How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
The new powers of science to harness invisible forces often made those beliefs seem more credible, not less. If phonographs could capture human voices, and if telegraphs could send messages from one continent to the other, then why couldn't science eventually peel back the Other World? (4.30)
Science can't explain everything, so people find ways to fill in the gaps. To some, these metaphysical or spiritual methods of communing with the dead seem like quackery. But just because science can't detect ghosts and spirits, does that mean they don't exist at all, in any form?
Quote #5
Fawcett's interest in the occult had been largely an expression of his youthful rebellion and scientific curiosity, and had contributed to his willingness to defy the prevailing orthodoxies of his own society and to respect triable legends and religions. (17.23)
Fawcett is a contrarian at heart. His society wants to restrict him, so he's going to pack up and go to the Amazon. His society wants him to be religious or scientific, so he's going to find a third path and start chatting up psychics. This is a guy who blazes his own trail, even to the afterlife.
Quote #6
There was a rumor among some officers that Fawcett used a Ouija board, a popular tool of mediums, to help make tactical decisions on the battlefield. (17.23)
Okay, we're willing to give Fawcett the benefit of the doubt with his open-mindedness regarding spiritual exploration. But using a Ouija board to make decisions at war? Well, we guess it's at least one step above trying to use a Magic 8 Ball as a grenade.