Analyst Essay Topic – Your Response To Skeptics
By Debbie Fitzgerald
Reverse Speech, while many find this a truly amazing, extra-ordinary and revolutionary discovery by David Oates in 1984, there are however, those people that are sceptical of its validity and existence. Interestingly, whilst I was thinking about this topic and before finding a sceptical review the word FEAR kept coming to me. I would propose that those people who fear something are more than likely to be sceptical of it as well.
The definition of Sceptic in the Merriam-Webster dictionary:
- One who instinctively or habitually doubts, questions, or disagrees with assertions or
generally accepted conclusions. (such as a claims or statements)
Sceptical people look at the world with a certain amount of doubt. This also includes a certain amount of fear as the Fear and Doubt seem to be intertwined.
The definition of the word Doubt appears to also include a meaning:
- Archaic To suspect; fear. (in almost all dictionaries)
I then came across a sceptical forum questioning the topic of Reverse Speech in a manner of ways which I will do my best to give a rebuttal to each sceptical statement. I was also very surprised to see a number of entries relating to fear of Reverse speech. So I stopped here and decided to respond to this forum having thought very much about the “Fear factor” from the beginning. I very much would like to address this fact in relation to Reverse speech.
It has the heading:
This is topic Reverse Speech in forum Urban Legend Archive at snopes.com. 2000
The first post in this forum states:
“The site http://www.reversespeech.com keeps coming up here. Anyone agree with me that it’s kind of a monkeys and typewriters thing? To me, it seems a lot like the well-known phenomena of humans recognizing faces in objects which bear
only a superficial topological resemblance to a face.”
Addressing the first comment regarding it’s a kind of monkeys and typewriter thing is actually quite ironic given the fact that a metaphor has been used.
According to the Wikipedia: The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type a given text. Such as the complete works of William Shakespeare. In this context “almost surely” is a mathematical term with a precise meaning, and the “monkey’ is not an actual monkey, but a metaphor for an abstract device that produces an endless random sequence of letters and symbols.
With over 32 years of research having gone into Reverse Speech one of its constants is the use of metaphorical language not only in forward speech but also in reverse speech. Maybe if this thread starter, instead of jumping to this conclusion and yes, using a metaphor in his opening comment chose too, he would see that Reverse Speech is not at all random and the actual time it takes to analyse one recording certainly doesn’t equate to hours and hours of listening to recordings backwards to find a valid and clear reversal that matches the strict criteria set out.
There is a reason that David Oates has put forward strict criteria and this will also give an explanation into the second comment the author has suggested in his post.
- It seems a lot like the well-known phenomena of humans recognizing faces in objects which bear only a superficial topological resemblance to a face.
Yes, it is possible to project into the gibberish without the proper training.
As students of Reverse Speech they are taught in the initial classes by David Oates that:
- You will hear nothing but gibberish
- You will imagine phrases into the backward sounds that do not exist, like seeing pictures in clouds
- You will hear coincidental sounds only and you will hear genuine speech reversals
So, it is important to know that Reverse Speech has developed very strict guidelines that if they are followed any one will hear the phrase without prompting. If several people can hear the same phrase without being prompted then surely that implies that the phrase exists.
These guidelines that further add to the integrity of Reverse Speech and reversals are as follows:-
There has been a set of seven reversal check points and five reversal validity factors formulated to follow in order to make sure the reversal found can be easily heard by others. This is most important as it will be played back to the client during the session times and it will also be used as examples in teaching as well as explaining and demonstrating Reverse Speech to others.
These seven check points were initially put together in 1991 to give students of Reverse speech easy steps and guidelines to distinguish between gibberish, their imagination and a genuine speech reversal. It still applies today as it has proven to be extremely effective and following these checkpoints greatly improves the accuracy rate.
There are however, an initial set of three checkpoints to follow when a suspected reversal is found. This will help distinguish genuine reversals from imagination. These are as follows:
- Is the syllable count correct?
- Are the consonant and vowel sounds well formed?
- Are the beginnings and endings of words clear and distinct?
If the reversal meets these three check points then go over the reversal several times applying the full seven checkpoints.
- Is the syllable count of the entire phrase correct?
- Are the vowel and consonant sounds in each syllable clear and precise?
- Are the beginnings and endings of words clearly defined and distinguishable?
- Are the spacing sufficient between each word, so that it is clearly distinguishable from other words in the reversal?
- Is the reversed phrase distinct from the surrounding gibberish?
- Does the entire phrase have a continuous, melodious tone from beginning to end?
- Does the phrase have a definite constant beat or tempo from beginning to end?
Next set of criteria involves The Validity Factor chart and this acts as a guide to documenting the reversal it fails to meet the seven check points and needs to be documented with a reduced validity factor.
Validity Factor Chart
VF 5: All seven check points are met – the reversal is very clear.
VF 4: One check point ONLY may be imprecise.
VF 3: One check point of 1,2,3,4 and one of 5,6,7 may be imprecise.
VF 2: One check point of 1,2,3,4 and two of 5,6,7 are imprecise.
VF 1: Two check points of 1,2,3,4 and two of 5,6,7 are imprecise.
It is best to document a reversal that has a validity factor of 3 and above, though ideally it is far better to document a reversal of a validity factor of 4 and 5.
Reversals that only have a validity factor of 1 and 2 should never be documented as it would be quite difficult for the phrase to be understood and for most people to hear clearly what is being said in reverse.
So it does seem evident with the above documentation that all the measures have been put in place and taught extensively to students to ensure a clear, precise and audible reversal.
It therefore does give enough evidence to dispute the monkey and typewriters comment and the recognizing faces in objects query has not been undermined as it does have its validity but it is the reasoning behind covering it in the teaching of Reverse speech with such extensive guidelines and criteria so this actual situation does not occur.
In response to the first posted comment in the forum was the following “I think you’re dead right — this kind of thing (I reckon another good example is the Dark Side of the Moon/Wizard of Oz “synchronisation”) is what I call the “seek and ye shall find syndrome” — the brain is so excellent at pattern matching that if you want to see/hear something badly enough, you will…”
The Dark Side of the Moon/Wizard of Oz “synchronisation” refers to the intentional pairing of the 1973 Pink Floyd album The Dark Side of the Moon with the visual portion of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.” This produces moments where the film and the album appear to correspond with each other.
This differs from Reverse speech greatly as it is not intentional. It clearly covers this topic on the website and David Oates has no qualms about placing all that he possibly can on his various websites so people can be educated on the entirety of Reverse Speech.
What is intentional however, is the subject of Back Masking which is how David made the discovery of Reverse Speech back in 1983. In fact, David Oates has written a book (one of many books) co-authored with Greg Albrecht in 1987 which explains the whole topic and Back Masking and how it lead to the discovery of Reverse Speech. He offers this book as an opt-in on any of his websites for free.
A brief description of Backmasking – it is a recording technique where words and statements are deliberately inserted backwards into the soundtrack which has actually been linked to music for some time.
Whereas Reverse speech occurs naturally in speech to communicate information which originates from the subconscious part of ourselves and which we may not be aware of consciously.
As it was stated in a testimonial to David from Dr Virgil Chrane:
“David John Oates has made one of the great discoveries of all time. He has proven that man’s true-Self speaks in reverse. He has documented and developed the art, science and philosophy of Reverse Speech.”
In regard to the second part to this comment in the forum:
“seek and ye shall find syndrome” — the brain is so excellent at pattern matching that if you want to see/hear something badly enough, you will…”
It has been explained above that the guidelines imposed in revealing a reversal are of a very strict nature to avoid any form of this occurring. Yes, the idea is to seek out the reversals, yes, reversals are found but only by following the strict guidelines does it then teach the student the ability to allow the reversal to jump out at them and be clearly distinguishable amongst the gibberish.
As has been previously said, this is taught to the students and the Reverse speech course is by no means an easy or flippant education.
Multiple steps have to be taken in order to formulate an intensive and comprehensive course where certain steps must be completed before moving onto the next level, eventually becoming a Practitioner of Reverse Speech. It is step by step approach and each of the courses contents are built upon in order to gain a progressive and complete grasp and understanding into this unique topic.
The following two posts in the forum refer to the fear factor which I will address shortly.
The fifth post in this particular forum is a person suggesting that the examples on the Reverse Speech website involved:
“half an hour of audio all together, maybe (I’m guessing) and this was probably the cream of the crop from thousands of hours of reversed audio being reviewed by dozens of people at various speeds, specifically looking for hidden messages. To be perfectly honest, how many of even these prized discoveries would you have heard without the associated text telling you what to look for?”
This is a much generalized view and an assumption without really delving further into the process of Reverse Speech and how these messages or reversals are found.
Speculation without knowing the facts, is it not?
Firstly, audio length does vary, the majority being 15-30 minutes. The statement conjures up an image of thousands of people all listening to the same recording for thousands of hours just to find one reversal. This is not how the reversal examples made their way onto the website.
I would say however, that thousands of reversals have been found over the years by David Oates himself who is 32 year veteran and pioneer of this field. Not only has he had his own successful practice helping numerous clients on so many levels over these many years, he has trained many in this field to Analyst and Practitioner level and he is meticulous in doing all this training himself maintaining the integrity and high standards of Reverse Speech.
Some of the examples have therefore also come from these other sources throughout the years and is testament to his thorough training methods and his level of passion for Reverse Speech.
A 30 minute recording actually takes about 3 hours in total by the trained Reverse Speech analyst to listen to, put together a full transcript, analyse the findings and form a conclusion.
It is also not just one reversal that is found either but anything ranging from 20 to 30 reversals sometimes even more. Again, this is dependent on following the correct guidelines and techniques that are laid out as explained above although this is only a small selection of the guidelines that have been mentioned so far.
The reversal examples on the website which are being referred to here are there to give the viewer/listener a sense of what Reverse Speech is all about. It is a much more complex and multifaceted subject and although the reversals play a major role there is so much more to Reverse Speech.
Naturally, the examples are of a high standard so a clear, concise reversal can be heard by those listening to them. Those coming to the website should be given the full example which includes the forwards conversation as well as what the reversal is saying in order to fully understand the example.
Given that this is a subject identified as one of the two forms of human communication automatically generated by the brain, as it has only ever been considered that communication occurred in one way only, language spoken forwards. Additionally, there is a direct correlation between the backwards sentences found and what is being spoken in forwards at the same time. It has also been established through thorough research and analysis that reverse speech is a communication process received and understood by the human brain on an unconscious level.
After the discovery of Reverse speech in 1983, it wasn’t until 1987, 4 years later after much research and analysis that David Oates developed the Theory of Reverse Speech and Speech Complementarity. This theory has remained unchanged over the years and sums up Reverse speech in a nutshell. It has been documented as follows:
- Human speech has two separate, yet complementary, functions and modes. One mode occurs overtly, is spoken forwards, and is under conscious control. The other mode occurs covertly, is spoken backwards and is not under conscious control. The backward mode of speech occurs simultaneously with the forward mode and is a reversal of the forward speech sounds.
- These two modes of speech, forward and backward, complement and are dependent upon each other. One mode cannot be fully understood without the other mode. In the dynamics of interpersonal communication, both modes of speech combined communicate portions of the total psyche of the person, conscious and unconscious.
- Covert speech develops before overt speech and children speak backwards speech gradually combine into one forming an overall bi-level communication process.
With the obvious speech complementarity, this shows the significance of including more than just an audio as an example on the webpage.
Having said that, it is possible to hear the reversals clearly without hearing what the reversal says and this is demonstrated on the following website –
It is titled The Reverse Speech Blind Test and was posted on Jan 09, 2009:
Self-described “sceptics” insist that listeners can only hear speech reversals when prompted by “pre-suggestion.” In this video, we put that claim to the test.
It is the perfect example that you can hear the reversals without having to know the text and the examples have all been taken from the Reverse Speech website.
At the end of the video it also gives an explanation how reversals found are not just a coincidence which has been suggested in a couple of the posts in the forum.
“I am positive that the whole idea of finding messages in reverse speech is bunk,
and anything that is there is coincidence.”
The example I will give here is of a man speaking about his family:
The forwards conversation – I was about 30-35 when I found out my father was alive, [it was just through word of mouth] – long dialogue – I found out there were other brothers and sisters.
Then the reversal “I have an older sister” was found on analysis of the recording.
I have an older sister is a seven syllable grammatically correct statement whose factuality was confirmed by the forwards dialogue. What are the odds of those seven syllables lining up coincidentally? This can be said of all reversals found. Reversals are occurring every 20 to 30 seconds in grammatically correct sentences that have direct relationship to the forwards. The statistical odds of this occurring by random chance are astronomical.
Now the reason why I chose this particular critic’s review was the reference to fear several times in the posts and are as follows:
It is interesting that Reverse Speech brings up fears in people and these comments also include them wondering why are they fearful of it or it creeps them out.
Fear is one of the most important emotions experienced by humans and fear originates from any kind of threats to your self-esteem, spirit or life.
One of the most common sources of fear can be traced back to childhood and can be an instant trigger to fear induced behaviour at any stage of one’s life.
Oddly enough, the reason why people cannot find the cause of their fears is the very thing that Reverse Speech has been able to discover.
Reverse Speech has over the years uncovered theories of a very similar manner to those that Carl Jung put forward back in the early 1900’s.
Carl Jung was recognized as one of the most influential psychiatrists of all time. He founded analytical psychology and was among the first experts in his field to explore the religious nature behind human psychology. He argued that empirical evidence was not the only way to arrive at psychological or scientific truths and that the soul plays a key role in the psyche.
Jung’s work has not been discounted; it is the foundation for education in fields of psychology and other studies and is referred to often in relation to the conscious, unconscious, subconscious mind and the collective unconscious.
Wouldn’t it be nice to give David Oates and Reverse Speech the same courtesy?
The reasoning behind not knowing why we can fear something and may not understand why is our fears reside in our unconscious mind.
Our unconscious mind is the source of all hidden beliefs, fears, attitudes, memories, our entire life experiences and basically knows everything about us.
The unconscious mind creates our reality and is responsible for our behaviour, actions, shaping our personality and running our everyday life.
The subconscious mind cannot move outside its pre-programmed patterning – it automatically reacts to situations with its previously stored behaviour responses and works without the knowledge or control of the conscious mind.
It is these unconscious programmes (metaphors) that can interfere with our everyday life, sabotaging our success as it follows pre-programmed behavioural patterns.
Reverse speech enables us to delve into the unconscious mind, find the specific metaphors that a person is running and in turn, the reason behind certain behavioural patterns and emotional states.
If we don’t know what these fears, beliefs etc are it is difficult to understand our reaction to certain things and situations and therefore cannot change it.
It is then human instinct when fear sets in to:
- judge something that we don’t understand,
- question the validity of that which frightens us,
- jump to all sorts of irrational ideas, theories and conclusions,
- run away as one of our primal instincts when faced with fear is the fight or flight reaction.
It is also human nature to want immediate gratification and proof that something is real, that it exists and it is true.
We want to challenge that which we have no proof for so we can be secure in our rightness. Our brains work on patterns of associations so tend to grab any coincidence to make sense of things, but still…is this enough to relieve the nagging thoughts.
Those in this forum all seemed to go straight to the website and listen to the audio examples only and this was the basis of their assessment and subsequent assumption of Reverse Speech.
The website is a wealth of information, including – About Reverse Speech; History of Reverse Speech; Different Applications – business, personal, therapeutic; Research Articles and Blog Posts covering a large number of related topics; Videos, Testimonials; “Audio Examples” and so much more. It’s available for all to read and to be educated.
Knowledge is Power!!!
Lastly, is the fear based on the idea of the truth coming out, as it is the unconscious mind that reveals the hidden messages or reversals and it does not lie.
On a conscious level we are fully aware that we are lying unlike the unconscious and subconscious mind which cannot be forced to lie. It is impossible to lie when reversals access truth only. According to the research and analysis of thousands of reversals found David Oates has never discovered one instance of someone being able to withhold the truth in reverse.
Reverse speech would definitely be an extremely effective way for people to be forced into being honest with themselves. It really is the human lie detector or a “truth serum” as Reverse Speech will usually correct the inconsistencies of forward speech. If a lie is spoken forwards, the truth may be communicated in reverse. If important facts are left out of the forward speech these may also be spoken in reverse. It can reveal hidden motive and agenda and other conscious thought processes.
The way I see it Reverse speech has been around for over 32 years now, it is still here so it has stood the test of time. It hasn’t been forgotten OR discounted by the masses.
This particular forum was created in 2000 and whilst I was looking for an appropriate critics review I did notice that a lot of these were posted not long before or just after 2000.
From what I saw any current critic’s reviews in the recent times are only updates on a previously written review and there is nothing really new to speak of.
There has been an increasing awareness on the planet as we undergo the spiritual awakening and consequent ascension on and in our universe today, which has been slowly increasing since just before the year 2000. It seems that as more and more people are becoming enlightened and our consciousness is rising to heightened levels.
Before only the select few would agree with the whole Reverse Speech phenomena, others found it interesting, intriguing and even fascinating but now it does seem that the time is even more right and a larger group of people would be more accepting of it. Bit like the world wasn’t ready to process it before but now it is.
The increase in spirituality and the awareness of the whole Mind, Body, Spirit concept is a more natural and accepted topic today. Many want to undertake a journey of self-discovery and really feel the need to uncover their “true self”. The alternative health industry and alternative healing modalities have been on the increase for many years now and many aspects of Reverse Speech are already part of their healing philosophy not only for themselves but for their clients as well.
Below is an excellent testimonial that encompasses all the amazing results that can be had by Reverse Speech on a mind, body and spirit. There is also a large number of testimonials on the Reverse Speech website that really validate and give supportive evidence of its authenticity.
KATI MEISSNER TESTIMONIAL
I decided to do session work because – being a student of Reverse Speech – I thought I needed the experience. I wanted to improve my memory and get rid of my fear of speaking in public, my fear of being in the spotlight. Shortly after my first trance I felt major shifts taking place. My memory improved considerably and amazed friends pointed out to me that I say whatever and whenever I wanted to. It felt so natural to me, that I haven’t even noticed the difference! I soon found out, though, that those points were only the tip of the “iceberg of change”. Here are a few more points that changed along with my initial intent:
I am much more grounded. I take full responsibility for my life and all my actions. I am centred, focused, goal oriented. I can see my life’s purpose clearly and know which actions to take to fulfill it.
I have claimed my power – of which I was afraid of for so long! That means I can be who I truly am. Thus I am not afraid anymore to open my heart completely. I am over-pouring with love and compassion. I connected with the Goddess inside of me. I am more in touch with and more aware of my femininity.
My psychic abilities have increased to that extend that I have to really be careful of what I think because it does come true!
My intuition increased immensely. I not only know what to do but also have the unshakable confidence to follow up on it. I am more in touch with my soul, with the “higher reality”. It is like surfing on a ” higher wave of consciousness”, everything is clearer, I know what I want and what I don’t want. This is even true for my physical body that became more sensitive. And I became more sensitive to its needs. My eating habits have improved and to my great surprise I realized that instead of frozen yogurt I now crave carrot juice…
I am more energetic, more creative, I am more self-secure, more joyful, more peaceful, life has brighter colours.
To sum it up I could say that I cut off the chains that kept me from being who I truly am. And best of all, I didn’t have to do anything! It happened “overnight”, so to say. Friends noticed my change first. “You look so different! You are so radiant, you look so happy, your eyes, how they sparkle!” For me it is such a natural state, that I hardly remember how I felt before the session work. And to be frank, I don’t have the slightest desire to recall my existence before Life began!
In conclusion
Don’t judge and jump to a “sceptics” conclusion out of fear or lack of knowledge.
Be your own person and truly undertake a journey through this profound and exciting world of Reverse Speech. It deserves to be looked at in its entirety and not just on a quick visit to the website and listening to a few audio examples.
Give it a go and experience it for yourself. I say don’t knock it until you have tried it.
If anything find out why you are fearful, what is the experience or live event that is hidden deep in your unconscious mind that invokes fear.
Breaking free of the old typical belief patterns and behaviours that are controlled by the unconscious mind is a gift everyone deserves to give to themselves.
to live a happy, healthy, abundant life full of love, peace and balance.
Trust the process and have faith!!!