Ghostly Phenomena

O‘Donnell, Elliott, 1872-1965Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 204K words
Chapters: 21

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Ghostly Phenomena by Elliott O'DonnellAuthor: O'Donnell, Elliott, 1872-1965,Language: English, Class: BF: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Psychology, Philosophy, Psychoanalysis, Release Date: Sep 21, 2012

Editor's review

This book is Elliott O'Donnell's English-language work on ghosts and psychic phenomena, belonging to the popular writing tradition of early twentieth-century supernatural literature and psychical research. The author collects and retells various hauntings and supernatural experiences in a storytelling manner, with a style that clearly reflects the tastes of its era; it reads like an old-fashioned chronicle of ghostly encounters. Its value lies not in providing scientific evidence but in showing how people more than a century ago talked about, explained, and consumed the supernatural, offering reference value for readers interested in folklore, supernatural literature, and the history of popular culture. The material is mainly anecdotal narration, the language is somewhat old-fashioned, and some views are limited by their time; readers should treat it as cultural-historical source material rather than factual reportage. Suitable as bedtime reading or a sourcebook for genre writing, and also for comparative reading against modern supernatural narratives.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who enjoy ghost stories and supernatural lore
Those interested in folklore, supernatural literature, or the history of popular culture
Novelists and screenwriters in need of weird-tale material
Readers curious about early twentieth-century English popular literature

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking scientific explanations or empirical research
Readers impatient with old-fashioned English and anecdotal narration
Researchers expecting rigorous argumentation or a systematic theoretical framework

Reading tips

Treat it as cultural-historical material rather than factual record, and note the narrator's period biases as you read.
Read by chapter according to type of haunting; sequential reading from start to finish is not necessary.
Compare with modern folklore or psychological discussions of supernatural narratives.
After reading, organize motifs of interest as material for writing or research.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Does this book argue that ghosts really exist?

It mainly retells and compiles supernatural rumors and accounts of the time, with the entertaining flavor of popular writing; it is not rigorous empirical research. Readers should understand it as cultural material of early twentieth-century supernatural narrative, not as scientific proof of ghosts' existence.

Can I read it if my English is not good?

The original is in English, and the language is somewhat old-fashioned, with period expressions mixed into the narrative. Readers with weaker English may need a dictionary or a translation; if reading only for curiosity, they can try a few short chapters first to gauge the difficulty before deciding whether to read the whole book.

Is this book suitable for academic citation?

It can be cited as primary material for research on early supernatural literature, folklore narrative, or the history of popular culture, but it should not be used as factual evidence for supernatural phenomena. When citing, note its popular-writing nature and historical background, and avoid treating the rumors in the book as verified cases.

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About the author

O‘Donnell, Elliott, 1872-1965 Author

Elliott O’Donnell (1872–1965) was a British writer known for his works on ghosts, hauntings and the supernatural. Ten of his books are held in this collection, including Twenty Years’ Experience as a Ghost Hunter, Werwolves, Byways of Ghost-Land, Animal Ghosts; Or, Animal Hauntings and the Hereafter, Scottish Ghost Stories, The Sorcery Club, The Banshee and Haunted Places in England. His writing draws largely on local ghost lore and haunted-place legends, and also treats folkloric figures such as werewolves and the banshee, in a reportorial style that emphasises atmosphere and the retelling of tales. Public information about him is limited and few biographical details are known, but his works show a sustained interest in collecting and presenting ghost stories from Britain and Europe, making him one of the more active writers of supernatural popular literature in the early twentieth-century English-speaking world.