| First published in STATNews, vol. 6, no. 1, May 2000. |
This publication consists of short essays on the principles of the Technique and its procedures plus some accompanying illustrations and photos on A4 heavy-duty paper loosely collected in a folder.
Does it contribute anything new to the burgeoning literature on the Alexander Technique? The title suggested to this reviewer either an academic exercise or a contribution to the current debate about who we are and what we do in relation to established health care. Wrong! Nor did the introductory blurb on the back cover make it clear who this booklet is aimed at and what, exactly, it is trying to do. The reviewer then turned to the author’s advertisement in the last STAT News, to see that it promises “quickly lookupable” information for someone having lessons.
Does it clarify? The author assures us that the key concepts are presented in a logical way. To be sure, there are many ways in (and you have to start somewhere) but to begin with semi-supine and to consider eleven more subject topics before discussing inhibition - the corner-stone of the Technique - seems perverse. Writing about a topic is an excellent way of helping to clarify one’s thinking and is no doubt part of a student’s leaming process to be a teacher of the Alexander Technique; offering one’s own writings on the subject as a teacher might well be of value to those pupils coming for private lessons.
One’s magnum opus could then be promoted more widely. However, weighing in as heavily as most books on the Technique, yet offering little content - at around 40 pence per sheet - it is hard to see how it can compete with all the other introductory or practical guide books currently on the market.
© Jonathan Drake. Reproduced with permission.
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This edition © Mouritz 2005. All rights reserved. |
