This book’s first chapter – Evolution of a Technique – is the foundation document of the Alexander Technique (even though it was written decades after Alexander’s first publications). In it Alexander describes the sequence of events through which he discovered the processes and principles of what would later become known as his “Technique.” Starting with a desire to restore his vocal and respiratory functioning so that he could continue his acting career, Alexander embarked on a journey that led him to examine, reconsider, and ultimately recreate the ways in which he conceived and directed the functioning of his whole self in all activities.

This frank story narrates the quandaries, mistaken premises, and unexamined assumptions that Alexander had to surmount, and the practical series of experiments that he devised to achieve (and surpass) his goals. Its honesty and detail are a wonderful gift for those of us who wish to pursue our own potential as comprehensively as possible. 

Later chapters of the book explore how the principles and processes that Alexander discovered and developed may be applied to golf, the treatment of stuttering, and medical diagnosis and training in general. That such diverse fields may be addressed with a common set of principles and processes is testimony to both the profundity and the practicality of Alexander’s discoveries. In each of these fields Alexander articulates with precision the vicious cycles by which poor habits and poor use reinforce each other. He then states the changes in “means whereby” that will systematically lead to new and better modes of use and functioning.

Throughout The Use of the Self Alexander’s case is closely argued and repeatedly illustrated with cogent examples, yet I still have the sense that “for one who has had the experience, no explanation is necessary, and for one who has not, no explanation is possible.” Alexander struggled with this challenge in all of his writing, and we who would promote the work continue to struggle to present the merits and the rationale of the process to those who may benefit from it. To the extent that the Alexander Technique involves a profound shift in one’s mode of experience and action, then a formal linguistic representation will always be incomplete. Nevertheless, my own experience is that the more I seek new ways of describing and explaining the Technique, the more adept I become at using it, teaching it, and representing it to those who have yet to experience it.

Themes and Discoveries 

Alexander’s experiences in working out how to redirect his own behaviour caused him to abandon his conception of “mental” and “physical” as separable domains of human functioning. He came to an experientially based conception of psycho-physical wholeness. Rather than speak of “the body” or “the mind,” Alexander came to speak simply of “the self.”

Alexander repeatedly cycled between his premises about his own use and functioning, and his data from his practical experiments. The data helped him revise his premises, and his revised premises helped him design the next phase of experimentation. As John Dewey and others have noted, this was a rigorously scientific process. 

Alexander discovered that the quality of the use of any part of himself was inseparable from the quality of the use of his whole self. Further, he discovered that the relationship between his head and his spine was primary in determining the quality of co-ordination throughout his whole self.

Alexander found that his habitual way of functioning relied upon his sense of feeling as a guide to the correctness of his actions. However his experiments revealed that this sense of feeling was inaccurate, and that reliance upon it prevented him from co-ordinating himself in the new way he had reasoned out as being most desirable.

After much experimentation he discovered that he could constructively influence this head-spine relationship by actively intending the changes he had reasoned out without trying to “feel” if he was enacting them or not; “giving directions” he called it. John Dewey termed this process “thinking in activity.” This process enabled Alexander to circumvent his habitual mode of action and to consciously direct himself in new ways that accorded with his analysis of his activities and the physiological organization best suited to them.

Alexander’s chapter Diagnosis and Medical Training is as relevant today as it was 80 years ago. Through decades of teaching experience it became clear to Alexander that many illnesses and other medical conditions were caused or exacerbated by poor “use.” He insisted that diagnosis would be incomplete, and treatment ineffective, if the quality of a patient’s use and its effect on his or her functioning was not taken into account.

Alexander also states that his experiences led him to conclude that diagnosis and treatment of poor use can only be carried out by people who have consciously learned to use themselves well. This is in stark contrast to the rest of medical training in which learning is assumed to derive from an external source such as a textbook or the examination of patients without reference to the doctor’s own use or functioning. Beyond the capacities for improved observation skill, Alexander also argues that doctors who can consciously and constructively direct their own use will also be able to think more clearly and act more effectively when dealing with novel and unknown scenarios.

Who is it for?

The Use of the Self is not just a foundational historical document of the Alexander Technique. It’s also a still-relevant formal description of the sort of disciplined cycles of experimentation and reflection that are necessary for any generative change in one’s way of being – one’s use. As such it should be read by anybody who is interested in a formal, systematic approach to what I call transformative learning, whether or not they are interested in the Alexander Technique. Anybody who is no longer satisfied with the mind/body dualism narratives of our society will find a practical and constructive alternative in The Use of the Self. 

I have heard people say that the Technique is difficult. The longer I work with the Technique the more I realize how very simple it actually is. The simplicity and the subtleness seem almost beyond comprehension. The real learning problem is not with the degree of ease or difficulty but how the acquired habits of self-use have affected our sensory mechanism. (Marjorie Barstow, Preface to the 1984 Centerline Press edition)

The most remarkable aspect of F.M.’s experiments proved that the only true guidance needed was his sequenceof directional thinking which must carry through no matter what movement is to be accomplished. Professor John Dewey termed this aspect “thinking in activity”. (Marjorie Barstow, Preface to the 1984 Centerline Press edition) 

It has been suggested to me by a friend and pupil who has read the manuscript of the first chapter of this book, that some readers may conclude from it that my technique is limited in its usefulness to dealing with serious difficulties such as those which I describe. This is not the case, however, for pupils free from any such difficulties have frequently come to me because they believed – and results justified this belief – that however well endowed thay might be with health or other gifts, they would derive benefit from learning how to direct and control the use of themselves consciously in their daily activities. (p.ii)

I ask those readers therefore, who are anxious to teach themselves, to reread this chapter, in which I give not only an account of my difficulties but also of the means whereby I freed myself from them. They will see that the discovery of the primary control opened up a road by which I could make a safe passage from “idealistic theory to actual practice,” as long as I relied upon a conscious guidance instead of upon an automatic sensory guidance. (p.vii)

The technique of Mr. Alexander gives to the educator a standard of psychophysical health – in which what we call morality is included. It supplies also the “means whereby” this standard may be progressively and endlessly achieved, becoming a conscious possession of the one educated. It provides therefore the conditions for the central direction of all special education processes. It bears the same relation to education that education itself bears to all other human activities. (John Dewey, p.xix)

I shall give as fully as possible the actual details of the experiments I made, telling what I observed and experienced during the process, as I believe that by so doing I shall be giving my readers the opportunity to see for themselves the train of events which finally convinced me (1) that the so-called “mental” and “physical” are not separate entities; (2) that for this reason human ills and shortcomings cannot be classified as “mental” or “physical” and dealt with specifically as such, but that all training, whether it be educative or otherwise, i.e., whether its object be the prevention or elimination of defect, error or disease, must be based on the indivisible unity of the human organism. (pp4-5)

This new piece of evidence suggested that the functioning of the organs of speech was influenced by my manner of using the whole torso, and that the pulling of the head back and down was not, as I had presumed, merely a misuse of the specific parts concerned, but one that was inseparably bound up with a misuse of other mechanisms which involved the act of shortening the stature. If this were so, it would clearly be useless to expect such improvement as I needed from merely preventing the wrong use of the head and neck. (p13)

I was indeed suffering from a delusion that is practically universal, the delusion that because we are able to do what we “will to do” in acts that are habitual and involve familiar sensory experiences, we shall be equally successful in doing what we “will to do” in acts which are contrary to our habit and therefore involve sensory experiences that are unfamiliar. (p16)

This led me to a long consideration of the whole question of the direction of the use of myself. “What is this direction,” I asked myself, “upon which I have been depending?” I had to admit that I had never thought out how I directed the use of myself, but that I used myself habitually in the way that felt natural to me. In other words, I like everyone else depended upon “feeling” for the direction of my use. Judging, however, from the results of my experiments, this method of direction had led me into error (as, for instance, when I put my head back when I intended to put it forward and up), proving that the “feeling” associated with this direction of my use was untrustworthy.” (p20-1)

In the work that followed I came to see that to get a direction of my use which would ensure this satisfactory reaction, I must cease to rely upon the feeling associated with my instinctive direction, and in its place employ my reasoning processes in order (1) to analyse the conditions of use present; (2) to select (reason out) the means whereby a more satisfactory use could be brought about; (3) to project consciously the directions required for putting these means into effect. (p25)

This meant that I must be prepared to carry on with any procedure I had reasoned out as best for my purpose, even though that procedure might feel wrong. In other words, my trust in my reasoning process to bring me safely to my “end” must be a genuine trust, not a half-trust needing the assurance of feeling right as well. (p32-3)

It will be seen that under this new plan the change in procedure came at the critical moment when hitherto, in going on to gain my end, I had so often reverted to instinctive misdirection and my wrong habitual use. I reasoned that if I stopped at that moment and then, without ceasing to project the directions for the new use, decided afresh to what end the new use should be employed, I should by this procedure be subjecting my instinctive processes of direction to an experience contrary to any experience in which they had hitherto been drilled. Up to that time the stimulus of a decision to gain a certain end had always resulted in the same habitual activity, involving the projection of the instinctive directions for the use which I habitually employed for the gaining of that end. By this new procedure, as long as the reasoned directions for the bringing about of new conditions of use were consciously maintained, the stimulus of a decision to gain a certain end would result in an activity differing from the old habitual activity, in that the old activity could not be controlled outside the gaining of a given end, whereas the new activity could be controlled for the gaining of any end that was consciously desired. (p34-5)

I would point out that this procedure is contrary, not only to any procedure in which our individual instinctive direction has been drilled, but contrary also to that in which man's instinctive processes have been drilled continuously all through his evolutionary experience. (p35)

After I had worked on this plan for a considerable time, I became free from my tendency to revert to my wrong habitual use in reciting, and the marked effect of this upon my functioning convinced me that I was at last on the right track, for once free from this tendency, I also became free from the throat and vocal trouble and from the respiratory and nasal difficulties with which I had been beset from birth. (p36)

My daily teaching experience has shewn me that the great stumbling-block in the way of the pupil’s co-operation in this plan is hs idea that as long as he grasps “intellectually” the principle underlying the “means-whereby” procedure and subscribes to it fully in theory, he will have little difficulty in working to it practically. Footnote: This is a belief that will probably be shared by my readers and is quite understandable, since it is difficult for anyone who has not had the actual experience of working on the “means-whereby” principle to realize what unity of “physical” and “mental processes means in practice. (p63)

One of my pupils has just told me that before he came to me for lessons he used to have uncontrollable fits of temper, but that since having the work he has no trouble in that way, and that all his family notice the change. He asked me to explain how it was that what he looked upon as a” nervous” or “mental” symptom could be affected by the kind of work I was doing with him. In reply I asked him how other people knew when he had lost his temper, and he answered that they would know by the tone of his voice, the expression of his face, the look in his eyes, or by his gestures and excited manner generally. I then asked him how these reactions could be possible except through the use of what he thought of as his “physical” self. … Change the manner of use and you change the conditions throughout the organism; the old reaction associated with the old manner of use and the old conditions cannot therefore take place, for the means are no longer there. (p81-2)

Everyone will agree that for accuracy and efficiency in diagnosis the medical man needs to possess not only a high standard of sensory observation and awareness, but also the ability to link phenomena together, to form sound judgements and to take a wide outlook, especially in the presence of unfamiliar conditions. To attain these qualities he needs reliability of the sensory mechanisms concerned with the direction of use of the whole organism in daily activity, and the ability to control instinctive reactions to stimuli, especially reactions to the stimulus of the unfamiliar. (p104)

Further, the experiences involved in acquiring a knowledge of such “right” and “natural” use of the self gives a person a criterion of judgment to go by, and also an understanding of relative values, for in this process he is constantly brought up against situations in which, after receiving a stimulus, he has to decide what manner of use is the best to employ in reacting to it, and also to judge which of the directions for this manner of use is primary, which secondary, and so on. The standard of relative values that he thus acquires is one that will stand him in good stead in reacting to the stimuli of modern life, in which conditions change so constantly that they cannot be adequately met by any external standard or fixed code as to what is right or wrong. Seeing that the self is the instrument of all his activities, it follows that a valid criterion relating to the use of this self will be a criterion that is valid in relation to all his activities, both so-called “mental” and “physical”. (p112)

I have found that in this process of acquiring a conscious direction of use my pupils gradually develop a higher standard of sensory awareness or appreciation of what they are doing in the use of themselves, so that when it comes to carrying out a course of activity they have decided upon, they possess a criterion within themselves which will enable them to judge whether the use they are employing is right or not for the purpose. (p113)

If a technique which can be proved to do this for an individual were to be made the basis of an educational plan, so that the growing generation could acquire a more valid criterion for self-judgment than is now possible with the prevailing condition of sensory misdirection of use, might not this lead in time to the substitution of reasoning reactions for those instinctive reactions which are manifested as prejudice, racial and otherwise, herd instinct, undue “self-determination” and rivalry, etc., which, as we all deplore, have so far brought to nought our efforts to realize goodwill to all men and peace upon earth? (pp119-20)

Melbourne has just enjoyed a great summer in terms of weather and culture, and we're frequently told it's the world's most liveable city, yet there are plenty of Melburnians who fail to live well. I'm not referring to homeless people or others who are systemically marginalised, but to relatively affluent Melburnians who are simply not happy or satisfied with their lives: people for whom a failure to live well cannot be attributed to their surroundings or to a lack of resources or opportunities.

One way in which I think about this is by distinguishing between resources (material stuff) and resourcefulness (personal qualities and ways of being). Anybody who expects happiness to come from arranging the right amounts and combinations of resources and external circumstances, without cultivating their own resourcefulness, will surely be pulled into a cycle of suffering (as the Buddhists might put it) and disappointment. Resources will be acquired unethically, used unsatisfactorily, and discarded thoughtlessly to make way for the next fix.

On the other hand, by attending to our own resourcefulness we can get clearer about our authentic needs and desires. We can then make better decisions about which resources we may make good use of, and then use them in ways that are satisfying and responsible. This will then lead us into a virtuous cycle within which increasing personal resourcefulness and increasingly good use and management of resources support each other.

Alexander wrote "I shall now endeavour to show that the lack of real happiness manifested by the majority of adults of today is due to the fact that they are experiencing not an improving, but a continually deteriorating use of their psycho-physical selves." (CCC, p191) To anyone who is interested in why this should be the case, and what may be done about it, I strongly recommend getting a copy of CCC. It's one of those books that will yield deeper insights with each reading, especially if you are exploring the Alexander Technique in a practical way too.

Resourcefulness is just another word for what Alexander called the "use of the self," and it may be cultivated by anyone willing to invest some time and attention to it. My practice as an Alexander Teacher and coach is dedicated to supporting anyone who is interested in becoming more resourceful.

Themes

The four parts of CCC relate what Alexander calls “Sensory Appreciation” to 1) “Evolutionary Development,” 2) “Learning and Learning to Do,” 3) “Man’s Needs,” and 4) Happiness. Alexander explains that our sensory experience is an ever-present and guiding factor in our thinking, learning, behaviour, and attitudes. He argues that the sensory appreciation of people in contemporary civilizations is far less accurate than that of earlier and less technologically advanced peoples and that of non-human animals.

Alexander offers two responses to the pervasive influence and inaccuracy of our sensory appreciation: firstly, that if our actions are habitually and unconsciously guided by our sense of what feels right, and if these feelings can be highly inaccurate gauges of reality, then we need an alternative way of organising and directing our behaviour; and secondly, that we should also aim to re-establish the accuracy of our sensory appreciation.

To these ends he says we each (ideally with the aid of a teacher of his Technique) need to reason out the “means whereby” we may do what we wish to do, and then follow these means consciously and step-by-step. Primary among these means is the process of establishing and sustaining adequate general co-ordination of one’s whole self before proceeding to specific acts of co-ordination (activities) and learning.

Alexander repeatedly warns of the impossibility of conveying through words alone the process by which general co-ordination is developed. However he does, with some strong disclaimers, tell the reader some of the phrases he uses to accompany the kinaesthetic experiences that he facilitates for his students.

Alexander is emphatic that his approach to co-ordination should be one of continuous learning and improvement and not confined to therapeutic spheres. He laments that his society (and not much has changed in the nearly 90 years since), is so oriented towards curative rather than preventative practices that the vast majority of his students – at least when they first come to him – come to be relieved of a specific problem rather than with a view to changing the fundamental principles by which they live their lives.

Alexander also points out his society’s habit of dividing human functioning, ailments, and treatments into “mental” and “physical” categories, when in practice these aspects of ourselves are artificial categories imposed upon phenomena that are essentially whole.

John Dewey states the matter with even more precision than Alexander himself, in his superb introduction to CCC. I think it’s worth quoting the relevant paragraph in full:

“Consequently, only when the results of Mr Alexander’s lessons have changed one’s sensory appreciation and supplied a new standard, so that the old and the new condition can be compared with each other, does the concrete force of his teaching come home to one. In spite of the whole tenour of Mr Alexander’s teaching, it is this which makes it practically impossible for anyone to go to him with any other idea at the outset beyond that of gaining some specific relief and remedy. Even after a considerable degree of experience with his lessons, it is quite possible for one to prize his method merely on account of specific benefits received, even though one recognizes that these benefits include a changed emotional condition and a different outlook on life. Only when a pupil reaches the point of giving his full attention to the method of Mr Alexander instead of its results, does he realize the constant influence of his sensory appreciation. (John Dewey, pp15-16) 

Alexander argues vigorously and convincingly that children can and should be taught conscious guidance of their general co-ordination as foundational to all other specific education and skill acquisition. That his wishes along these lines have not been realised should be a stone in the shoe of every Alexander Technique teacher who is currently active. Was Alexander unreasonable in his belief that we should prioritise using his Technique with children? Or have we simply not yet had the gumption, creativity and resourcefulness to find a way to achieve this on even a small scale?

Alexander concludes by asserting that happiness, in any non-trivial sense, is best achieved by an ever-increasing skill in the conscious guidance and control of our use (co-ordination) of our selves, both in ordinary and extraordinary actions.

Who is it For?

Alexander states that, “This whole book is devoted to the exposure of the fallacy of asking any imperfectly co-ordinated person to attempt to eradicate a defect or peculiarity by some written word or spoken instructions.” (p178) If this is truly the case – and his argument is strong though not impregnable – then the most any text on the Alexander Technique can do in an introductory capacity is: 1) lay out the logical structure of the bind created by the combination of inaccurate sensory appreciation and unconscious self-guidance, and 2) describe a way to escape from this bind or avoid it in the first place. 

With all of this in mind, my most recent reading of CCC has left me thinking that it is, in some ways, the perfect introductory text on the Alexander Technique. Yes, it contains some long sentences that may require a few readings just to arrive at a satisfactory parsing; yes, it describes phenomena and processes for which the newcomer will have no experiential reference point; and yes, by my own admission I found it a very difficult read my first time through; but still, anyone who will take the time to read CCC carefully will be rewarded with a clear and comprehensive exposition of why Alexander’s Technique is relevant, and what we may gain, individually and collectively, through taking it on as a way of organising our behaviour.

Some may regard my contention that CCC may serve as a compelling introduction to the Alexander Technique as being too big an ask of the average reader. However Alexander himself required each prospective student to read at least one of his books before he would give them lessons. I wonder what price those of us who are teachers pay whenever we give too narrow or shallow an introduction to the Technique, or when we fail to cultivate in our students a more expansive vision of the Technique than that which initially brought them to us?

With this question in mind I believe that all teachers of the Alexander Technique have a moral obligation to read this book thoroughly and revisit it regularly. Not only does it describe and explain many of the joys and challenges we experience as we learn and teach this unique process, CCC is also an injunction for us to take seriously the ethical and social aspects and potentialities of the Alexander Technique.

The all-important consideration, therefore, in bridging the gap between theory and practice is the make-up of the individual, particularly the sensory make-up. (p7)

As my technique evolved it became increasingly clear that by its procedures, provision is made for coming into contact with the unknown, because the improved condition of psycho-physical functioning brought about is not the result of working for a previously conceived and directed end (the known), but emerges as the indirect result of the employment of reasoned means whereby improved conditions in the use of the self are brought about (the unknown). (p9) 

The principle and procedure set forth by Mr Alexander are crucially needed at present. Strangely, this is the very reason why they are hard to understand and accept. For although there is nothing esoteric in his teaching, and although his exposition is made in the simplest English, free from technical words, it is difficult for anyone to grasp its full force without having actual demonstration of the principle in operation. And even then, as I know from personal experience, its full meaning dawns upon one slowly and with new meanings continually opening up. (from the Introduction, by John Dewey, p15)

Consequently, only when the results of Mr Alexander’s lessons have changed one’s sensory appreciation and supplied a new standard, so that the old and the new condition can be compared with each other, does the concrete force of his teaching come home to one. In spite of the whole tenour of Mr Alexander’s teaching, it is this which makes it practically impossible for anyone to go to him with any other idea at the outset beyond that of gaining some specific relief and remedy. Even after a considerable degree of experience with his lessons, it is quite possible for one to prize his method merely on account of specific benefits received, even though one recognizes that these benefits include a changed emotional condition and a different outlook on life. Only when a pupil reaches the point of giving his full attention to the method of Mr Alexander instead of its results, does he realize the constant influence of his sensory appreciation. (from the Introduction, by John Dewey, pp15-16) 

I use the word co-ordination, both in its conception and in its application, to convey the idea of co-ordination on a general and not a specific basis. Specific co-ordination of any specific part of the organism, such as the muscles of the arm or leg, may be brought about by means of a direct process, during which process, however, new defects in the use of the organism in general will certainly be cultivated, whilst others already present will become more pronounced. These harmful conditions will not be cultivated if the specific co-ordination is brought about by means of an indirect process involving, primarily, the general co-ordination of the psychophysical organism – that is to say, an integrated condition in which all of the factors continue to make for satisfactory psycho-mechanical use. (p31)

Many who are brought for the first time face to face with the fact that the sensory appreciation of most of the people of our time is more or less unreliable become unusually disturbed, especially when they realize that this fundamental factor in human activity has been practically ignore by our experts and leaders in educational and other spheres in their attempts to effect reforms in the civilizing plan. (p46) 

It is only necessary to watch the movements of many who are experts in the subject-matter of physiology and anatomy to realize the futility of their knowledge from a practical standpoint. For the knowledge of the ordinary anatomical and physiological workings of specific muscles does not enable any person to re-educate or co-ordinate them on a general basis in the acts of everyday life, and it is on this basis of common sense and practice that the value of any knowledge or principle must be judged. (p57)

This being so, it is obvious that the reason a person falls a victim to some unreasoning fear is that his condition of general psycho-physical functioning at the time when he receives the stimulus, to which the fear is the reaction, is below a normal and satisfactory standard. For, if his condition of general functioning were normal, his reaction to the particular sensory stimulus would be a normal reaction, not an unreasoning “phobia.” (p77)

Will psychoanalysis as practised restore a reliable sensory appreciation to the patient, and co-ordinate and re-educate his psycho-physical mechanisms on a general basis? Certainly not. The psycho-physical condition which permitted the establishment of the first phobia will permit the establishment of another. All that is needed is the stimulus. (p77)

The child’s early efforts in learning any simple subject which forms part of the curriculum are on a specific basis; that is, the child’s work is planned for him from the beginning on “end-gaining” lines of teaching him to do specific things in specific ways, and of teaching him to try to get these specific things “right,” and long ere the stage of adolescence is reached, this “end-gaining” procedure will have become established, associated with a bad psycho-physical attitude towards the acceptance of new ideas and new experiences, and too often with a serious deterioration in memory. When these defects and shortcomings are present, they constitute two impeding factors which could account for the general lack in the majority of adults to link up knowledge. (pp90-1)

Our first consideration, therefore, in all forms of education must be in regard to securing for the child the highest possible standard of psycho-physical functioning during his attempts to master the different processes which make up the educational scheme. (p91)

Yet in spite of all that I have written on this point, I have been criticized for “keeping things back,” because I would not give in my book instructions and set exercises that people could do at home by themselves! In all such instances I point out that I will not be guilty at this stage of my teaching experience of adding to the mass of literature on the subject of exercises, or take the grave responsibility for the harmful consequences which are certain to result from the practice of exercises, according to written instructions, by people whose sensory appreciation is unreliable and often positively delusive. (p95)

It is absurd to try to teach a person who is in a more or less agitated or even anxious condition. We must have that calm condition which is characteristic of a person whose reasoning processes are operative. (p97) 

For the fact that emerges from all these considerations is that our approach to life generally, our activities, beliefs, emotions, opinions, judgements in whatever sphere, are conditioned by the preceding conceptions, which are associated with the individual use of the psycho-physical mechanisms and conditioned by the standard of reliability of our individual sensory appreciation. (p108)

The aim of re-education on a general basis is to bring about at all times and for all purposes, not a series of correct positions or postures, but a co-ordinated use of the mechanisms in general. (p111-2)

Of what avail, therefore, is it for the pupil to “feel better,” if he is still left with a defective sensory appreciation to guide him in all his activities during his waking moments as well as his sleeping hours? It is only a matter of time before the unfortunate pupil will be awakened from his dream by discovering that he has developed certain other serious conditions. (p137)

It is only by having a clear conception of what is required for the successful performance of a certain stroke or other act, combined with a knowledge of the psycho-physical means whereby those requirements can be met, that there is any reasonable possibility of their attaining sureness and confidence during performance. (p147)

“Muddling through by instinct” is unintelligent enough, but deliberately to induce in human beings by artificial means (such as the processes involved in methods of “faith cure,” auto-suggestion, religious revivalism, etc.) a condition of lowered control, where intelligence and reasoning are superseded by uncontrolled emotions, is a procedure which may be described as an insult to even a very lowly evolved intelligence. (p151)

In other words, the pupil is not taught to perform certain new exercises or to assume new postures for a given time each day, whilst continuing to use his faulty mechanisms and unreliable guiding sensations in his old way during his other activities, but he is shown HOW he may at once check, more or less, the faulty use of these mechanisms in the general activities of his daily life. (p160) 

The projection of continued, conscious orders, on the other hand, calls for a broad, reasoning attitude, so that the subject has not only a clear conception of the orders essential (“means-whereby”) for the correct performance of a particular movement, but he can also project these orders in their right relationship one to another, the co-ordinated series of orders resulting in a co-ordinated use of the organism. (p174)

This habit of taking faint impressions in reading is repeated daily by millions of people who rarely read a book in the way of study, a form of reading which would make for the registering of definite and lasting impressions. “Skimming” – that is, receiving only faint impressions of what is read – is a harmful habit which, if indulged in, rapidly becomes established, and very soon the person concerned is aware of a growing loss of memory in all spheres. (p180)

Experience has proved to us that children are unusually interested in the working of their own psycho-physical machinery when the processes employed are concerned with re-education on a general and conscious basis. They find a new interest in all activities to which they can apply an improving use of themselves, and their happiness in finding, for instance, that they can improve their games by a conscious general direction of themselves (a very different thing from the usual specific directions they receive in coaching lessons) is a happiness which increases with their psycho-physical improvement. (p190-1)

I shall now endeavour to show that the lack of real happiness manifested by the majority of adults of today is due to the fact that they are experiencing not an improving, but a continually deteriorating use of their psycho-physical selves. (p191)

One of the greatest factors in human development is the building up of a form of confidence which comes as the result of that method of learning by which the pupil is put in possession of the correct means whereby he can attain his end before he makes any attempt to gain it. By this method the attempt he makes will be more or less successful from the outset, and a series of satisfactory instead of unsatisfactory psycho-physical experiences will follow, and with them that intelligent confidence and state of happiness associated therewith which is the “consummated conquest” of the human being on a conscious plane. (p196)

Increasing awareness in this connection makes more and more for successful accomplishment in accordance with reasoned and satisfactory “means whereby,” and connotes a continuous process which introduces a special interest and pleasure into the most ordinary acts of life. (p197)

Themes

MSI sets out Alexander’s grand vision for human progress, individual and collective. Its central theme is that “instinctive” modes of behaviour are inadequate to meet the demands of modern, rapidly changing societies and that a conscious and reasoned approach to behaviour is necessary in order to deal effectively with situations for which there is no precedent in the life of the individual or in the evolution of our species.

Alexander had already been teaching what was to become known as the Alexander Technique for nearly 20 years at the time of MSI’s publication. On the basis of this experience and backed up by deductive reasoning, he asserts that any serious approach to conscious guidance and control will need to address humans as whole beings whose mental and physical aspects are inseparable. He claims and offers many case studies to show that his “method of re-education” is able, by engaging people as psycho-physically whole, to address a gamut of problems from appendicitis to stuttering to undue emotional responses and immature political machinations.

It’s interesting how much Alexander discusses the effect of poor co-ordination on the heart, lungs and viscera. He argues convincingly that when these are displaced and constricted through poor co-ordination of the whole person, then circulation, digestion and elimination become sluggish and toxins accumulate, resulting in reduced resistance to illness and further degeneration. Very few people seem to come to the Technique to improve their circulation or digestion or to boost their immune system. Perhaps in this day and age of degenerative disease and obesity I should give more emphasis to these benefits in my own discussion of the Technique.

The other area that Alexander emphasises is the relationship between conscious co-ordination and the level of rationality we are able to sustain in challenging and novel situations; the “heat of the moment.” Alexander argues that a poorly co-ordinated person who has no practical knowledge of how he or she organises, and therefore how he or she may also redirect, his or her own behaviour, will revert to archaic and formulaic responses whenever confronted with a new situation, despite the patent inapplicability of the old behaviour to the new context. By contrast, the well co-ordinated person who also enjoys conscious engagement with his or her co-ordination will be able to assess each context specifically and to spontaneously generate new behaviour that is uniquely suited to the novelty of any context. Alexander cites politics, business and other interpersonal domains as being especially suited for application of his methods.

The Process

Alexander briefly mentions that he uses his hands to facilitate for his students new experiences of “correct” co-ordination. However there is very little else about the “how” of his process other than that it deals with the “means” by which an end may be obtained, rather than direct pursuit of the end along habitual lines. The book is clearly intended as a call to action based on a new conception of what humans are and how we learn, rather than a handbook for the particular action to be taken.

This is consistent with Alexander's insistence that, given the uniqueness of each person, his teaching will play itself out differently in each case, and no general formula for action could possibly apply to the diversity of individual needs and circumstances. It also reflects the challenge of rendering a highly subtle, multi-sensory learning process in words that may be comprehensible to anyone other than those who’ve already had similar experiences.

Who is it For?

MSI’s broad vision may appeal to anyone interested in human education and development although much of the detail is perhaps too abstract to be of more than passing interest to those who’ve not had any experience of the Technique. However, for serious students of the Technique and of course for teachers and trainees, it is essential reading. It was ahead of its time in scope and rationale, yet also tainted by some of the prejudices of its time as well as Alexander’s own idiosyncrasies; there are some passages that can only be described as racist as well as some bizarre denigrations of music and dance as recreations.

The 1996 6^th edition contains a review entitled The Philosopher’s Stone, by Professor James Harvey Robinson, first published in the Atlantic Monthly, April 1919. I feel this excerpt to be as relevant now as it was nearly 100 years ago:

… I am not inclined to contend that all his ideas are new, or that his book, which clearly reflects the genial exuberance of its author, might not have been better arranged; or that anyone need accept all the philosophic reflections which accompany the exposition of his system. Nevertheless, no one interested in human improvement can afford to pass by his plan without carefully considering its nature and bearings. (p229)

In summary, there are better introductions to the Technique, but no other work of which I’m aware comes close to MSI in its analysis of the challenges faced by human beings as we change our own environments at ever-increasing rates.  Ad-hoc, faith-based and instinctive reactions to new circumstances are rigorously critiqued and debunked. An alternative approach to dealing with civilised life is articulated in principle and illustrated with many examples. As such, this work also makes an excellent case for readers to get off the couch and actually go and have some classes or lessons in the Technique!

The popular misconception of the subject’s responsibility in the matter leads him to be commonly pitied as for unavoidable defects, whereas it is of the first importance that he should realize the responsibility is his, and his alone. He must be made aware that such defects arise from his own fault and are the outcome of his ignorance or wilful neglect. Once this new mental attitude is firmly established there is hope for the afflicted person, and he will have the satisfaction of knowing that he is, as it were, working out his own salvation on common sense practical lines, devoid of pernicious sympathy, face to face with real facts, and stimulated by a principle which cannot fail to secure the very best efforts in the right direction of which any ordinary person is capable. (p117)

Without conscious control the subject or patient may know he has defects, may know further what those defects are, may even know at what explicit improvement he is to aim, and yet may be quite unable by means of imitation or the orthodox and traditional method of instruction to gain the desired end.

With conscious control, on the other hand, true development (unfolding), education (drawing out) and evolution are possible along intellectual as against the old unorthodox and fallacious lines, by means of reasoned processes, analysed, understood and explicitly directed. (p141)

He had opened his mouth imperfectly and had been ordered by his teacher to open his mouth wider. But there had been no recognition by the pupil that he had not opened his mouth sufficiently, neither had there been any analysis by the teacher of the pupil’s failure  to open the mouth (a seemingly simple thing but ex hypothesi not simple to the patient), or of the concomitant contortions and automatic reaction. As well say, “You have been speaking improperly, now speak properly,” and call that a lesson, as indeed it would have been called in the early Victorian era, as, “ Open your mouth wide, speak up, and don’t make nervous movements.” It is not the “end” that the teacher and pupil must work for, but the “means whereby.” And this discovery of the “means whereby,” differing in different subjects and not to be stated in a general formula, can only be the result of trained observation and careful, patient investigation and experience. (p142)

Men have learnt the meaning of many things which to the savage were inscrutable, but when faced with the unknown they betray the same lack of control. Suddenly-angered men will make a retort which in the light of reflection appears to them foolish and inadequate. It is an everyday experience. In the calmer moments that follow they think of the “things they might have said,” the things they might have done, which is a simple indication of the fact that in the heated moment their emotions held sway over them, whilst their reason and control were in abeyance. The subconsciously controlled person is immediately thrown into a state of panic when faced by any emergency which presents an element of danger. (p150)

Obviously he should begin then by ceasing to do what is wrong, not by endeavouring blindly to do what is right. (p157)

My experience has proved that the pupil at first will act in precisely the same way if I attempt to perform the act for him as if I had asked him to do it without my assistance. He is just as apprehensive as a result of one request as of the other, and in this state of apprehensiveness he is, mentally and physically, impossible to deal with from the standpoint of re-education. He conjures up in his mind all kinds of fears that he will do this or that incorrectly. … The re-education work really begins here, and it takes weeks, nay, sometimes months to bring the pupil to a stage in his co-ordination when he will be really once more in communication with his reason. With these facts before us I feel that my reader will advocate with me the necessity of adopting principles which will create new and correct habits, and eradicate needless apprehension and fear from the souls of human beings. (p159)

The foregoing applies to a very wide range of bad habits over the whole organism, such as:

1. the cultivation of harmful habits in consequence of misdirected energy and mental delusions which cause disorders and defects of the eyes, ears, nose and throat etc.;
2. the development of the dangerous habit of not hearing any instructions, opinions, advice, or argument, which if put into practical procedures, would be contrary to the psycho-physical subconscious habit associated with some defect, peculiarity, or other abnormal condition;
3. the development of over-compensation in some direction: “running an idea to death,” as we say; (p161)

There can be no such thing as a “correct standing position” for each and every person. The question is not one of correct position, but of correct co-ordination (i.e. of the muscular mechanisms concerned). Moreover, any one who has acquired the power of co-ordinating correctly, can readjust the parts of his body to meet the requirements of almost any position, while always commanding adequate and correct movements of the respiratory apparatus and perfect vocal control – a fact which I demonstrate daily to my pupils. (p171)

For it should be evident, I think, that the good effects of fresh air and gentle exercise will be practically nullified if the patient can only obtain them by exaggerating and perpetuating the defects which have led him to the prescription. (p174)

The displaced parts of the body must be restored to their proper positions by re-education in a correct and controlled use of the muscular mechanisms. In this process the blood is purified, the circulation is gradually improved, and all the injurious accumulations are removed by the internal massage which is part and parcel of the increased vital activity from such re-education. (p177)

In the very breaking up of maleficent co-ordinations or vicious circles which have become established, a new impulse is given to certain intellectual functions that have been thrown out of play. (p177)

For instance, though it may not be possible to control directly each separate part of the abdominal viscera, we can control directly the muscles of the abdominal wall which encloses the viscera, and in reducing a protruding abdomen we can control many other muscles, notably those of the back, which, when they are properly employed and co-ordinated, will, by widening and altering the shape of the back, make place for the protruded stomach, allow it to occupy the natural position from which it has been ousted, and so give free play once more to the natural functions of the viscera that have been distorted and pinched by the forced positions they have had to assume. Here we see that though conscious control does not affect by a process of direct command, as it were, the lower automatic functions, there is great danger in assuming that such functions are beyond the reach of my methods. (p179)

…  a human being functions as a whole and can only be fundamentally changed as a whole. (p.xii) 

The failure of subconscious guidance in modern civilization is now being widely admitted, and the consideration of this fact has led a few to the logical conclusion that conscious guidance and control is the one method of adapting ourselves not only to present conditions, but to any possible conditions that may arise. (p7)

Defective Mental and Physical Control. The most common form of this defective control encountered in teaching work is when the teacher wishes to move the head, or hand, or arm, or leg for the pupil, in order to give the new and correct sensation in the proper use of the parts. Experience proves that the great majority are utterly wanting in the controls necessary to enable the person to gain this experience quickly. The teacher asks the pupil to lift his arm. He does so, but exercises an undue amount of tension. In order to give the pupil the new kinaesthetic register of the correct amount of tension necessary, the teacher asks to be permitted to lift the arm for him, but as a rule the pupil acts exactly as he did when he was requested to perform the act himself. (p15)

We see at once that the conception of a hidden entity is the primitive explanation which first occurs to the puzzled mind. (p25)

These writings exhibit, and have always exhibited, the fallacy of considering the mental and physical as in some sense antitheses which are opposed to each other and make war, whereas in my opinion the two must be considered entirely interdependent, and even more closely knit than is implied by such a phrase. (p28) 

In this case my first endeavor must be directed to keeping in abeyance, by the power of inhibition, all the mental associations connected with the ideas of speaking, and to eradicating all erroneous, preconceived ideas concerning the things X imagines he can or cannot do, or what is or is not possible. My next effort must be to give X a correct and conscious guidance and control of all the parts concerned, including, of course, the lip and face muscles, and in order to obtain this control, he must have a complete and accurate apprehension of all the movements concerned. (p34)

The phrase “conscious control” when used in this work is intended to indicate the value and use of conscious guidance and control, primarily as a universal, and secondly as a specific, the latter always being dependent on the former in practical procedure. (p36) 

Unfortunately, all conscious effort exerted in attempts at physical action causes in the great majority of people today such tension of the muscular system concerned as to lead to exaggeration rather than eradication of the defects already present. Therefore it is essential at the outset of re-education to bring about the relaxation of the unduly rigid parts of the muscular mechanisms in order to secure the correct use of the inadequately employed and wrongly co-ordinated parts. (p59)

What is required is not prejudice in either direction, but a calm, clear, open-eyed intelligence, a ready, adaptive outlook, an outlook, believe me, which does not connote indefiniteness of purpose or uncertainty of initiative. (p61)

Another form of predisposition arises from lack of purpose, and the mental habits that go with this condition are hard to eradicate, more particularly when the original feebleness has led to some form of hypochondria or nervous disease which has been treated with the usual disregard of the radical evil. It is not difficult for the most superficial inquirer to understand that in treating cases like these any methos which relieves the subject still further of the exercise of initiative – such a method as the rest cure, for instance, though I could quote many others – only increases the original evil. The lack of purpose is pandered to and cultivated, and after the six weeks or so the patient returns to his or her duties in ordinary life even more unfitted than before to perform them. (p61)

To encourage eccentricity is not to breed genius, and genius itself is more free and more creative when it is not hampered by eccentricity. Let us, at least, have some appreciation of rational cause and effect. (p81)

A child who tries to guide its pencil by futile movements of its head, tongue and shoulders may be preparing the way to ills so far-reaching that their origin is often lost sight of. (p81) 

Give a child conscious control and you give him poise, the essential starting-point for education. Without that poise, which is a result aimed at by neither the old nor the new methods of education, he will presently be cramped and distorted by his environment. For although you may choose the environment of a nursery or a school, there are few indeed who can choose their desired environment in the world at large. But give the child poise and the reasoned control of his physical being, and you fit him for any and every mode of life; he will have wonderful powers of adapting himself to any and every environment that may surround him. (p83)

Is it, I would ask, likely on the face of it that the right position in which a man or woman should stand for health’s sake should be one needing positive strain to preserve? The thing is preposterous, and I am convinced that nothing can result from the application of such principles but complete chaos, physical and mental. (p91)