[The Liberating Power of Automatic Writing: Uncovering Your True Self]-[A Writing Exercise to Help You Meet Yourself]

The School of Life · B1 ·

📋 Summary

The Liberating Power of Automatic Writing: Uncovering Your True Self

The Traditional Approach vs. The Philosophy of Unfiltered Expression

Typically, the act of writing is governed by a pursuit of perfection. We strive for our work to be "coherent and polished," meticulously checking our spelling and agonizing over word choices to ensure our prose accurately reflects our thoughts. We treat writing as a calculated process of refinement, constantly looking back to "correct words that feel not entirely right" in a quest for logical and elegant articulation.

However, there exists a contrasting philosophy that shifts the ultimate ambition of writing from external polish to the raw "expression of our genuine thoughts." This technique, known as "automatic writing," posits that the best way to access our deepest truths is to consciously stop trying to be "logical, elegant, clever or even very sane." Instead of overthinking, this method demands that we "write down everything that comes into our minds the very moment it does so," without hesitation or revision.

The Mechanics of the Technique

The practice of automatic writing is deceptively simple yet psychologically demanding. It requires picking an "important emotional topic"—such as one’s parents, a partner, or a deep-seated desire—and writing as fast as possible for two minutes without a single pause. The speaker notes that this can feel like an "exhausting and peculiar requirement," as it forces the writer to bypass the internal editor that usually dictates our output. By eliminating the time needed for reflection, we strip away the social filters that prevent us from engaging with our authentic inner state.

Confronting the Unexpected Truth

The value of this exercise lies in the surprising discoveries that emerge when we stop trying to appear "normal." When we read what has "tumbled out" of us, we often find that our feelings are at odds with our conscious assumptions. We might discover that we "hate where we had expected love," or that we harbor "layers of longing, envy, rage or sadness" that we have spent our daily lives suppressing.

Often, we keep these feelings "at bay" because they are inconvenient or socially unacceptable. We live under the weight of "scruples" and the "fear of hurting others," prioritizing the appearance of normalcy over the reality of our internal landscape. The speaker warns that this "neglect of our true selves" is the fuel for our "anxiety, irritability, insomnia and depression." These conditions act as a form of "revenge" for the thoughts we have been too afraid to acknowledge.

Liberation Through Chaos

While the speaker acknowledges that automatic writing "will not make us into great writers," its utility is far more profound. It serves as a tool for psychological liberation, freeing us from the "insincerities" that cause unnecessary trouble and restlessness. By engaging in these "chaotic, intense two-minute essays," we bridge the gap between who we are and who we have been pretending to be. Ultimately, this practice allows us to finally "meet the person we have been but were too scared to get to know all along," turning the act of writing into an act of self-reconciliation.

🎯Key Sentences

We may think hard before setting anything down.

We keep an eye on spelling.

this one with a very different thesis as to what good writing might be like

making every effort not to think too much

not to agonize about every word

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📝Key Phrases

set out to

keep an eye on

at large

agonize about

stand back

Expand All

📖 Transcript

Usually, when we set out to write, sounding coherent and polished are our central priorities.

We may think hard before setting anything down.

We keep an eye on spelling.

We may go back and correct words that feel not entirely right, all in the hope of eventually reaching a point where what we have articulated seems accurately to reflect what we truly think.

But there is another philosophy of writing at large, this one with a very different thesis as to what good writing might be like, while also believing that the ultimate ambition of writing should be the expression of our genuine thoughts.

This technique proposes that our best chances of reaching such thoughts lies in making every effort not to think too much, not to agonize about every word, not to go back and correct anything, and instead just to write down everything that comes into our minds the very moment it does so, without any interest in seeming logical elegant, clever or even very sane.

This approach, known as automatic writing, asks us to begin by picking an important emotional topic for example, my mother or my father, my partner or what I really want and then writing as fast as we possibly can for two minutes straight without a single pause, which can feel like a very exhausting and peculiar requirement indeed.

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