Peter Kocan is an Australian writer. I've been interested in reading him for a while, due to his interesting backstory, academic involvement in my University, and his relationship with Michael Dransfield, another Australian writer I'm vaguely interested in.Kocan was given a life sentence in 1966 for the attempted assassination of Arthur Calwell, the current Leader of the Federal Opposition. Of this sentence, he served 10 years, mostly in Morisset Mental Hospital. 'The Treatment' and 'The Cure' are his two autobiographical novellas covering his time served.There is little difference between the two, they have the same setting, the same characters, follow each other chronologically, and unfortunately, follow the same narrative style. Both are written in second-person narrative, which I found to be slightly ineffective. It may be assumed that Kocan chose this format to add some sort of 'mad' edge to his character, seeing as throughout both books, there is little indication of the protagonist being mentally unwell at all. But unfortunately, it did little more than swing me in and out of irritation.Kocan plays the innocent bad-boy card, widely used by 'beat' writers, but manages to rival them by being seemingly a tad more, uh, authentic? At times it is incredibly endearing. I almost shed a tear in the scene when Len recites lines from Wilfred Owen (not the greatest poet in my books, but fortunately one of my favourite Owen poems). It's cheesey, probably skewed, hard to swallow in the fact that the Institution seems like a breeze, a fantasy even, where you can lie in the grass with the sun in your face, read poetry all day, and fuck seventeen year-old girls who get sent in by their parents for smoking pot. But somehow, you come out on the other side feeling like Kocan is probably a good bloke, and it might not be the greatest writing you've ever read, but you're bloody proud that he's an Aussie, because sometimes it really does feel like we're scraping the bottom of the literary barrel for whatever mould or bird-shit we can find caked to it.
A horrowing book when I thought that places like this only existed in the 18th century! Not dwelling on what brought him there, Peter writes a true account of his life while incarcerated in the State mental hospital, rehab, and prison. His description of not only his own thoughts and feelings but that of his "mates", truly brings to life his "normalacy" in the face of extreme barbarianism. This many went on to obtain his Masters Degree, and have several other books published, a few of poetry. Poetry, both written and read, seems to have been his salvation while in the hospital. An accomplished writer that provided a good insight into how people that are supposed to be helping them, abuse their power.
Do You like book The Treatment And The Cure (2008)?
