Vincent

Dr Emily Vincent is a leading light in the field of Victorian spiritualism & ghost stories. She is a Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield and a Tutor in English at the University of Oxford, where she teaches on ghost stories and the Gothic. She is also an editor for British Library Publishing's Tales of the Weird series. Alongside her academic work, she has delivered public talks for Seed Talks London and the Museum and Archives of North Vancouver, and co-runs the Gothica network, bringing a rich blend of research and storytelling expertise to this haunting exploration of Victorian Spiritualism.