Conscious Control In Relation to Human Evolution in Civilisation
Alexander's lost fifth book
Conscious Control in Relation to Human Evolution in Civilization was published in 1912 and quickly went out of print. It was Alexander’s second book, coming after Man's Supreme Inheritance and before Constructive Conscious Control of the Individual. It is probably the simplest and most easy-to-follow of all his books.
In this book Alexander methodically sets out his claim for his method, and then backs this up with his reasons for standing by that claim. He also includes some case studies to back it up. It is a very clear description of the method devised, which he calls 'Conscious Control'.
He discusses various topics such as:
- breathing and physical exercises
- the cause of physical degeneration
- chronic indigestion
- means-whereby and end-gaining
- increasing powers of resistance against disease
- correcting harmful mental habits
The book includes some general notes and case studies.
Publisher
Alexander Technique Centre Ireland (2015)
Chapters
- Preface
- The Claim
- The General Argument
- The Thesis
- Notes and Instances
49 pages. Including black and white photographs.
Note
Much of the information in this book was added to the post 1918 versions of Man's Supreme Inheritance, which does not, though, include the 6 page Preface included in this one, and it is valuable to have it as a separate book. This book also contains a copy of Alexander’s actual signature.