About the author
Mark A. Lause is a historian whose work examines radical political movements in nineteenth-century America, including their connections to Spiritualism. His book Free Spirits: Spiritualism, Republicanism, and Radicalism in the Civil War Era (University of Illinois Press, 2016) argues that Spiritualism, often treated as a period curiosity, shaped the radical politics of its time, with believers active in the Free Democrats, land and monetary reform movements, and the abolitionist cause. Lause situates Spiritualist belief within the broader landscape of reform movements leading up to and through the Civil War, treating it as a political and social phenomenon rather than a matter of psychic claims. The book is aimed at readers of American social and political history interested in how religious and spiritualist movements intersected with reform and radical politics.
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💬 What our editors say about Mark A Lause's books
“Lause offers a compelling revisionist history that challenges conventional views of spiritualism as merely parlor entertainment. The book successfully illuminates the surprising intersection of spiritual beliefs with earthly…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Free Spirits: Spiritualism, Republicanism, and Radicalism in the Civil War Era
“Lause provides a meticulous excavation of spiritualism's political dimensions, arguing convincingly that these adherents shaped republican movements. While the scholarship is thorough in linking metaphysical beliefs to abolition…”
Esoterica Books editorial team, Occult literature desk · on Free Spirits: Spiritualism, Republicanism, and Radicalism in the Civil War Era
