Episode 16: Seeing Double

There’s something unsettling about seeing ourselves in the mirror. Throughout history, across cultures and in scores of horror films, the reflected world can be a portal into the unknown. But what happens when these mirror selves take on a life of their own? This time, we’re delving into a few strange and eerie accounts of doppelgangers. 

Listen in to hear how Abraham Lincoln, the writer Goethe and the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley all reported seeing their double selves (and one was even confirmed by a witness). Whether you see the phenomena as an omen or merely a figment of an overworked imagination, there are few things more unnerving than the idea of looking at our reflection—and seeing something else look back.