ABSTRACT
In The Undiscovered Country, a number of characters investigate spiritualism as a means of exploring representations of death in alternative ways from the traditional Christian paradigm that governed nineteenth-century thinking. Their interest in spiritualism parallels the cultural response to it. The chapter argues that although William Dean Howells treats all these characters sympathetically, he also suggests that their beliefs are, in their different ways, problematic because they allow them to justify their own isolation from mainstream society. It discusses how Howells uses Egeria in order to articulate a compelling critique of spiritualism. In the course of the novel, Egeria is gradually transformed from a passive medium to an advisor advocating the material world and the role of community in achieving a state of spiritual and material balance. Overall, The Undiscovered Country explores the dangers of making 'the supernatural a commonplace', and the problems with believing that 'to surprise immortality' is a worthier goal than finding connection in the material world.
