Episode 201 – On James Whale's 'Frankenstein' and 'Bride of Frankenstein,' with Peter Bebergal

In this episode, Phil and JF are joined by independent scholar Peter Bebergal, author of Strange Frequencies, Season of the Witch, and other books on the intersections of culture, religion, and the occult. The topic is Frankenstein—not Guillermo del Toro's latest but James Whale's 1931 talkie along with its 1935 sequel, The Bride of Frankenstein, both starring Boris Karloff. The conversation touches on Gnosticism, alchemy, modern techno-hubris, the Gothic, and much more.

Peter's new online course, Hacking the Invisible: At the Intersection of Technology and Magic, begins on November 20th, 2025, and runs for three weeks on Weirdosphere. Visit the Weirdosphere website (weirdosphere.org) for details and to enroll.

References

James Whale (dir.), Frankenstein (imdb.com/title/tt0021884)

Tobe Hooper (dir.), Texas Chainsaw Massacre (imdb.com/title/tt0072271)

James Whale (dir.), The Bride of Frankenstein (imdb.com/title/tt0026138)

Justin Sledge, Esoterica (justinsledge.com/esoterica)

Henry Bergson, Introduction to Metaphysics (bookshop.org/a/18799/9789351287582)

David Bohm, Wholeness and the Implicate Order (bookshop.org/a/18799/9780415289795)

Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (bookshop.org/a/18799/9780141439471)

John the Apostle, The Apocryphon of John (bookshop.org/a/18799/9781804216378)

Stuart Gordon (dir.), Stuck (imdb.com/title/tt0758786)

Jennifer Kent (dir.), The Babadook (imdb.com/title/tt2321549)

Stephen T. Asma, On Monsters (bookshop.org/a/18799/9780195336160)

Thomas Paine, “The Age of Reason” (bookshop.org/a/18799/9781539127703)

Jean Gimpel, Medieval Machine (amazon.com/Medieval-Machine-Industrial-Revolut…)

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