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"The results of the series of experiences
I have outlined in Chapter 1 seem to
me to
imply that in the process of acquiring
conscious
direction of the use of the human organism,
a hitherto 'undiscovered country' is
opened
up, where the scope for the development
of
human potentialities is practically
unlimited,
and anyone who chooses to take the
time and
trouble to carry out the procedures
necessary
for acquiring a conscious direction
of use
can put this to the test."
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F.M. Alexander was, of course, the first
person to use the Alexander Technique. He
did not use it when he began his lengthy
investigation into the causes of his vocal
problems however, because it was from the
hypotheses he made, and the experiments he
did to test his hypotheses that he gradually
developed his technique. Indeed, his understanding
of what his problem was and what he should
do to solve it changed dramatically from
the beginning to the end of his investigation.
The following is a synopsis of his investigations
as he describes them in the first chapter
of The Use of the Self.
The Stages of His Investigation
Stage One (The Beginning of Primary Control)
Before he began his investigation,
Alexander
had made two observations: (1) He only
lost
his voice when he performed, not when
he
was speaking in everyday conversation,
and
(2) his voice improved when he rested
it,
and had medical attention.
Because he only lost his voice when
he performed,
he reasonably believed that he was
doing
something different during performance.
He
set up a mirror to observe himself
while
he spoke, and while he performed. At
first,
and although he observed himself many
times,
he couldn't notice anything wrong or
unnatural
about his ordinary speaking. But when
he
observed himself performing, he very
soon
noticed three things he was doing,
for, as
soon as he started to recite, he "...tended
to pull back the head, depress the
larynx
and suck in breath through the mouth
in such
a way as to produce a gasping sound."
(p. 9. All quotations are from The Use of the Self ).
When he then went back to observe himself
in everyday speaking, he noticed the
same
three tendencies, though in a lesser
degree.
Thus his first hypothesis, that he
was doing
something different while reciting,
had been
proved wrong. He was doing the same
thing,
only less of it. Nonetheless, he felt
that
this difference in degree might explain
why
he had vocal trouble only while reciting,
and he was encouraged to go on.
At this point Alexander believed that
his
problem only involved misusing certain
parts
of himself, those parts associated
with using
his voice. In fact he thought he had
found
the "root of the trouble,"
and
attempted to prevent or change how
he used
these parts. However, he didn't know
where
to begin. He couldn't tell if sucking
in
breath caused him to pull back his
head and
depress his larynx, or if pulling back
his
head caused him to depress his larynx
and
suck in breadth, or if depressing his
larynx
caused him to suck in breath and pull
back
his head! However, after months of
experimenting,
he found that when he "...succeeded
in preventing the pulling back of the
head,
this tended indirectly to check the
sucking
in of breath and the depressing of
the larynx."
This discovery, he writes, "marked
the
first important stage of my investigation...for
through it I was led on to the further
discovery
of the primary control of the working
of
all the mechanisms of the human organism...."
(p. 11)
Stage Two (Use Affects Functioning)
He also discovered in Stage One "A
further
result...that with the prevention of
the
misuse of these parts, I tended to
become
less hoarse while reciting, and that
as I
gradually gained experience in this
prevention,
my liability to hoarseness tended to
decrease."
(p. 11) This discovery led him to realize
that "...the changes in use that
I had
been able to bring about by preventing
the
three harmful tendencies I had detected
in
myself had produced a marked effect
upon
the functioning of my vocal and respiratory mechanisms. This conclusion...marked the second important
stage in my investigations, for the practical
experience in this specific instance brought
me to realize for the first time the close
connection that exists between use and functioning."
(p. 12)
Stage Three (More Than Vocal Parts are Involved)
Since he found that preventing himself
from
putting his head back improved his
vocal
functioning, he attempted the next
logical
experiment, namely to "...put
my head
definitely forward, further forward,
in fact,
that I felt was the right thing to
do."
Unfortunately he went too far and found
that
"...beyond a certain point I tended
to pull [my head] down as well as forward,
and...the effect of this upon my vocal
and
respiratory organs was much the same
as when
I pulled my head back and down."
(p.
12) In both cases he depressed his
larynx
the same way.
He was by now convinced that he must
stop
depressing his larynx if he wanted
his voice
to become normal, so he spent a long
time
doing various experiments to find a
way to
use his head and neck which did not
depress
his larynx. He finally "...came
to notice
that any use of my head and neck which
was
associated with a depressing of the
larynx
was also associated with a tendency
to lift
the chest and shorten the stature."
This discovery was one of "far-reaching
implications" and "...it
marked
a turning-point in [his] investigations"
because contrary to what he had first
assumed,
misusing his vocal organs was not "...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."
(p. 13)
Stage Four (Primary Control Revised)
He now had to prevent the misuse of
his head
and neck, and "...also prevent
those
other associated wrong uses which brought
about the shortening of the stature."
Once again he began experimenting.
He would
try to "prevent the shortening
of the
stature" or try "actually
to lengthen
it, noting the results in each case...."
observing what effect each had upon
his voice.
He discovered that the best results
were
associated with a lengthening of the
stature.
Unfortunately, he shortened far more
than
he lengthened, "due to my tendency
to
pull my head down as I tried to put
it forward
in order to lengthen." He continued
to experiment, and found that to "..maintain
a lengthening of the stature I must put my head forward and up." He writes that "...this proved to be
the primary control of my use in all my activities.
(p. 14)
Stage Five (The Beginnings of Means-Whereby)
He next attempted to put his "...head
forward and up while reciting...[but] noticed [his] old tendency to lift
the chest increased, and that with this went
a tendency to increase the arch of the spine
and thus bring about what...[he later called]...a
narrowing of the back." Because, he
writes, this narrowing had "...an adverse
effect on the shape and functioning of the
torso...I therefore concluded that to maintain
a lengthening it was not sufficient to put
my head forward and up, but that I must put
it forward and up in such a way that I prevented
the lifting of the chest and simultaneously
brought about a widening of the back."
( pp. 14-15)
Stage Six (The First Universal Delusion)
His next step in his vocal work was
to try
to prevent himself from pulling his
head
back and down and lifting his chest,
while
at the same time trying to put his
head forward
and up and widen his back. He was confident
he could do so, but he found that "...although
I was now able to put the head forward
and
up and widen the back as acts in themselves,
I could not maintain these conditions in
speaking or reciting." (p. 15)
When he began his investigations, he
had
used a mirror to observe himself. At
some
point he stopped using the mirror,
but because
he was now "suspicious that I
was not
doing what I thought I was doing"
he
began to use the mirror again, and
later
"...took into use two additional
mirrors,
one on each side of the central one...."
With the aid of the mirrors, he saw
"...startling
proof that I was doing the opposite
of what
I believed I was doing and of what
I had
decided I ought to do....[because]...at
the
critical moment when I tried to combine
the
prevention of shortening with a positive
attempt to maintain a lengthening and speak at the same
time, I did not put my head forward and up as
I intended, but actually put it back."
(p. 15)
Alexander had not realized that in
this new
experiment "...which brought into
play
a new use of certain parts and involved
sensory
experiences that were totally unfamiliar,...[that
he ]...should need the help of the
mirror
more than ever." He believed that
he
"...should be able to put into
practice
any idea [he]thought desirable."
He
initially thought that only he suffered
from
this fault, but later in his teaching
career
realized he was not alone, that he
"...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."
(p. 16)
Stage Seven (Even More Parts)
At this point, Alexander realized that
he
would have to reconsider his situation.
He
had found what he thought was causing
his
trouble, and thought he knew what he
should
do instead, but when he tried to do
it, he
failed. His next step he writes was
"..to
find out at what point in my "doing"
I had gone wrong." (p. 17)
He "...practised patiently month
after
month...with varying experiences of
success
and failure..." In time he came
to see
that "...any attempt to maintain
my
lengthening when reciting...involved..."
1) preventing the wrong use of specific
parts;
2) substituting a better use of those
parts
and 3) "...bringing into play
the use
of all those parts of the organism
required
for the activities incident to the
act of
reciting, such as standing, walking,
using
the arms or hands for gesture, interpretation,
etc." (p. 17)
Stage Eight (The Second Universal Delusion)
Alexander observed in the mirror that
he
was using "..these other parts
in certain
wrong ways which synchronized with
my wrong
way of using my head and neck, larynx,
vocal
and breathing organs, and which involved
a condition of undue muscle tension
throughout
my organism." He noted that this
tension
"...affected particularly the
use of
my legs, feet and toes...." (p.
17)
When he sought to discover the reasons
for
this, he realized that he had been
instructed,
as a way of improving his dramatic
expression,
to take hold of the floor with his
feet.
His teacher had demonstrated what he
meant,
and Alexander had done his best to
copy him,
believing, he writes, "...that
if I
was told what to do to correct something
that was wrong, I should be able to
do it
and all would be well." He calls
this
belief a delusion, writing, "The
belief
is very generally held that if only
we are
told what to do in order to correct
a wrong
way of doing something, we can do it,
and
that if we feel we are doing it, all is well. All my experience,
however, goes to show that this belief is
a delusion." (p. 18)
Stage Nine (Habitual Use--It's More Than
Misused Parts)
He next "...continued with the
aid of
mirrors to observe the use of myself
more
carefully than ever...." and made
several
important discoveries. First, he realized
that what he was doing with his legs,
feet
and toes when reciting exerted "a
most
harmful general influence upon the
use of
myself throughout my organism...."
Second,
this harmful general influence "involved
an abnormal amount of muscle tension
and
was indirectly associated with my throat
trouble." Third, the wrong way
he was
using his legs, feet and toes was the
same
wrong way he was using himself when
he pulled
his head back, sucked in air, and depressed
his larynx to recite. Fourth, and very
importantly,
"...this wrong way of using myself
constituted
a combined wrong use of the whole of
my physical-mental
mechanisms." Finally, and most
importantly,
he "...realized that this was
the use
which I habitually brought into play
for
all my activities, that it was...the
"habitual
use" of myself, and...any ...stimulus
to activity would inevitably cause
this habitual
wrong use to come into play and dominate
any attempt I might be making to employ
a
better use of myself ...." (p.
19)
Stage Ten (Cultivated Habitual Use)
Alexander knew that the influence of
this
wrong use was strong because it was
habitual,
but he also now realized it was "greatly
strengthened" because of all his
attempts
to do what his teacher had instructed
him
to do in taking hold of the floor with
his
feet. He writes, "The influence
of this
cultivated habitual use...acted as an almost irresistible
stimulus to me to use myself in the wrong
way I was accustomed to...." And because
"...this stimulus to general wrong use
was far stronger than the stimulus of my
desire to employ the new use of my head and
neck..." Alexander believed that "...it
was this influence which led me, as soon
as I stood up to recite, to put my head in
the opposite direction to that which I desired."
He concludes that he "...now had proof
of one thing at least, that all my efforts
up till now to improve the use of myself
in reciting had been misdirected." (p.
19)
Stage Eleven (Beginning to Explore Direction)
Alexander had started out thinking
he only
had something wrong with particular
parts
of him; through much experimentation
he discovered
that these 'wrong parts' included his
entire
body down to his toes. He then realized
that
what he was doing was not just a matter
of
all his physical parts, but was a wrong
way
of using "the whole of my physical-mental
mechanisms." Furthermore, this
wrong
way of using himself was habitual,
and because
he had actually cultivated this wrong
use,
it was an even stronger influence than
it
might have been. It was, to him, "an
almost irresistible stimulus"
to use
himself in the wrong way he was used
to.
What was he to do now? How could he
resist
an "almost irresistible stimulus?"
What he did next was consider how it
was
that he actually directed himself.
He had
never thought about it before, and
he realized
that he "...used myself habitually
in
the way that felt natural to me....like everyone else [I] depended
upon "feeling" for the direction
of my use." Unfortunately, he had shown
with his experiments that when he felt he
was doing what he intended to to, he was
actually doing the opposite, "...proving
that the "feeling" associated with
this direction of my use was untrustworthy."
(p. 21)
Stage Twelve (Trustworthy Feeling?)
Alexander was now at an impasse. At
this
point he believed that his feeling
was "...the
only guide I had to depend upon for
the direction
of my use..." and he had shown
beyond
a doubt that that feeling was "untrustworthy."
Although discouraged, he realized that
what
he had learned so far "...implied
the
possibility of the opening up of an
entirely
new field of enquiry..." for he
argued
that "if it is possible for feeling
to become untrustworthy as a means
of direction,
it should also be possible to make
it trustworthy
again." (p. 21)
Stage Thirteen (Unreasoned, Instinctive Direction)
Alexander initially thought that the
problem
of untrustworthy feeling was unique
to him,
because of his history of ill health.
However,
when he tested other people to see
if they
were doing what they thought they were
doing,
he realized that "...the feeling
by
which they directed the use of themselves
was also untrustworthy...." (p.
21)
Indeed he realized that how people
directed
their use "...through being based
on
feeling, was as unreasoned and instinctive
as that of the animal." (p. 22)
Stage Fourteen (The Menace of Civilization)
Alexander also believed that "...the
present state of civilization...calls
for
continuous and rapid adaptation to
a quickly
changing environment...[and that]...the
unreasoned,
instinctive direction of use such as
meets
the needs of the cat or dog was no
longer
sufficient to meet human needs."
Somehow,
in the process of civilization, "...instinctive
control and direction of use had become
so
unsatisfactory, and the associated
feeling
so untrustworthy as a guide, that it
could
lead us to do the very opposite of
what we
wished to do or thought we were doing."
Clearly if we continue on this path,
"...this
untrustworthiness of feeling...[would]
become
more and more a universal menace...[thus
making]...a knowledge of the means
whereby
trustworthiness could be restored to
feeling...invaluable."
(pp. 23-24)
Stage Fifteen (A Reconsideration)
Alexander now believed that searching
for
the "knowledge of the means whereby
trustworthiness could be restored to
feeling"
would "open out an entirely new
field
of exploration...." He decided
to reconsider
his own difficulties with this new
idea in
mind. He began by reviewing three particularly
important points:
(1) that the pulling of my head back
and
down, when I felt that I was putting
it forward
and up, was proof that the use of the
specific
parts concerned was being misdirected,
and
that this misdirection was associated
with
untrustworthy feeling;
(2) that this misdirection was instinctive,
and, together with the associated untrustworthy
feeling, was part and parcel of my
habitual
use of myself;
(3) that this instinctive misdirection
leading
to wrong habitual use of myself, including
most noticeably the wrong use of my
head
and neck, came into play as the result of a decision to use my voice;
this misdirection, in other words, was my
instinctive response (reaction) to the stimulus
to use my voice. (p. 24)
Stage Sixteen (The Beginnings of Inhibition)
Considering the last point gave Alexander
the idea that if "...when the
stimulus
came to me to use my voice, I could
inhibit
the misdirection associated with the
wrong
habitual use of my head and neck, I
should
be stopping off at its source my unsatisfactory
reaction to the idea of reciting..."
He decided to inhibit the misdirection,
then
discover what direction he could "...put
into practice [that] would ensure a
satisfactory
instead of an unsatisfactory reaction
to
the stimulus to use my voice."
(p. 24-25)
Stage Seventeen (Conscious, (Reasoned) Direction)
In this next stage of his work, Alexander
realized that if he ever wanted to
"...react
satisfactorily to the stimulus to use
my
voice, I must replace my old instinctive
(unreasoned) direction of myself by
a new
conscious (reasoned) direction."
He
must "cease to rely upon...feeling...and
in its place employ my reasoning processes...
(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."
(p. 25)
Stage Eighteen (Superior Minds and Feeling
Right)
Alexander now knew that he could not
rely
on 'instinctive' direction. He knew
he had
to carefully think out how to perform
a given
act before he attempted to do it. But
he
assumed that if he did so, he "...should
be guided by my reasoning rather than
by
my feeling when it came to putting
this thought
into action, and that my "mind"
was the superior and more effective
directing
agent." However, he was attempting
"...to
employ conscious direction for the
purpose
of correcting some wrong use of myself
which
was habitual and therefore felt right to me." What he discovered (and he
could observe it happening in the mirror)
was that "...at the critical moment
when I attempted to gain my end by means
which were contrary to those associated with
my old habits of use, my instinctive direction
dominated my reasoning direction." It
didn't matter that he knew what the right
thing to do was, and it didn't matter how
often he tried. As soon as the "...stimulus
to speak came to me, I invariably responded
by doing something according to my old habitual
use associated with the act of speaking."
For Alexander "...there was no clear
dividing line between my unreasoned and my
reasoned direction of myself and I was quite
unable to prevent the two from overlapping."
(pp. 26-27)
Stage Nineteen (Endgaining and More Inhibition)
After trying so often to do the right
thing,
and failing, Alexander was understandably
disappointed. Perhaps because he could
not
think of anything else to do, he "...decided
to give up any attempt for the present
to
"do" anything to gain my
end...."
This procedure allowed him to "...see
at last that if I was ever to be able
to
change my habitual use and dominate
my instinctive
directions, it would be necessary for me to make the
experience of receiving the stimulus to speak
and of refusing to do anything immediately
in response." He realized that when he responded
immediately, it was because he had decided
to "...do something at once, to go directly
for a certain end...." Responding at
once did not give him "..the opportunity
to project as many times as was necessary
the new directions which I had reasoned out
were the best means whereby I could gain
that end." His old instinctive direction
had built up his wrong habitual use in the
first place, and if he did not project his
new directions enough times, that old instinctive
direction and its associated untrustworthy
feeling "...still controlled the manner of my response, with the inevitable result
that my old wrong habitual use was again
and again brought into play." (p. 27)
Stage Twenty (Practice, Practice, Practice)
At this point he decided that he must
only
"...give myself the directions
for the
new "means-whereby," instead
of
actually trying to "do" them
or
relate them to the "end"
of speaking."
He continued this practice "...for
long
periods together, for successive days
and
weeks and sometimes even months..."
He describes "means-whereby"
to
include "the inhibition of the
habitual
use of the mechanisms of the organism,
and
the conscious projection of new directions
necessary to the performance of the
different
acts involved in a new a more satisfactory
use of these mechanisms." The
experience
of this practice taught him that each
of
the conscious directions involved in
his
new "means-whereby" must
be projected
many times, and must be continued to
be projected
when he added the directions for the
next
part of the new "means-whereby."
He also found that when he had "..become
familiar with the combined process
of giving
the directions for the new "means-whereby"
in their sequence and of employing
the various
corresponding mechanisms in order to
bring
about he new use, I must continue this
process
in my practice for a considerable time
before
actually attempting to employ the new
"means-whereby"
for the purpose of speaking."
(pp. 27-28)
Stage Twenty-one (Thinking in Activity)
Alexander borrows a term from John
Dewey
("thinking in activity")
to describe
the process of projecting a sequenced
series
of reasoned directions in order to
gain an
end. His teaching experience showed
him that
continuing to keep all three directions
going
"all together, one after the other"
"as we proceed to gain the end,
has
proved to be the pons asinorum of every
pupil
I have so far known." (p. 29)
Stage Twenty-two (Another Reconsideration)
Alexander eventually decided that he
has
practiced long enough, and should be
able
to employ his new directions for the
purpose
of speaking. Unfortunately he "failed
more often then I succeeded."
This situation
was perplexing, because he knew he
was trying
to "...inhibit my habitual response
to the stimulus to speak" and
he knew
he had "...given the new directions
over and over again." At least,
that
had been his intention, and what he
thought
he had done. When he reconsidered his
premises,
however, he realized "..more clearly
than ever that the occasions when I
failed
were those on which I was unable to
prevent
the dominance of my wrong habitual
use, as
I attempted to employ the new "means-whereby"
with the idea of gaining my end and
speaking....in
spite of all my preliminary work, the
instinctive
direction associated with my habitual
use
still dominated my conscious reasoning
direction."
(pp. 29-30)
Stage Twenty-three (Concrete Proof)
Despite these seeming setbacks, Alexander
was confident that his new "means-whereby"
were right for his purpose. For a time
he
wondered if it was a personal shortcoming
that prevented him from succeeding,
thinking
that someone else might have been successful.
He investigated for a long time, seeking
"any other possible causes of
failure"
and realized that he must "...seek
some
concrete proof whether, at the critical
moment
when I attempted to gain my end and
speak,
I was really continuing to project
the directions
in their proper sequence...or whether
I was
reverting to the instinctive misdirection
of my old habitual use...." Through
careful experimentation he discovered
that
"...at the critical moment when
persistence
in giving the new directions would
have brought
success, I reverted instead to the
misdirection
associated with my wrong habitual use."
He had found his concrete proof and
he concludes
that "Clearly to "feel"
or
think I had inhibited the old instinctive
reaction was no proof that I had really
done
so, and I must find some way of "knowing."
" (pp. 30-31)
Stage Twenty-four (Racial Inheritances)
Alexander noticed that when he failed
"...the
instinctive misdirection associated
with
my old habitual use always dominated
my reasoning
direction for the new use." On
pondering
this problem he gradually realized
that the
only experience people had of directing
themselves
was instinctive direction, which Alexander
called a "racial inheritance."
He was "...therefore combating
in myself
not only that racial tendency which
causes
us all at critical moments to revert
to instinctive
direction and so to the familiar use
of ourselves
that feels right, but also a racial
inexperience
in projecting conscious directions
at all,
and particularly conscious directions
in
sequence." (p. 31)
Stage Twenty-five (More on Sensory Appreciation)
Although Alexander had realized much
earlier
that he could not trust to feeling
to direct
his use, he had not yet fully understood
that the "...sensory experience
associated
with the new use would be so unfamiliar
and
therefore "feel" so unnatural
and
wrong that I...with my ingrained habit
of
judging whether experiences of use
were "right"
or not by the way they felt, would almost inevitably balk at employing
the new use." He found himself in something
of a vicious circle: "...trying to employ
a new use of myself which was bound to feel
wrong, at the same time trusting to my feeling
of what was right to tell me whether I was
employing it or not." In other words,
he was trying to employ his new reasoning
direction of use, while employing his instinctive
misdirection and thus old habitual use to
judge whether or not he had succeeded in
employing the new use. "Small wonder,"
he writes, that this attempt had proved futile!"
(p. 32)
Stage Twenty-six (Genuine Trust)
Alexander now realized that he must
"...subject
the processes directing my use to a
new experience...of
being dominated by reasoning instead
of by
feeling, particularly at the critical
moment
when the giving of directions merged
into
"doing' for the gaining of the
end I
had decided upon." It didn't matter
how wrong the procedure he had reasoned
out
might feel, he still must continue
it. He
writes that "...my trust in my
reasoning
processes to bring me safely to my
"end"
must be a genuine trust, not a half-trust
needing the assurance of feeling right as well." Once again he needed a plan
"...by which to obtain concrete proof
that my instinctive reaction to the stimulus
to gain my end remained inhibited, while I projected in their sequence the
directions for he employment of the new use
at the critical moment of gaining that end."
(pp. 32-33)
Stage Twenty-seven (The Plan)
Alexander made many attempts to devise
such
a plan. What he finally adopted was
the following:
Supposing that the "end"
I decided
to work for was to speak a certain
sentence,
I would start in the same way as before
and
(1) inhibit any immediate response
to the
stimulus to speak the sentence,
(2) project in their sequence the directions
for the primary control which I had
reasoned
out as being best for the purpose of
bringing
about the new and improved use of myself
in speaking, and
(3) continue to project these directions
until I believed I was sufficiently
au fait with them to employ them for the purpose
of gaining my end and speaking the sentence.
At this moment, the moment that had
always
proved critical for me because it was
then
that I tended to revert to my wrong
habitual
use, I would change my usual procedure
and
(4) while still continuing to project the directions
for the new use I would stop and consciously reconsider my
first decision, and ask myself "Shall
I after all go on to gain the end I have
decided upon and speak the sentence? Or shall
I not? Or shall I go on to gain some other
end altogether?"--and then and there make a fresh decision
(5) either
not to gain my original end, in which
case
I would continue to project the directions
for maintaining the new use and not go on to speak the sentence;
or
to change my end and do something different,
say, lift my hand instead of speaking
the
sentence, in which case I would continue to project the directions
for maintaining the new use to carry out this last decision and lift
my hand;
or
to go on after all and gain my original
end,
in which case I would continue to project the directions
for maintaining the new use to speak the sentence." (p. 33-34)
Under his new plan, Alexander stopped
at
that critical moment of passing from
projecting
his directions for the new use, and
going
on to gain his end. Before that he
had employed
his habitual use to gain that end,
which
involved the projection of the instinctive
directions for that use. "By this
new
procedure," he writes, "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." (p. 35)
Stage Twenty-eight (Success At Last)
When working on his new plan, most
of the
time Alexander decided not to gain
his original
end, but to either do something different,
or simply continue to project his directions.
This experience, Alexander believed,
gave
him that "...concrete proof I
was looking
for, namely that my instinctive response
to the stimulus to gain my original
end was
not only inhibited at the start, but
remained inhibited right through, whilst
my directions for the new use were being
projected." And the experience of not going on to gain
his original end helped him "...to maintain
the new use on those occasions when I decided
at the critical moment to go on after all
and...speak the sentence." By this plan,
he became able to "...defeat any influence
of that habitual wrong use in speaking..."
and knew that "...my conscious, reasoning
direction was at last dominating the unreasoning,
instinctive direction...." (pp. 35-36)
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