The Quaking experience: speaking from unknown places
Date
1994
Authors
Caplan, Alan Narayan
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Abstract
This thesis explores the nature of the quaking experience - those moments when unpredictable and energetic speaking breaks out as people lose their composure. Out of the tension between wanting to be silent and inconspicuous and the knowledge that something must be said comes a movement towards quaking speech. It often moves people to express unexplored differences and encounter unfamiliar parts of themselves. Drawing from personal experiences as teacher, counsellor, therapist, student, and group facilitator, I present here a number of scenes and open-ended narratives of situations in which quaking occurred. These are interspersed with reflective passages pondering the nature of my interpretive inquiry into this topic.