Elsa Barker
Encyclopedia
Elsa Barker was an American novelist, short-story writer and poet. She became known for three books Letters from a Living Dead Man (1914), War Letters from the Living Dead Man (1915), and Last Letters From the Living Dead Man (1919), that she said were messages from a dead man produced through automatic writing
.
. Her parents both died while Barker was still young. She worked as a shorthand
writer, a teacher and wrote for newspapers. Her father had been interested in the occult
and Barker shared this interest, becoming a member of the Theosophical Society
. She was also initiated into the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega
.
Barker lived in Europe from 1910 to 1914, first in Paris
and then in London
. She was in London at the outbreak of World War I
. In 1912, while in Paris, she felt compelled to write a passage, although she said she did not know where the words came from. She said she was "strongly impelled to take up a pencil and write." She signed the passage "X", which at first meant nothing to her. She was told that "X" was the nickname of a Los Angeles
judge called David P. Hatch and then discovered that Hatch had died before she "received" the message. In 1914 she published a book of these messages called Letters from a Living Dead Man. She said that the passages were genuine messages from the dead man and Hatch's son also believed that the communications were from his father. She published two more volumes of Hatch's messages — War Letters from the Living Dead Man (1915), and Last Letters From the Living Dead Man (1919).
Around the time of the publication of War Letters from the Living Dead Man in 1915, Barker developed an interest in psychoanalysis
. By 1919 she was studying 14 hours a day. From 1928 to 1930 she lived on the French Riviera
. Barker died August 31, 1954.
Automatic writing
Automatic writing or psychography is writing which the writer states to be produced from a subconscious and/or spiritual source without conscious awareness of the content.-History:...
.
Biography
Barker was born in 1869 in Leicester, VermontLeicester, Vermont
Leicester is a town in Addison County, Vermont, United States. The population was 974 at the 2000 census.Satans Kingdom is an unincorporated community located in Leicester.-Geography:...
. Her parents both died while Barker was still young. She worked as a shorthand
Shorthand
Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed or brevity of writing as compared to a normal method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek stenos and graphē or graphie...
writer, a teacher and wrote for newspapers. Her father had been interested in the occult
Occult
The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus , referring to "knowledge of the hidden". In the medical sense it is used to refer to a structure or process that is hidden, e.g...
and Barker shared this interest, becoming a member of the Theosophical Society
Theosophical Society
The Theosophical Society is an organization formed in 1875 to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy. The original organization, after splits and realignments has several successors...
. She was also initiated into the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega
Alpha et Omega
The Alpha et Omega was an occult order, initially named the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, co-founded in London, England by Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers in 1888...
.
Barker lived in Europe from 1910 to 1914, first in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and then in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. She was in London at the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. In 1912, while in Paris, she felt compelled to write a passage, although she said she did not know where the words came from. She said she was "strongly impelled to take up a pencil and write." She signed the passage "X", which at first meant nothing to her. She was told that "X" was the nickname of a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
judge called David P. Hatch and then discovered that Hatch had died before she "received" the message. In 1914 she published a book of these messages called Letters from a Living Dead Man. She said that the passages were genuine messages from the dead man and Hatch's son also believed that the communications were from his father. She published two more volumes of Hatch's messages — War Letters from the Living Dead Man (1915), and Last Letters From the Living Dead Man (1919).
Around the time of the publication of War Letters from the Living Dead Man in 1915, Barker developed an interest in psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
. By 1919 she was studying 14 hours a day. From 1928 to 1930 she lived on the French Riviera
French Riviera
The Côte d'Azur, pronounced , often known in English as the French Riviera , is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France, also including the sovereign state of Monaco...
. Barker died August 31, 1954.