In Pleasure: A Creative Approach to Life, Alexander Lowen shows how the
experience of pleasure or pain determines our emotions, thinking, and
behavior. Examining the psychology and the biology of pleasure, he explores
its roots in the nature of the body and shows that emotional health means
that we are in a state of pleasure – that is, we feel good in our bodies.
Lowen describes pleasure as the creative force in life and as the only force
strong enough to oppose the potential destructiveness of power. In most
adults, the struggle for power competes with the striving for pleasure, causing
chronic muscular tensions, and undermining creativity. Through case studies
illustrating the use of Bioenergetic Analysis, Lowen shows how people can
reconnect to their bodies and restore a mind-body balance, regaining natural
spontaneity and the capacity for pleasure and creativity.