This morning I happened upon an episode of Syfy Channel's excellent show "Fact or Faked" where they were trying to debunk a series of photographs of ectoplasm. Perhaps the best debunking of ectoplasm is that you really don't hear about it anymore. Surely if ghosts really did exude and use ectoplasm, we would still be taking photographs and samples of the stuff!
Ectoplasm had its heyday in the spiritualism of the late 1800s and early 1900s, coincidentally along with the rise of affordable, semi-portable cameras. Most of the evidence of ectoplasm was indeed photographic, under circumstances which are, shall we say, somewhat suspect.
Ectoplasm also was closely tied to the use of spirit mediums, another fad which has somewhat faded. The ectoplasm often seemed to be surrounding or being exuded from the medium, which was supposedly proof that the medium was working with the spirit world. In truth, it was usually proof that the medium was working with dry ice pellets or long strips of gauze.
I am reminded of a chapter in Mary Roach's book Spook, where she tracks down and examines an actual historical sample of ectoplasm. It is cheesecloth, which the medium stashed in her lady parts. (The passage where Roach checks out the sample from the historical library and examines it is worth reading the entire book, frankly. I shall be etymologically punny and call it "hysterical.")
Ectoplasm was said to be mucusy, or sometimes gauzy and transparent. Depending on the medium, and what was happening, I suppose. The theory of the day was that spirits clothed themselves in ectoplasm, that it was part of the process of the spirit manifesting in our world. (Obviously it was really just part of the process of fleecing the bereaved customer.)
Ectoplasm featured strongly in the Ghostbuster movies of the 1980s, of course. At which point I suppose you could say that ectoplasm's run had finally come to its natural end: being flung at Dan Ackroyd in a wacky 80s comedy movie.
The term "ectoplasm" is often used to describe other mysterious slimes which do appear from time to time. Whether people are referencing the historical ectoplasm of spirit photography, or the slimy ectoplasm of Ghostbusters, is often uncertain. (More likely the latter, in my opinion.) Slime can sometimes appear when a wind-borne fungus all jellifies at once, or when - as happened in Alaska recently - an unusually large hatch of shrimp eggs floats to the surface and gets washed up on the beach.
Ectoplasm had its heyday in the spiritualism of the late 1800s and early 1900s, coincidentally along with the rise of affordable, semi-portable cameras. Most of the evidence of ectoplasm was indeed photographic, under circumstances which are, shall we say, somewhat suspect.
Ectoplasm also was closely tied to the use of spirit mediums, another fad which has somewhat faded. The ectoplasm often seemed to be surrounding or being exuded from the medium, which was supposedly proof that the medium was working with the spirit world. In truth, it was usually proof that the medium was working with dry ice pellets or long strips of gauze.
I am reminded of a chapter in Mary Roach's book Spook, where she tracks down and examines an actual historical sample of ectoplasm. It is cheesecloth, which the medium stashed in her lady parts. (The passage where Roach checks out the sample from the historical library and examines it is worth reading the entire book, frankly. I shall be etymologically punny and call it "hysterical.")
Ectoplasm was said to be mucusy, or sometimes gauzy and transparent. Depending on the medium, and what was happening, I suppose. The theory of the day was that spirits clothed themselves in ectoplasm, that it was part of the process of the spirit manifesting in our world. (Obviously it was really just part of the process of fleecing the bereaved customer.)
Ectoplasm featured strongly in the Ghostbuster movies of the 1980s, of course. At which point I suppose you could say that ectoplasm's run had finally come to its natural end: being flung at Dan Ackroyd in a wacky 80s comedy movie.
The term "ectoplasm" is often used to describe other mysterious slimes which do appear from time to time. Whether people are referencing the historical ectoplasm of spirit photography, or the slimy ectoplasm of Ghostbusters, is often uncertain. (More likely the latter, in my opinion.) Slime can sometimes appear when a wind-borne fungus all jellifies at once, or when - as happened in Alaska recently - an unusually large hatch of shrimp eggs floats to the surface and gets washed up on the beach.