"Uncanny technology, female ghosts and revenge", article written in 2022.

 Uncanny technology, female ghosts and revenge 

Background 

Within the horror film genre there is, as in most genres, recurring themes or tropes, for example "The Final Girl" where a girl or a woman is the only survivor after the horrific events, see for example Carol Clovers definition of the trope (Clover, 2015; 35-36), cursed objects such as dolls, mirrors or rings or "the evil alternatively scary child" such as Damien (Harvey Spencer Stephens) in The omen (1976) or Regan (Linda Blair) in The Exorcist (1972).  

I would argue that there are also the tropes of "haunted technology" and the "vengeful female ghost" that in some cases are closely connected to each other, see for example Ringu (1998) and Unfriended (2014). I would also argue that this connection between a female evil, or perhaps more accurately, female rage and technology within the horror genre has historical roots. I suggest that the female ghost on film sometimes gets represented through haunted or uncanny technology because of the historical correlation between thoughts surrounding the uncanny of media, women and technology as well as spiritualism in relation to gender and media. 

In order to present these thoughts in a clear way, I will use examples such as earlier mentioned the films Ringu (1998) and Unfriended (2014) as well as articles and other literature concerning the uncanny of media, media history, genre theory concerning horror and film as well as feminist horror film theory. In this way, I will present information and arguments for regarding the issue in an ongoing conversation . For the sake of readability, I will first briefly present a selection of genre- and feminist filmtheory and then divide the article into four categories or subheadings, Horrorgenre- and feminist film theory, The uncanny of media and technology, Spiritualism and media and Femininity and women within technology and spiritualism. I will then conclude the article with my own conclusions on the topic and suggestions for further research. 

Horrorgenre- and feminist film theory 

Barbra Creed who defined the monstrous-feminine in her book with the same name argues that the female monster stems from the feminine reproductive body (Creed, 1993; 83) and that the monsterus-feminine have several different faces (Creed, 1993; 1-2). One of these faces could be interpreted as the possessed woman who rebels against the proper symbolic order for women through separation from the mother such as Reagan in The Exorcist (1972) (Creed, 1993; 38-39). Another face could be explained as woman as a witch, as an "other" opposed to the male norm and who can be seen as weak like a child but with powers of castration and a monstrous sexual appetite (Creed, 1993; 75).  

These evil powers are then seen as a part of her feminine nature (Creed, 1993; 76). Creed argue that the monsterous-feminine becomes an abject figure because she threatens the symbolic order (Creed, 1993; 83). Another face of the monsterous-feminine is the femme castratrice or the castrating woman in opposition to the castrated woman (Creed, 1993; 122). Creed claims that this is a more conventional view on the monstrous-feminine who transforms into a monster when sexually or emotionally unfulfilled as in the case with revenge films such as I spit on your Grave (1978) (Creed, 1993; 122-123). 

The feminine as an "other" would make the feminine monstrous through the difference in regards to what is constituted as a norm since the monster always, as Jefferey Jerome Cohen puts it, dwells at the gates of difference (Cohen, 1996; 7-8), the monster is the "other" the outsider. Robin Wood stated that horror in its simplest forms arises when normality is threatened by the monster (Wood, 2002; 31) and therefore it could be seen as horror arises when the normality of patriarchal structures becomes threatened by the monstrous-feminine. In this way the female ghost does not only threaten through her disembodiment and un-living body but also through her opposition to the symbolic order or society's feminine norms. 

The uncanny of media and technology 

Every new media has historically raised feelings of uncanniness and fear within parts of the society when first introduced, or as John Durham Peters puts it in his book Speaking into the air : A history of the idea of communication (1999) "Every new medium is a machine for the production of ghosts" (Peters, 1999; 139). These media fears have historically been connected to moral panics (Gunning, 2003; 41; 47 & Boëthius, 1994; 259-260) but also raised feelings of uncanniness, the uncanny in this sense being something familiar but still different from the reality we know (Freud, 2020; 60). This feeling of uncanniness seems to have been present with almost every new type of media from radio waves, the telegraph, telephones, the television or any other apparatus that could transfer information we cannot physically see, who transfer signals anyway that are physically impossible to see for human eyes. Even photography made people feel uncanny when it was first introduced (Gunning, 2003; 49), and this and uncanniness might have contributed to the popularity of the so-called spirit photographs, which I will mention in the section below regarding spiritualism and media.

Technology has always been a way to contain something of our world even after death (Peters, 1999; 140) which might be interpreted as a way of freezing time. The well known film critic André Bazin has expressed this, regarding photography, as something that embalms time (Bazin, 2011; 313). Bazin also argues that photography capsulizes the Reality in a way that recembers the act of mummification used by the Egyptians (Bazin, 2011; 311). This is in a sense true since the film or photography captures the indexical image as it were, but at the same time film and photography is always a chosen material and therefore could never be the exact reality. Even if photographs could never show the entire reality, this shows how photography and other media that captures and contains something realistic could be interpreted as something that communicates the actual reality. This makes these types of media a communication with the dead and the disembodied as well as an argument for the spiritualistic approaches on media such as spirit photography.  

This fear of the dead being present within the media seems to, as already mentioned, have been present within almost every new media technological introduction. Such as the fear of old audio recordings who might have grown from multiple thoughts on the occult and media, but also with this exact thought of the dead as a presence in the recordings since you could hear (or see them in film) after their passing in a disembodied way (Smith, 2011; 535). During the introduction of the telegraph some even believed that this encroached on the spiritual space and therefore constituted a problem (Sconce, 2000; 25) which also indicates that, at least some groups, in societies through media history have seen a connection between new technology and spirits or ghosts. The fear of media might therefore be interpreted as a combination of two aspects, the spiritualistic uncanny of media such as the disembodied presence within recordings and media in relation to spiritualism, which will be analyzed further in the next section of the article, and the moral uncanny of media and how the new technology would affect certain groups in society, mostly women and the youth (Smith, 2011; 542). 

This moral aspect has, just as the spiritualistic thoughts on media, been present historically within almost all introduction of new media, as in the case of women and children who were not allowed to answer telephone calls in the early years of telephone history (Balbi, 2013; 63), This moral panic does not only resembles the fear of every new media, but also the fear of backmasked messages within rock music and brainwashing and imprinting through media through short and fast clips (Smith, 2011; 538)  and the debate surrounding the video nasties in the 1980's. 

The history of fear and uncanny feelings towards media and technology, together with these aspects of communication with something not visually present as well as  the spiritualism movement's connection to the medium, together forms what could be considered as an explanation to why feelings of uncanniness still arise in relation to media. This fear, and of course appreciation towards the possibilities of media that the same thoughts present, seem to have a special bond to the horror film and especially films with the theme of ghosts and uncanny media.  

Spiritualism and media 

In the middle of the 1800's a movement began to take form that we today refer to as the spiritualist movement (Gutierrez, 2015; 197-198). During the same time, and within the same circles, a kind of spiritualistic photography emerged, the so-called spirit photography. The main idea behind the spirit photography was that spirits or ghosts could be captured on photographic film through a camera, that the camera in this sense would be able to show us what the human eye could not see (Gutierrez, 2015; 203). The thought resembles that of known ways to use technology, such as x-ray technology that has the ability to show what is inside a body even though the human eye could not see through the tissue on its own (Medeiros, 2015; 12).  

The spirit photographs were so popular that even people who were initially skeptical against the phenomenon began to take part in it (Gutierrez, 2015; 203 & Medeiros, 2015; 11). The Movement became highly questioned by the christian parts of the society as something with occult roots and therefore deemed blasphemous and potentially satanic (Partridge, 2015; 3-4). These so-called spirit photographs were also questioned since they sometimes proved to be copies of other photographs or the result of overexposure with one or more images overlapping each other (Gunning, 1995; 65). 

Within this movement the thought of a human soul as something separated from their body and the identity of that soul as a kind of information circulated as well (Enns, 2019; 39-40). In this way the human soul was thought to be able to elevate from the body and become a disembodied entity in itself (Enns, 2019; 41). This meant for some spiritualists that the soul had the possibility to travel through technology, for example a telegraph line (Enns, 2019; 40). This way of separating the soul from the body is crucial to the concept of ghosts within technology. Some mediums within the spiritualist movement seem to have considered themselves capable of gaining access to others realms through a kind of mental-body-traveling (Waters, 1997; 426-427). In this way their identity was thought to travel to the spirit plane even though their body remained within the medium's own realm. 

This ghost in the machine, as Hughes call it in an article about the film Pulse (2001) (Hughes, 2011; 26-27) is present within a large amount of fictional films within the horror genre such as in the case with the modern take in Pulse (2001) or Unfriended (2014) where the ghost is present within a computer or as in Ringu (1998)  where the ghost, Sadako (Rie Inō), not only control tv apparatus but also emerges from the tv-set to kill the viewer. The cursed video shown within the films is also shot as Sadako’s own view, as seen through her eyes (Panagia, 2007; 13) and therefore an imprint made through her eyes through which we as an audience, as Panagia puts it, are ‘viewing viewing’ (Panagia, 2007; 13). This way of imprinting an indexical image through the ghosts eyes makes the spirit not only part of the machine when Sadako emerges, but she also communicates through the tv and makes the viewer see, a chosen material, through her eyes and in extension makes the audience view the viewing of the viewing. The spiritualist thought of an indexical image of a spirit might not have the same type of relevance with today's digital media (Sayad, 2021; 39-40), analog film is almost never used in contemporary society. 

But the thoughts of spirits within technology as well as ghosts appearing on film remain to this day within mockumentaries such as The Blair Witch Project (1999), tv-shows that claim to show real paranormal incidents such as the swedish show Det okända (2004-2009) and horror films as Chattoe: Kot Tit Winyan (2004) (English tile Shutter) as well as some of the other horror films used as examples in this article, Ringu (1998) and Unfriended (2014). If this concept of spirits or souls traveling through technology were an actual possibility, this would mean that spirits could emerge almost everywhere in modern society, which would make the fear of the tv as a medium entering the ordinary home environment (Sconce, 2000; 130-131) seem quite small.  

Femininity and women within technology and spiritualism 

Spirit photography, psychic photography and women 

In the late 1800 when spiritualism became more popular, so did the earlier mentioned spirit photograph (Gunnings, 1995; 48). The popularity within spiritualism did not only revolve around spirit photography though, but also communication with spirits and mediums (Sconce, 2000; 26). This ability where most commonly thought to be held by women and medial capabilities where considered feminine (Sconce, 2000; 26; 44-45; 48-49). 

The female medium's body (Sconce, 2000; 44) was then seen almost as a vessel for transmission of information, the medium became a kind of receiver of cord. This possibility to transmit signals from something else became a kind of double edged sword for these women. On one hand these women could behave in ways that were seen as inappropriate for their gender, or blasphemous, and express feelings otherwise exclusive for men in contemporary society (Sconce, 2000; 48-49). On the other hand women who were believed to have these abilities were seen as mentally-ill or hysterical (Sconce, 2000; 51). 

These women found a way to break gender norms through spiritualism, but at the same time they were deemed in a negative way because of that same behavior. In the sense the feminine mediums became a part of a historical tradition where women opposing gender norms were considered hysteric and blasphemous and therefore evil and monstrous. This becomes a way of looking at certain abilities as feminine and at the same time consider the same functions as both weak and passive as well as monstrous and evil. This could be seen as a similar view on the feminine as the negative perspective on so-called witches (Creed, 1993; 75) as something demonic (Partridge, 2015; 4) or a kind of monsterous-feminine (for further reading on the monstrous feminine see for example Creed, 1993). Women become both passive receivers for information and an active evil force, which is then both seen as feminine nature (Creed, 1993; 76). 

Within horror films that depict a monstrous-feminine we can see the same patriarchal structures as within the film's contemporary society. However, in many of these cases the questioning of norms and structures through the monstrous-feminine trumps the recreation of negative stereotypes since the questioning does take place and sometimes this also includes a way for the monstrous-feminine to make a social change. For example in Shutter (2004) the female ghost gets to tell her story and through that question the deeds made towards her and who is the actual monster. This raises conversation about destructures themselves and provides space to challenge those structures. In Shutter (2004) the ghosts within technology are mostly shown as something similar to spirit photography, which is also referenced in the film when they visit a magazine who publishes spirit photographs in particular.  

Shutter (2004) shows the female ghost’s story through how the main characters localize the ghost and where it moves within rooms through still photographs, picture by picture. In this way the dead girl can communicate with, mostly the female, lead character through spirit photography, as if the camera were a lens in a pair of glasses showing what is there but can not be seen with only human eyes. These photographs, especially the variety of other spirit photographs published by the magazine, are shown to be very blurry or showing an almost transparent face somewhere in the picture, much like the historical spirit photographs (Gunning, 1995; 47-48). 

The usual objection regarding how a lot of spirit photographs turned out to be “doubles” or double exposure is also referred to in the film (Gunning, 1995; 65). Shutter (2004) also reveals the revelation of the curse through photographs, just like how photographs show the curse in Ringu (1998), the difference here being that in Ringu (1998) the blur of the photograph appears over the one who is affected by the curse. In Ringu (1998) ghosts also points to leads regarding the curse, but more through reflections in the tv or the like instead of still photography alone. 

In Ringu (1998) we also get introduced to the concept of psychic photography and imprints on a photograph through a human (female) medium (Enns, 2010; 31-39) and with the similarities of an eye and a camera regarding how the cursed video is portrayed, as earlier mentioned, as if through Sadako’s own eyes (Panagia, 2007; 1-2) the film takes this concept even further. Sadako does not only show the viewer the world through her eyes, but uses her psychic powers to imprint the curse on the spectator. In this way Sadako shows parts of her history as well and the sad story of she and her mother, as well as other women within the spiritualism movement as earlier mentioned, were regarded as both a passive tool for communication and something problematic and hysterical. 

This way of questioning norms or relating to real life history through horror film has been present within the genre historically where horror has been used to highlight problematic social structures and issues that are at the white difficult to touch upon (Lowenstein, 2005; 2-3 & Cohen, 1996; 6-7). Even when the film isn't made to question these norms, horror films have been known to raise awareness and conversation about difficult topics (see for example Böhme, 2015). This might be considered one of the horror genre's most important functions. 

Women and telephones 

As already mentioned most media caused fears when they were first introduced, the telephone was no exception, not even in Italy (Balbi, 2013; 60). Regarding the telephone the concerns were partly privacy, this concern was not totally un-founded as calls were connected manually and intercepted by the telephone operator (Balbi, 2013; 65). There was also a concern regarding how the telephones would  affect women, mainly because switchboard operators, a low income job, in most cases were women (Balbi, 2013; 66). This ways concern that these women would become i there sexually promiscuous or molested (Balbi, 2013; 66-67). This meant that most telephone operators were women but that at the same time the job was considered unsuitable for women. 

There was a fear that the work as a switchboard operator would affect the possibility of marriage (Balbi, 2013; 66) since the work was considered so inappropriate. Because of this most women who worked as switchboard operators were Young while older married women could be considered unfit for the job (Balbi, 2013; 67). This use of young women for the job and worry of the same resulted in a sexualised picture of these women, stories regarding these women's sexuality as well as actual molesting of these women and in extension that male operators sometimes worked the night shifts (Balbi, 2013; 66-67). This use of women as operators despite the negative thoughts on the subject as well as the privacy issues it arouse, which made the telephone more of a public than private medium in the beginning (Peters, 1999; 195), could be seen as another way of looking at the feminine as something neutral, capable of receiving and sending information from beyond as a vessel for someone else, much like the view on feminine mediums (Peters, 1999; 196).  

Women and tv 

When TV was introduced a similar fear regarding women as in the case with the telephone arose. There was a Fear of Television pacifying nuclear families and destroying the conservative American values present in the USA at the time (Sconce, 2000; 153; 163) and this pacification was seen as a feminine trait which increased the negative feelings towards this possible development (Sconce, 2000; 153-154). This was at the same time as a rising problem with house wives mental Health in the USA (Sconce, 2000; 158) most probably caused by isolation and stress rather than the television itself (Sconce, 2000; 149-151). Still, this could have contributed to why the television was seen as something fearful and problematic, something unknown entering the private home (Sconce, 2000; 130-131).  

This also resulted in a fear that the technology would be able to get reversed and send information back or trap someone within alien technology (Sconce, 2000; 141 ; 150). Being trapped inside technology is not unlike the real likes of the Housewives In The USA who were trapped at home with only Television as Company (Sconce, 2000; 149). It could therefore be seen as the television taking the blame for mental health issues regarding women caused by patriarchal structures. The theme of televisional intrusion in the family became recurring in science fiction television shows during this era (Sconce, 2000; 133) and seem to have continued to be reproduced within films since then such as Poltergeist (1982) (Sconce, 2000; 163-164) and Ringu (1998). 

Female rage, ghosts and women 

The evil, enraged female spirit or the witch could be said to be a known recurring theme within the horror genre, alongside scary or evil children. All of these tropes are closely connected to the earlier mentioned passive- and receiving-, but also spiritualistic- and therefore considered diabolic (Partridge, 2015; 4) feminine. This is not seldom in relation to the monstrous-feminine as well and how the capability of bringing a life into the world is turned to something inherently evil (Creed, 1993; 83).  

The theme of a small girl with psychic powers who get shunned because of this and therefore produces a curse is present in a variety of media, media scholar Ewan Kirkland has lifted this theme within both the video game Silent Hill 2 (2001) and the film Ringu (1998) (Kirkland, 2012; 111). This, as well as the ghost in Shutter (2004) could be seen as related to the, mostly in asian horror films commonly used, trope of female ghosts with long black hair who have been wronged in life connected to a wide range of folklore (McRoy, 2018; 174-175). In some post-feminist movies and tv-shows there has been a trope of women who becomes empowered by their psychic abilities (Beeler, 2013; 286).  

The same thing could be said for these psychic women and small girls, but instead the empowerment comes through a curse and revenge, not totally unlike the mandatory revenge moment within the horror subgenre rape and revenge, where the crescendo consists of the victim's brutal revenge against one or more perpetrators (Clover, 2015: 137-138). Even within the film Unfriended (2014), where the ghost does not seem to have had any kind of psychic powers before her death, the deaths come as a vengeance against those who wronged her in life and when empowered by this rage and with the possibilities of disembodiment through death the revenge comes through what is present in nearly every home today, a computer and connection to the internet. 

Conclusion: the uncanny media and female rage 

Gender and femininity is part of what the fear regarding media. Partly because of the connection between mediums, femininity and women where femininity itself could cause fear as a monstrous-feminine, just as in the case with children and other groups outside of the patriarchal norm. The female is considered something "unknown", passive and inherently evil (Creed, 1993; 76), traits that seem to get passed on to technology as a neutral sender and receiver of information (Peters, 1999; 196) who might get corrupted. There is also a connection to how females are treated in patriarchal society and the possibility for revenge for the female ghost within the horror film. Liberated of their body and with new possibilities that can cause terror within the patriarchal society which, even though it blames women in the way as witches with one hand who sees women as weak and with the another, who empowers women in some ways and makes it possible to bring up problematic questions regarding womens issues. Horror films have historically been seen to converse with and question social and cultural aspects who otherwise have been troubling to bring up. 

The theme within the horror film of female ghosts with a revenge aspect is recurring, but also complex and brings with it a lot of different, within the genre popular, tropes as well as new questions regarding the monstrous-feminine and rage in relation to technophobia and media fears. The feminine has been seen as a passive and at the same time potentially evil force within both media history and horror films surrounding female monsters.  The feminine monster is something who threatens normality (Wood, 2002; 31)and the social- and symbolic order (Creed, 1993; 83). is therefore present within both the feminine in relation to technology as well as in the horror film genre. This makes the theme of female ghosts within or in relation to media a trope well grounded in our regular life which gives the trope room to develop and keep appearing within the genre films. 

The rage of these female ghosts in horror films empowers but also gives the feminin a way to take revenge on gender norms and raise awareness regarding social issues revolving around the fear of and control of the feminine and women throughout history. This could be seen as something related to the rape and revenge subgenre (Creed, 1993; 122 & Clover, 2015; 137-138) within the horror genre and how this shows how someone has been wronged and then let them take their place back as the castrating woman who finaly, through the ultimate sacrefice of death, becomes free enough to claim their right.

This subgenre has changed over the decade and will most likely continue to change since media development moves very fast today and has changed a lot because of the move from analog film to digital and with the ever ongoing evolution of the internet, video calls and peoples relation to new media. Therefore the sub genre could be explored further through the light of contemporary norms and horror films.  

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(Article written by Iris Landar Lygren in 2022)