ABSTRACT
His v i v i d sense of the limitations of words and theories was rooted in his own lack of any great literary or theoretical talent, but that in itself does not prove h im wrong. Another point about Perls merits consideration here. I n 1969, shortly before his death, he established a center at Cowichan in Canada and asked people to come to this quasi kibbutz, promising: " I n three months there I can cure any neurosis." That was frankly a boast, and Perls himself could not know for sure whether he wou ld be able to keep this promise. His biographer, Mar t in Shepard, who reported i t (p. 183), explained: "Cowichan revolved around shared work, Gestalt therapy training sessions, and free-floating evening encounters in wh ich appreciations and resentment were expressed. . . . And everything that happened there was grist for the therapeutic m i l l . " Why shouldn't such total immersion in a new enviroment make i t possible to cut down the t ime
required for a cure? Or for increased self-understanding? And for insight into the workings of the minds of others?
