Janine Chasseguet Smirgel Female Sexuality

ARESF1ELD LIBRARY JANINE CHASSEGUET SMIRGEL female sexuality new psychoanalytic KARNAC views Female Sexuality Female Sexuality NEW PSYCHOANALYTIC VIEWS By Janine Chasseguet-Smirgel with C.-J. Luquet-Parat, B£la Grunberger, Joyce McDougall, Maria Torok, Christian David Foreword by Frederick Wyatt MARESFIELD LIBRARY KARNAC BOOKS LONDON English translation copyright © 1970 by The University of Michigan. Reprinted in this edition 1985 by H . K a r n a c ( B o o k s ) L t d , 118 Finchley Road, L o n d o n N W 3 5 H T by special arrangement with the University of Michigan Press Reprinted 1988 Reprinted 1992 ISBN 9 7 8 ο 9 4 6 4 3 9 1 4 ο First published as Recherches psychoanaiytiques nouvelks sur la sexualiU fiminine. © Copyright 1964 by Payot, Paris. All rights reserved. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Chasseguet-Smirgel, Janine, ig28Female sexuality: new psychoanalytic views.— (Marcsfield library). 1. Women. Sexuality—Psychoanalytical perspectives I. Title II. Luquet-Parat, C. F. (Catherine F.) III. Rechercher psychoanaiytiques nouvelles sur la scxualite feminine. English "55-3'33 ISBN 9 7 8 - 0 - 9 4 6 4 3 9 - 1 4 - 0 Printed in Great Britain by BPC Wheatons Ltd, Exeter Foreword Frederick Wyatt Considering the amount of time h u m a n beings commonly spend on the t w i n subjects of love and sex, one might think that psychology would, as a matter of course, regard them as its foremost concern. B u t this is not so. W e have more systematic knowledge of the mat­ ing behavior of most animals than of the analogous enterprise i n man. So m u c h of the latter is mental, that is, subjectively experi­ enced as impulse a n d affect, and mostly enjoined by fantasy. It goes o n either without any corollary behavior, or w i t h widely divergent ones. It is not surprising, then, that the literary imagination has dealt so often w i t h the varieties of love, but we still have reason to wonder how psychology managed u n t i l recently to have so little to say about i t O n e of the a b i d i n g contributions of psychoanalysis to the h u m a n condition is, indeed, that i t finally came to grips w i t h the subject, p r o v i d i n g us w i t h a systematic theory of sexual develop­ ment. Psychoanalysis for the first time put some order into the pro­ fusion of sexual aims and their possible objects, showing us how they derive from a p l u r a l convergence between the child's i n ­ stinctual needs and fantasies, his inherent i n d i v i d u a l dispositions, and the pressures of his environment. Psychoanalysis had less to say about love. Even if it is not considered a subject too sublime for it (as some critics have m a i n ­ tained), it w i l l not be grasped either if regarded merely as a by­ product of sexuality, a k i n d of sentimentalized decoy for a gullible public, as some psychoanalysts h o l d . T h e r e is no p r i n c i p a l reason why love can not be understood w i t h i n the scope of psychoanaly­ sis. W h a t psychoanalysts w i l l then have to say about i t may still not be as uncannily perceptive as poets and writers so often have been; but, by proceeding more systematically, psychoanalysis might give us at last a more comprehensive and steady understanding of the subject than we have had so far. Vi F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y However, no psychology of love is without a psychology of sex. T h e involvement of the sexes and the subterfuges and inver­ sions of this involvement have been commonly discussed by psy­ choanalysts i n terms of instinctual needs and their arrest and dis­ tortion through conflict. T h e development of male sexuality was studied first, and perhaps for that reason as well as because of its relative simplicity, it became a model for a l l subsequent investiga­ tion. Freud's one-sided approach to the psychology of women has been criticized so much that it w i l l be i n order here to reflect on what the situation now is. Those familiar with the literature know, of course, that major revisions of Freud's view on female sexuality have already taken place. Further revisions are needed. T h e r e are simply too many facets i n the psychology of woman which are not yet sufficiently understood. As clinicians we meet continuously with breaks and discontinuities of the life history too readily put down as symptoms. Sometimes we can seize upon some of their meaning intuitively, but we cannot consistently fit them into our conceptual framework and so explain them. T h e endless ambiguities of women w i t h regard to themselves belong here—the common envy of the male's prerogatives and of his presumable advantages. W e are con­ tinuously struck by the greater psychological vulnerability of women, strangely coupled w i t h greater biological sturdiness, and by the very widespread disabilities i n sexual responsiveness. A l l these features create a penumbra of problems both personal and social which is not lighted u p by insisting that we have already a com­ plete theory to provide a l l the answers. Freud's writings on the subject, i n spite of some jostling with female psychoanalytic critics, leave no doubt that he was fully aware of the limits of his own explanations. O f course, we do not help matters either if we dismiss psychoanalytic propositions about feminine sexuality altogether. N o better theory is i n sight anywhere, and the promise of the psy­ choanalytic approach is so obvious and i n so many respects not yet realized that we should first of a l l strive to work it out. T h e point now is to explore and vary our frame of reference systematically. W e may well have carried along a set of theoretical expectations, a grid for the ordering of our observations, which from time to time detracts us from links and patterns of development which may yet lead to more effective explanations. W h a t is needed, then, is a willingness to alter viewpoints. T o provide us w i t h such a change i n perspective is the prominent contribution of this book. T h e divergence of this book from the classical psychoanalytic position can be schematically stated i n this way: the authors agree on the overwhelming importance of the mother for the personality Foreword vii and later sexual adjustment of the little g i r l . T h e significance of this early relationship can best be demonstrated by its failures and by the pathological twists following u p o n them. In these instances the c h i l d has never succeeded i n freeing herself from the mother. A t least i n her own perception of herself she has remained be­ holden to her. I n effect she thinks of herself as merely a part of the mother's body, or total presence, and must not have wishes and an i n d i v i d u a l i t y of her own. T h e various pathologies of w h i c h the authors offer impressive case examples represent attempts of the g i r l , now grown into womanhood, to free herself from the image of that possessive but often unprepossessing mother. Appropriate to the o r i g i n of that image are the girl's attempts at overcoming i t — they are, as a rule, as devious and irrational as they are futile and self-limiting. I n their conception of the impact and scale of these events i n early childhood the authors tend toward the views developed by M e l a n i e K l e i n and frequently promulgated by Ernest Jones. A c ­ cording to this position the drama of early childhood goes o n very much inside, consisting as it does of fantasies insinuating the usurpation of genitals a n d other properties of the parents' bodies, and of the guilt the c h i l d accumulates by participating i n these games i n his imagination. Melanie Klein's ideas have had m u c h less influence on the development of psychoanalysis i n this country than they continue to have i n E n g l a n d , i n France, and, for that matter, i n South A m e r ­ ica. T h e question at this point cannot be whether they are right or not. B e i n g reconstructions rather than propositions based on readily accessible observation, they are not verifiable i n the strict sense of the word. T h e y must be judged, above a l l , i n terms of what they can do for us by enabling us to organize observations i n a novel and productive way. T h e authors of Female Sexuality show what use can be made of the Klein-Jones frame of reference by demonstrating its efficacy i n the organization of clinical ma­ terials a n d i n the formulation of productive hypotheses. T h e y throw light on some of the perennial queries of the clinical investi­ gator and therapist concerning that ubiquitous and much debated motif penis envy, on the stuff of w h i c h men and women make u p their fantasies of each other, on the rather universal roots of female homosexuality, and o n many other topics. T h i s book differs not only i n its conceptual framework, but i n its emphasis on what i n the psychoanalytic image of m a n matters most. It stresses primary process, impulse, and affect before ego or­ ganization. T h e r e is i n this way not m u c h room for the autonomy Viil F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y of the ego, which for many of us has become the center of psycho­ analytic theory. Nevertheless, the authors of this book again vigor­ ously r e m i n d us of what can still be gained from expanding on psychoanalysis's earlier stress on instinct and the unconscious. T h e authors are by no means unaware of the collective behind the i n ­ d i v i d u a l — o f the motive-orienting force of culture and social norms, and their indispensable part i n the reconstruction of n o r m a l and pathological developments. T o advance our understanding of the casting of the sexes we shall have to draw much more on anthro­ pology and sociology—and ethology—than we have done so far. B u t that is the prospect for psychoanalytic psychology at large. T h e merit of the studies assembled i n t h i i book seems to me to consist i n organizing observations more comprehensively and w i t h fewer strings left dangling than before. It consists i n answering some questions and i n cutting back others to essentials, so that the prob­ lem can be approached more efficiently i n the next r o u n d . T h e authors of this book suggest new ways of l o o k i n g at an age-old problem, and i n d o i n g so give us also a welcome demonstration of the French point of view i n psychoanalysis. T h e reader who follows their exposition with an open m i n d w i l l find the excursion most rewarding. Contents I n t r o d u c t i o n . J . Chasseguet-Smirgel / A M a s c u l i n e M y t h o l o g y of F e m i n i n i t y . C . D a v i d 47 O u t l i n e for a S t u d y of N a r c i s s i s m i n F e m a l e S e x u a l i t y . B. Grunberger 68 T h e C h a n g e of O b j e c t . C . L u q u e t - P a r a t 84 F e m i n i n e G u i l t a n d the O e d i p u s C o m p l e x . J . Chasseguet-Smirgel 94 T h e Significance of P e n i s E n v y i n W o m e n . M . T o r o k Homosexuality in Women. J . McDougall Notes 213 171 /55 Introduction J. Chasseguet-Smirgel Preliminary Remarks If one considers psychoanalytical literature o n female sexuality one cannot but notice a disproportion between the importance this subject necessarily commands i n clinical experience—half the peo­ ple analyzed are women—and the very modest role i t plays i n theo­ retical studies. T h i s disproportion is a l l the more remarkable if one goes o n to compare it w i t h the anthropological ambitions of psy­ choanalysis. One could argue that Freud's discoveries i n this domain are definitive, but that would be to exaggerate greatly Freud's own esti­ mation of his work o n female psychology. Indeed, F r e u d was always reticent about the "dark continent" of femininity, a n d constantly stressed the incomplete nature of his discoveries. A l t h o u g h he m a i n ­ tained his theories o n female sexuality he nevertheless left the ques­ tion open. T h u s , at the end of his lecture o n " F e m i n i n i t y , " one of the last works i n which he discussed this problem, he says: " I f you want to know more about femininity, enquire from your own expe­ riences of life, or turn to the poets, or wait u n t i l science can give you deeper and more coherent information." T h e debate is long-standing, Freud's first works o n feminin­ ity having already provoked strong opposition even among "ortho­ dox" analysts; by following Freudian methods of exploring the unconscious, they often arrived at conclusions different from Freud's o w n . M a n y analysts published the clinical experiences which l e d to their new hypotheses. O n the other hand others fol­ lowed Freud's ideas closely, trying to confirm them or enrich them by personal contributions. T h e position adopted by Ernest Jones, one of the first and most faithful disciples of Freud, his biographer, and the founder of the English psychoanalytic movement, was startling. F a r from agree­ 2 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y i n g w i t h the Freudian hypotheses, he aligned himself w i t h the views of the " o p p o s i t i o n " and expressed i n his own conclusions his deep, but respectful, disagreement w i t h Freud. T h e study of the psy­ choanalytical texts which reflect these divergences is interesting inas­ m u c h as it provides a basis for reflection as well as represents an i m ­ portant moment i n the history of psychoanalysis. B u t these debates, however r i c h and animated they may have been, never resulted i n a fruitful clash of o p i n i o n , nor i n a synthesis which might take into account the positive aspects of both sides. T h e discussion ended i n deadlock. O f a l l the analysts who opposed Freud's views on female sexuality, only K a r e n Horney broke away from Freud. Yet it is dif­ ficult to assess exactly how far she really disagreed w i t h Freud i n her final views on this topic. T h e Kleinians have, of course, adhered to Melanie Klein's views on the little girl's development as an i n ­ trinsic part of her whole theoretical system. As for "independent" analysts, that is to say the majority, some follow Freud—as much i n theory as i n practice—but many others, without adopting definitive doctrinaire positions, develop a variety of ideas following from their personal clinical experience. Since the last echoes of the discussion on female sexuality died down some thirty years ago, analysts have continued to analyze women, and r i c h and abundant clinical material has accumulated, yet studies of female sexuality have become rarer, more sporadic, more fragmented. Certain reasons may be found for this relative gap i n psychoanalytical research. T h e rigidity of theoretical posi­ tions probably influences subjective experience; didactic analysis does not prevent an analyst from being personally biased i n a do­ m a i n which, for reasons that we shall try to explain i n this book, re­ vives emotions and frightening representations as much i n the theo­ reticians as i n those with whom the theories are concerned. It would be relatively easy to reconsider many established theories on femininity i n the light of what we know about uncon­ scious fantasies of femininity itself. It is obvious that an analyst who reflects upon such problems and develops his own views is also directly and personally involved. H e must confront a number of i n ­ ternal and external difficulties, challenges w h i c h the first psychoana­ lysts, those of the twenties and thirties, d i d not hesitate to accept. Since then, psychoanalysis has entered a phase of maturity; psy­ choanalysts are no longer pioneers. T h e y have become established. I n order to achieve this they left behind the theoretical differences which could have disrupted a new movement. Undoubtedly, the fact that Freud's ideas w i l l be questioned i n this book is not uncon­ nected w i t h that period of inactivity. B u t the time at w h i c h this at­ Introduction 3 titude was important is now gone; to prolong it would be sterile and complacent. T h e vitality of any doctrine depends on the possi­ bility of rethinking certain aspects without disrupting the whole structure. T h e authors of the present book are united i n their desire to reexamine the theories of female sexuality, using the Freudian ap­ proach to the unconscious. T h e y hope to avoid the misleading theo­ retical path which attempts to approach the problems of femininity through the study of male sexuality. Such an approach (whose deeper motivation I hope to examine later i n this book) is detri­ mental to any understanding of the essence of femininity. T h e present authors have attempted as far as possible to free their theoretical ideas and their clinical interpretations from the unconscious fantasies which distort scientific objectivity. T h u s , Christian D a v i d tries, through the use of a clinical history, to study masculine myths about femininity. Catherine Luquet-Parat ap­ proaches "the change of object" i n a personal way, attributing an important role to female masochism i n the little girl's attempt to change from the maternal object to the paternal one; B61a G r u n ­ berger examines the origins of female narcissism; Joyce M c D o u g a l l shows that female homosexuality cannot be understood simply as a perversion, or a flight from man, or a rivalry w i t h h i m : it must also be considered as a component of woman's development which must be normally integrated i n order to achieve a harmonious feminine nature. M a r i a T o r o k gives masculinity wishes and penis envy a role and meaning w h i c h offer a possible explanation of this problem. For my part I shall try to describe the girl's relation w i t h her father and discuss aspects of this relation which contribute an important d i ­ mension to female g u i l t . Yet this identity i n method is not an identity i n theory; each of the authors contributes to this research i n his own way and according to his own personal experience. W e felt that a brief historical review of Freud's m a i n studies on femininity, and those of his disciples as well as those of his oppo­ nents, might provide a helpful introduction. O n l y the most signifi­ cant and the most controversial theoretical positions w i l l be consid­ ered. 1 2 4 F E M A L E Freud's T H R E E S E X U A L I T Y Views on Female ESSAYS ON T H E Sexuality T H E O R Y OF S E X U A L I T Y (19<>5) (Additions 1922, and made in the following 1924) editions: 1910, 191$, 1920, I n his Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality F r e u d lays the m a i n bases for his conception of femininity, that is to say, the exis­ tence of a sexual monism for both sexes u n t i l puberty. " T h e as­ sumption that a l l h u m a n beings have the same (male) form of gen­ i t a l is the first of the many remarkable and momentous sexual theories of children." T h i s concept is fundamental to the develop­ ment of female sexuality inasmuch as the male sex organ is the only one w h i c h is acknowledged by children of both sexes: the penis for the boy, and for the g i r l its corresponding organ: the clitoris. I n Freud's view the clitoris is a little penis. Boys and girls believe that the w o r l d is created i n their image and ignore the existence of the vagina. " T h e sexuality of little girls is of a wholly masculine charac­ ter." N o t only is the vagina nonexistent but the role of the clitoris is an exclusive one, even i n regard to other external parts of the genital area. Boys and girls both pass through three essential phases i n masturbation: the nursing period, the four-year-old stage (coin­ c i d i n g w i t h the height of the O e d i p a l complex), and puberty. 3 However, there comes a time that Freud seems to identify w i t h the second phase of infantile masturbation (at the age of four), when the male c h i l d realizes that girls are not made like h i m , since they have no penis, while the g i r l realizes that she has something missing. T h e boy, frightened by the missing penis, sees it as a castration and fears that the same thing may happen to h i m ; from then on he despises women. T h e g i r l also thinks she has been castrated and wishes she were a boy. In the Three Essays, therefore, F r e u d postulates the existence of the castration complex i n both sexes and of penis envy i n girls. Yet u n t i l puberty there is no real difference between the sexes. T h e r e is no "masculine," and no "feminine." A t puberty "the penis, w h i c h has become erectile, presses forward insistently toward the new sexual aim of penetration into a cavity. . . ." A t the same time the g i r l represses her clitoral sexuality, that is, the masculine element of her sexuality; both sexes discover the vagina. Introduction 5 A l t h o u g h Freud stated i n The Interpretation of Dreams that the Oedipus complex was the nucleus of a l l neuroses, yet he was still unsure as to the relation between this complex and the cas­ tration complex. H e speaks of the incest barrier, but not u n t i l the 1914 article " O n Narcissism, A n I n t r o d u c t i o n / ' d i d he mention the superego. However, the importance of the maternal object i n early childhood and its importance for women had already been stated. The concept of sexual monism is asserted: the tittle girl is a little man until the castration complex. From then till puberty all she has is a castrated penis: she remains unaware of the existence of her vagina. 4 6 THE I N F A N T I L E LIBIDO G E N I T A L O R G A N I Z A T I O N OF T H E (1923) (A Supplement to the Theory of Sexuality) 6 I n this article F r e u d completes the views of infantile sexuality expressed i n the Three Essays. After many years of experience and observation he concluded that there was little difference i n the or­ ganization of c h i l d and adult sexuality. B o t h i m p l y the choice of an object and instinctual investment i n this object. T h e difference lies i n that adult sexuality is genital whereas c h i l d sexuality is phallic. O n l y one genital organ is k n o w n : the male one. Therefore, it is only i n boys that one can study the consequences of this, "as far as the g i r l is concerned, they are little k n o w n . " A t the phallic stage the boy certainly recognizes that there is a difference between men and women, but he does not see this dif­ ference as a sexual one. H e believes that everybody has a penis simi­ lar to his and tries to find this penis i n things and beings. W h e n he discovers it does not exist i n a little g i r l of his own age, he denies this fact, but later is compelled to accept i t ; he then thinks this is due to castration, which leads h i m to fear that this might happen to h i m , too. T h e castration complex comes into being and can only be understood i n relation to the primacy of the phallic phase. T h e little boy, nevertheless, believes that not a l l women have been castrated, only those who have the same guilty desires as he. T h e belief i n the mother's penis and i n that of women he admires continues for a long time. W h e n he realizes that only women can bear children he gives up this idea. T h e observation that women do not have a penis frequently leads the boy to despise them, to be dis­ gusted w i t h them, or even to become homosexual. It is only at p u ­ F E M A L E 6 S E X U A L I T Y berty that the genital stage is reached. U n t i l then the vagina is not discovered. Maleness signifies ''subject, activity and possession of the penis"; femaleness signifies "object and passivity." The infantile and adult genital organization is identical with regard to the object. Until puberty "male" and "female" signify re­ spectively "phallic" and "castrated" The vagina is not known. THE ( i 9 DISSOLUTION s 4 ) OF T H E OEDIPUS C O M P L E X 7 In this article Freud studies the motives and the forms of the passing of the Oedipus complex for both sexes. T h e existence of a phallic l i b i d i n a l stage w i t h exclusion of the vagina for both is once more asserted, and its role i n the structuring of the Oedipus com­ plex is emphasized. Freud still maintains that true genital structure only occurs at puberty. T h e dissolution of the boy's O e d i p a l conflict is insti­ gated by the castration complex. R e a l traumas are presumed to be at the origin of this complex; first of a l l , the male c h i l d fears he w i l l lose his penis if he masturbates, this threat being attributed to his mother. Since the sexual excitement that leads h i m to masturba­ tion is l i n k e d w i t h his O e d i p a l desires, the threat of castration is as­ sociated w i t h them. Yet this threat has no immediate effect; it is only the sight of the female genital that gives reality to the fear of castration. T h i s becomes a l l the more credible as the boy can relate it to earlier experiences: the loss of the breast, and the daily loss of feces, have acquainted h i m with the loss of precious parts of the body (the breast being regarded i n i t i a l l y as part of the child's body). T h e male c h i l d has to face a conflict between his l i b i d i n a l desires (which i n the positive O e d i p a l position are directed toward the mother), and his narcissistic interest i n his penis. N o r m a l l y , the narcissistic interest prevails. T h e little girl's castration complex is brought into being by the sight of the boy's penis; this makes her feel inferior, and she compensates for her deficiency by penis envy (masculinity complex). Far from m a k i n g her give u p her O e d i p a l desires (as w i t h the boy) the castration complex makes her t u r n to­ ward her father i n an attempt to replace the penis she lacks w i t h a c h i l d ; the desire to have a child by the father, as a substitute for the penis, is therefore the dynamic factor in the female Oedipus com­ plex. Introduction 7 It seems as though the g i r l slowly turns away from the father because this desire is not fulfilled. T h e Oedipus complex does not end abruptly. B e i n g already castrated, the g i r l does not fear castra­ tion. T h i s plays an important role i n the theory of the superego, particularly i n regard to its origins and its strength. I n the boy the castration complex results i n the introjection of paternal or paren­ tal authority w h i c h forms the basis of the superego. T h e abandoned object cathexes are replaced by an identification w i t h paternal pro­ hibitions (in particular the p r o h i b i t i o n of incest wishes). T h i s pro­ cess intended to save the penis has at the same time suspended its function. T h e c h i l d enters the latency period. A l t h o u g h he acknowledges the existence of a superego i n girls, Freud believes it is formed w i t h some difficulty because of the lack of castration fear. External factors such as education, intimida­ tion, the fear of no longer being loved, must be invoked, i n contra­ distinction to the internalized prohibitions w h i c h form the boy's su­ perego. Whereas the dissolution of the Oedipus complex is marked by the castration complex in boys, in girls the castration complex initiates the Oedipus complex. During the Oedipal phase the boy has no desire to penetrate his mother, as he is not aware of the exis­ tence of the vagina. The mother's vagina is never sexually cathected by the little boy. (The Oedipus complex occurs simultaneously with the phallic stage.) The woman's superego is much less strong than the boy's. SOME T H E P H Y S I C A L C O N S E Q U E N C E S OF A N A T O M I C A L BETWEEN DISTINCTION T H E SEXES (1925) 8 T h e boy's Oedipus complex is easily revealed and understood; the mother is the object of his desires while he is nursing as well as dur­ ing the following stages of his development. Freud recalls once more the description already given of the dissolution of the O e d i ­ pus complex. Yet, even i n boys, there is a double Oedipus situation (active and passive), due to bisexuality; the boy at one point wants to take the mother's place w i t h the father (feminine position). T h e prehistory of the Oedipus complex is less clear; it is as though the male c h i l d goes through a period of tender identifica­ tion w i t h the father, without having any feeling of rivalry w i t h re­ gard to the mother. 8 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y Freud believes that the little boy's masturbation is not neces­ sarily connected w i th his O e d i p a l desires. H e considers the role of the child's observation of parental intercourse and of " p r i m a l fanta­ sies" i n both versions (positive and negative) of the Oedipus com­ plex. For the little g i r l the Oedipus complex gives rise to an addi­ tional problem: how does she give u p her early attachment to the mother and how does she then choose the father as object? T h e g i r l wants to have a child by the father, but this stage of development has a long prehistory. Freud wonders if the discovery of the genital zone (clitoris or penis) is not linked with the loss of the maternal breast, i n an attempt to replace one source of pleasure by another. Fellatio fantasies seem to indicate this, but Freud thought that psychic content need not necessarily accompany early stimulation of the genital zone. T h e crucial moment i n the girl's development is the discovery of a sexual organ superior to her own i n her brothers or their friends. Whereas the boy is at first indifferent to the girl's sexual organ and is worried about it only when he has established a l i n k between the threat of castration and the sight of the female genital (from which he then turns away i n " h o r r o r " or with " t r i u m p h a n t contempt"), the little g i r l on the contrary, as i n a flash, "sees it, knows that she is without it and wants to have i t . " T h i s process is at the origin of both her castration and her masculinity complex. Several possibilities are open to her. She can keep the hope of one day acquiring a penis or she can deny her cas­ tration and persuade herself that she really has a penis. T h e resul­ tant narcissistic wound leads to inferiority feelings. She first thinks that she has been punished, then, realizing that her condition is that of a l l women she wishes to become a m a n . Penis envy may give rise to the feminine character trait of jealousy. T h e little g i r l starts to resent her mother for having made her without a penis. She also accuses her mother of loving the other children (those w i t h a penis) more and takes advantage of this ex­ cuse to reject her. Masturbation ceases because she is disappointed i n her clitoris. For Freud masturbation is generally a masculine activity. Therefore, the acknowledgment of the difference between the sexes obliges the little g i r l to give up masculinity and turn to femininity. T i l l then there is no trace of the Oedipus complex, but now the girl gives u p the desire for a penis and replaces it by the desire for a c h i l d (child = penis) and to this end she turns to her father. T h e mother is then set up as a rival, and the little g i r l has become a woman. Introduction 9 T h e female Oedipus complex is a secondary formation i n Freud's o p i n i o n . H e reiterates that "whereas i n boys the Oedipus complex is destroyed by the castration complex, i n girls it is made possible and initiated by the castration complex." I n both cases the castration complex "inhibits and limits masculinity and encourages femininity" T h e differential effect of the masculine and feminine castration complex is due to anatomical differences. I n girls castration has already occurred, and can no longer be feared. I n boys it is a threat, leading not only to repression of Oedi­ pal desire; the Oedipus complex is broken u p by the shock of the threatened castration, the l i b i d i n a l cathexes are abandoned, desexu­ alized, and i n part, sublimated; the objects are incorporated into the ego where they form the basis of the superego. " I n the normal, or rather i n the ideal case, the O e d i p a l com­ plex exists no longer, not even i n the unconscious; the superego has become its heir." T h i s whole process occurs i n the boy because of the narcissistic cathexis of the penis. I n the g i r l the motive for the destruction of the Oedipus complex is missing because castration has already occurred. Therefore it slowly disappears or becomes re­ pressed or even persists d u r i n g the woman's entire life. T h e female superego "is never so inexorable, so impersonal, so independent of its emotional origins as that of the m a n . " Freud criticizes the feminists who "are anxious to force us to regard the two sexes as completely equal i n position and w o r t h , " but adds that male and female bisexuality adds nuances to their principal positions. In boys the Oedipus complex is a primary formation. In girls it is a secondary formation: the girl first desires her mother, then a penis, then a child by the father, the desire for a child being merely a substitute for the desire for a penis, and the attachment to the father merely a consequence of penis envy. F E M A L E SEXUALITY (1931) 9 Chapter I T h i s work is mainly concerned w i t h the importance of the pre-Oe­ dipal phase in girls. T h e female O e d i p a l problem is dominated by the necessity for a change of object (when and why does she give up the fixation to her mother?) and a change of organ (how does she pass from the clitoris to the vagina?). Preceding the father attachment there is a strong attachment to the mother. I n many cases this continues beyond the age of four lO F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y or five: " W e had to give due weight to the possibility that a n u m ­ ber of women remain arrested at the original mother-attachment and never properly achieve the change-over to men." T h e existence of the pre-Oedipal phase i n women is much more important than F r e u d had supposed: " I t seems that we shall have to retract the uni­ versality of the dictum that the Oedipus complex is the nucleus of neurosis . . . we can give due recognition to our new findings by saying that women reach the normal, positive Oedipus situation only after surmounting a first phase dominated by the negative complex." D u r i n g the period of attachment to the mother (negative Oedipus complex) the father is a rival for the g i r l even though she is not as aggressive toward h i m as is the boy. There is no parallel be­ tween the female and the male Oedipus complex. T h e girl's p r i m i ­ tive fixation to the mother is difficult to understand analytically, as it is an archaic, mysterious fixation, which seems to be inexorably repressed. T h i s phase seems to provide the fixation point for female hysteria and paranoia i n women. Chapter II Bisexuality is more obvious i n woman than i n m a n as the clitoris is the homologue of the male organ; the vagina is psychically inexis­ tent u n t i l puberty, and has most probably no sensation. Female sex­ uality goes through two phases: a male one and a female one, a complication arising through the fact that the clitoris can continue to function actively d u r i n g the woman's sexual life. Women, there­ fore, change their sex at the same time as they change their object. Freud decided not to use the term "Electra complex" (because the female and male Oedipus complexes are not analogous). "It is only in male children that there occurs a fateful simultaneous conjunc­ tion of love for the one parent and hatred of the other as rival." I n boys the sight of the female genital is the basis of the castration complex and its consequences, the destruction of the Oedipus com­ plex, the decathexis of the mother, the creation of the superego and " a l l the processes that culminate i n e n r o l l i n g the i n d i v i d u a l i n civi­ lized society." One residue of man's castration complex is his depre­ ciation of women as castrated beings. T h e g i r l acknowledges her castration and man's superiority, but protests against this state of affairs. She has the choice between: giving up her sexuality, claim­ i n g a penis or accepting her femininity. T h e castration complex de­ termines woman's social role. T h e woman turns away from her mother for several reasons: —she is jealous of those whom the mother loves; Introduction 11 — t h i s relationship has no real aim and cannot be satisfac­ tory; —the mother forbids masturbation; — a t the time of the castration complex the g i r l despises the castrated mother and femininity i n general; —she reproaches her mother for not having given her a penis and for having seduced her. T h e relation between daughter and mother is necessarily am­ bivalent whereas the boy is able to displace his hatred onto his father. Chapter III T h e little girl's sexual wishes toward her mother are active or pas­ sive, according to the l i b i d i n a l phase. In a l l domains (including nonsexual ones) a sensation passively received leads to activity. T h e c h i l d tries to do actively what was done to h i m . T h e aim is to mas­ ter the external w o r l d and may even lead to the repetition of pain­ ful experiences. Games are also used to master what was experi­ enced passively by activity (the doctor-game). Here Freud identifies "activity-passivity" and "masculinity-femininity"; the child's first sexual experiences are of course passive, at the hands of his mother. Yet the child's l i b i d o soon expresses itself actively; thus " s u c k i n g " is substituted for "being suckled." T h e c h i l d tries to turn the mother into an object, while he becomes an active subject, " T h i s last reac­ tion which comes into play i n the form of real activity, I long held to be incredible u n t i l experience removed a l l my doubts on the sub­ ject." It is as though the c h i l d says "now let's play that I am the mother and you are the c h i l d . " B u t it is mostly i n doll-play that these active tendencies can be observed, ". . . it is the active side of femininity which finds expression here. I n games w i t h dolls only the attachment to the mother is important; the father has no part. T h e little g i r l experiences oral, sadistic, and phallic impulses toward her mother. Freud noted that women who were strongly at­ tached to their mothers often mentioned the fits of rage associated w i t h the administration of enemas by the mother. Freud believes, like R u t h M a c k Brunswick, that these are the equivalent of orgasm. T h e passive desires of the p h a l l i c stage incite girls to accuse their mothers of seduction. I n fact the mother first seduces the c h i l d by her physical care. T h e active impulses of the phallic stage are the same for girls and boys. T h e frustration of active tendencies helps to establish the primacy of the passive tendencies, but if they are 12 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y too severely frustrated, the little girl's sexuality is more or less to­ tally inhibited. One must not forget that there is only one l i b i d o whether its aims be active or passive. Chapter IV I n this last chapter Freud discusses the theories of other psychoana­ lysts. H e agrees with A b r a h a m (1921) on the manifestations of the castration complex i n women, but regrets that the exclusive attach­ ment of the g i r l to her mother is not mentioned. H e believes Jeanne L a m p l de Groot (1927) had correctly observed the little girl's pre-Oedipal phase, but had not insisted enough on the hostile aspect of it. Helene Deutsch emphasized the hostility but was not able to free herself from the O e d i p a l schema and saw the girl's phal­ lic activity as an identification w i t h the father. H e does not agree w i t h M e l a n i e Klein's (1928) concept of an early Oedipus complex but thinks there may be exceptional cases. Karen Horney (1926) held that the importance of penis envy was exaggerated; she be­ lieved it to be secondary and used to conceal feelings about the father. " T h i s does not agree w i t h the impressions I myself have formed," says Freud. " A n d if the defence against femininity is so vigorous, from what other source can it derive its strength than from that striving for masculinity w h i c h found its earliest expres­ sion i n the child's penis envy and might well take its name from this?" Jones (1927) thought that the female phallic stage was sec­ ondary, a reactive and not an authentic phase i n development. " T h i s does not correspond to either the dynamic or the chronologi­ cal conditions." The female Oedipus complex is not the homologue of the male Oedipus complex. The pre-Oedipal attachment to the mother plays an important part in the girl's development. F E M I N I N I T Y ( 1 9 3 2 ) ( i n New Introductory 1 0 Lectures in Psychoanalysis) I n this text Freud discusses the problem of bisexuality. Anatomically a person is neither totally male nor totally female. O n l y the sexual products sperm or ovum are unambiguous. Psychol­ ogy has shown that "masculine" and " f e m i n i n e " are names applied to behavior according to anatomy and convention. " M a s c u l i n e " is thus often synonymous w i t h "active," and " f e m i n i n e " w i t h "pas­ Introduction 13 sive." Masculinity is aggressivity. B u t the habits of certain animals contradict this. " E v e n i n the sphere of human sexual life you soon see how inadequate it is to make masculine behavior coincide w i t h activity and feminine w i t h passivity." T h u s , i n the mother-child re­ lation the mother is the active element. T o equate femininity w i t h passivity and masculinity w i t h activity is an error. " O n e might consider characterizing femininity psychologi­ cally as giving preference to passive aims," but this is not the same as passivity. Indeed, sometimes a great deal of activity is needed to obtain certain passive aims. " B u t we must beware i n this of under­ estimating the influence of social customs, which similarly force women into passive situations. A l l this is still far from being cleared up. . . ." " T h e suppression of women's aggressiveness which is pre­ scribed for men constitutionally and imposed on them socially, fa­ vors the development of powerful masochistic impulses, which suc­ ceed, as we know, i n b i n d i n g erotically the destructive trends which have been diverted inwards. T h u s masochism, as people say, is truly feminine." T h e problem facing Freud is then: how does this bisexual person, the little g i r l , become a woman? Even though the girl is less aggressive and more dependent than the boy, she goes through the first stages of her development i n exactly the same way as he does. T h u s d u r i n g the anal-sadistic phase her aggressive impulses are just as violent as those of boys, as the analysis of children's games reveals. A t the beginning of the phallic stage there is no difference between boys and girls: "We are now obliged to recognize that the little girl is a little man" (My ital­ ics.) A t this stage masturbation is phallic for both sexes. T h e va­ gina does not exist for either sex. Female masturbation therefore requires a change of eroge­ nous zone, that is, from clitoris to vagina. T h i s change of zone coincides w i t h a change of object; the little g i r l gives up her early attachment to her mother and chooses her father. Freud denies the instinctive character of attraction to the op­ posite sex: " W e scarcely know whether we are to believe seriously i n the power of which poets talk so much and w i t h such enthusiasm but which cannot be further dissected analytically." Accordingly, the father is for the girl a rival at the beginning of her develop­ ment; the fixation to the mother may extend beyond the age of four. T h e pre-Oedipal attachment to the mother is crucial for the little girl's development. She takes on the characteristics of the stages she goes through: oral, anal, phallic, active, passive. She is markedly ambivalent. T h e nature of her sexual desires toward her mother is 14 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y difficult to define. A t the phallic stage her desire is to make a c h i l d for the mother and to have a child by her. T h i s is the fixation point for paranoia i n women. After the phallic stage the girl experiences intense hatred to­ ward her mother and this induces the change of object. T h e leading and most typically feminine factor i n this hatred is the castration complex. T h e little girl at the sight of male genital organs, source of her castration complex, reproaches the mother for not having given her a penis. T h u s , penis envy arises and persists d u r i n g the girl's entire life. One of the reasons for going into analysis is the de­ sire to acquire a penis. T h e advantages a woman hopes for from analysis (like the possibility of exercising an intellectual profes­ sion) are often sublimated forms of this repressed desire. Freud disagrees w i t h the analysts who see penis envy as a sec­ ondary formation. "The discovery that she is castrated" is a crucial point i n the girl's development, it leads her either into neurosis (with sexual inhibitions), or to character problems (masculinity complex), or to normal sexuality. It also influences her detachment from the mother because her love was directed to a phallic and not castrated mother. " A s a result of the discovery of women's lack of a penis they are debased i n value for girls just as they are for boys and later perhaps for men." T h e discovery of her castration makes the little g i r l give up clitoral masturbation and therefore phallic activity. T h i s leads her to passivity and toward a relationship w i t h her father. A t first the desire for the father is linked with penis envy, that is, w i t h the de­ sire to have the penis, but the normal Oedipus situation "is only es­ tablished, however, if the wish for a penis is replaced by one for a baby . . . (which) . . . takes the place of a penis." A t the beginning the d o l l represents a possibility of identify­ i n g w i t h the active mother and later represents the father's child. I n adult life penis envy is fulfilled by the birth of a child, especially a male one. T h e Oedipus situation therefore is initiated by the castra­ tion complex, a "position of rest" for the little g i r l . " T h e castration complex prepares for the Oedipus complex instead of destroying i t ; the g i r l is driven out of her attachment to her mother through the influence of her envy for the penis and she enters the Oedipus situa­ tion as though into a haven of refuge." (My italics.) B u t , according to Freud, the little girl whose castration is a fact, does not fear i t , as does the boy for whom this fear is the m a i n motive of the dissolution of his Oedipus complex. She remains for a long time, or maybe forever, fixated to the Oedipus situation and does not therefore have a powerful and independent superego. Introduction 15 Bisexuality attaches some women to their mothers; they be­ come homosexual or alternate i n character between masculinity and femininity. Nevertheless, the l i b i d o is always masculine because it is active even though it sometimes has passive aims. Frigidity seems to be a massive repression of the l i b i d o i n the service of fe­ male functions. F r e u d believes that many feminine characteristics are due to woman's "original sexual inferiority," her "genital deficiency" and the need to overcome these facts and to hide them. She is fully satis­ fied only when she has a son, thus compensating for her penis envy and her feeling of inferiority. H e r married life follows the same pat­ tern: " E v e n a marriage is not made secure u n t i l the wife has suc­ ceeded i n m a k i n g her husband her c h i l d as well. . . . " Freud ends his article by remarking that women i n analysis show a special l i ­ b i d i n a l rigidity. " A man of about thirty strikes us as a youthful, some­ what unformed i n d i v i d u a l , whom we expect to make powerful use of the possibilities for development opened up to h i m by analysis, A woman of the same age, however, often frightens us by her psychic rigidity and unchangeability . . . . T h e r e are no paths open to fur­ ther development, it is as though the whole process had already r u n its course and remains thenceforward insusceptible to influence—as though, indeed, the difficult development to femininity had ex­ hausted the possibilities of the person concerned." In his last article on femininity, Freud restates all his pre­ vious viewpoints on the psychosexual development of woman, and emphasizes even more strongly the important role played by the cas­ tration complex. Psychoanalytical to Those J. of L A M P L THE Views on Female D E Similar G R O O T EVOLUTION WOMEN Sexuality Freud (192J) OF T H E OEDIPUS COMPLEX IN 1 1 A c c o r d i n g to J . L a m p l de Groot, u n t i l the phallic phase the little girl behaves physically exactly like the little boy. It is also assumed that children of both sexes follow the same psychic development. l6 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y The boy, nate sion g i r l enters the Oedipus complex and the phallic stage, like the taking the mother as the object of desire, and trying to elimi­ the father, seen as a rival, i n order to obtain exclusive posses­ of the mother. T h e sight of the boy's penis gives rise at this stage to feelings of inferiority i n the girl. She believes she once had a penis and that it was taken away because of her forbidden desires toward the mother. T h e castration complex has the same effect on her as it has on the boy, because not only does she feel narcissistically wounded by her physical inferiority, but also obliged to renounce any hope of fulfilling her desire for the mother. I n both cases the castration complex ends by the dissolution of the Oedipus complex (negative for the girl); however, while castration is merely a threat for the boy, for the g i r l it is a fact. T h e l i b i d i n a l relation w i t h the mother is replaced by an identification w i t h her. She then turns to the father, previously a rival, and chooses h i m as her love object. H e r aim is to replace the lost penis by a child from the father. T h e little girl's narcissism is healed because childbearing is exclusively a woman's privilege. A t the same time clitoral masturbation as well as the active and con­ quering aspect of the l i b i d o are given up. Yet the negative complex i n girls does not always have a normal dissolution. T h e little girl may remain attached to her mother and deny castration. If she is disappointed by the father, she may turn away from h i m and return to her previous position, to her masculine attitude. I n extreme cases this leads to homosexuality, as Freud showed i n his paper on " T h e Psychogenesis of a Case of Homosexuality i n a W o m a n . " 1 2 In most cases "the little girl does not entirely deny the fact of castration," but tries to compensate for her bodily inferiority i n a nonsexual field, by professional activity for example, i n which she w i l l be i n competition w i t h men. A t the same time she gives up her sexuality. She may turn toward men but w i l l remain frigid as the true object is still the mother. J . L a m p l de Groot agrees w i t h Freud that the castration complex leads the g i r l to the Oedipus complex, but she believes that it is a secondary formation, as it follows the negative Oedipus complex, which is similar to the boy's i n its origin (excitation of the clitoris), i n its object (the mother), and i n its aim (active, sex­ ual). This article by J. Lampl de Groot was published four years before Freud's article "Female Sexuality" and contains the ele­ ments of Freud's views on the girls pre-Oedipal phase. Introduction CONTRIBUTION FEMININITY TO T H E ( 1 9 3 3 ) PROBLEM 17 OF 1 3 T h e m a i n difference between men and women lies i n the opposition between activity and passivity: the person who attacks and conquers the object is active, the one who gives himself to his partner is passive. It is not only i n the sexual field that one speaks of passivity and activity. As Freud said, i n every field of psychic life a c h i l d tends to react actively to impressions received passively. I n love rela­ tions there is the same opposition between "active" and "passive": men love and women let themselves be loved. M a n normally overcomes his narcissistic wounds and his cas­ tration complex i n order to succeed i n his object relations. H e uses and sublimates his aggressiveness to w i n a woman. H e subordinates his passive tendencies to his active ones. Women's sexuality normally requires passivity. H e r aggressive instincts are turned inward i n a masochistic way; the sexual events of a woman's life such as defloration or giving b i r t h are usually painful; Helene Deutsch said that the feminine passive woman shows little overt aggression. L a m p l de Groot repeats the point that there is only one l i b i d o for both sexes and asks why women's atti­ tudes are passive and men's active. T h e little girl's early life is active like the boy's. H e r object is the mother and her attitude toward this object is as active as the boy's. H o w does she come to give u p this activity and what happens then to these tendencies? She has actively loved her mother u n t i l the age of five and even later. T h i s changes around the age of six when she enters the Oedipal phase and turns to her father; u n t i l then her relation w i t h the father has been no different from her relation w i t h other people i n the house, sometimes friendly, some­ times not, according to her mood. If her love shifts from the mother to the father this is due to narcissistic disappointment (absence of penis), w h i c h leads her to withdraw her l i b i d o from the maternal object. T h u s , narcissistic re­ treat pushes her into the desire to be passively loved by the father. T h e psychic difference between boys and girls begins only when they discover the difference between the sexes. T h e little g i r l is disappointed at not have a penis with w h i c h to possess the mother; she has no l i b i d o left for her active tendencies; her aggres­ sive expression is paralyzed, and partly internalized (the masochistic fantasies and behavior studied by Helene Deutsch). l8 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y W h a t relation is there between active and passive Iibidinal tendencies i n the sexual and other fields? H o w does psychoanalysis ex­ p l a i n the biological fact that male sexual life is fulfilled by active tendencies, the female one by passive tendencies? I n everyday life we give the same meaning to active and passive behavior as we do i n sexuality; a person is passive if he allows external impressions and excitations to act upon h i m , and he is active if he reacts to the external w o r l d by attempting to master or conquer it. T h e first sex­ u a l feelings are perceived passively by the child, who is responsive to agreeable sensations and tries to repeat them. T h e ego has a l i b i d ­ i n a l object-relation with the mother. T h e passive feelings therefore provoke active reactions, the object being cathected by the l i b i d o (which is active by definition) with the help of aggressive impulses. T h e i n d i v i d u a l tends actively toward object-relations. I n that case why are men more active than women? Man's sexuality is l i n k e d w i t h the biological need to put a fertilizing sperm into the woman (activity) while she passively receives it. " I n the truly feminine woman's attitude towards men there is no room for activity." " F e m i n i n e love is passive and narcissistic." " T h e feminine woman does not love, she lets herself be loved." "Whenever she realizes object love, this is the result of her active l i ­ b i d i n a l components." T h u s , women who love men are masculine. T h e i r maternal love is active also and therefore linked w i t h masculinity. W o m e n who work w i t h children professionally find i n this activity a mascu­ line satisfaction. " G o o d mothers are frigid wives." A surplus of nar­ cissistic l i b i d o is used for active aims and for object-libido. T h e superego based on introjection is therefore linked to the first oral object-relation; the introjection of the object is an aggres­ sive and active process, i n w h i c h passive components play no part. I n boys the dissolution of the Oedipus complex is linked w i t h the aggressive introjection of the hated paternal object; the l i b i d i n a l tendencies provide for a continuation of the loved or admired pa­ ternal imago i n the form of the superego. As the mother is no longer a r i v a l there is no reason to destroy her, i n other words, there is no need to introject her. She w i l l remain a tenderly loved object i n the external world. As the creation of the superego re­ quires active and aggressive instinctual components, passive and purely feminine women have no superego. Femininity is identified entirely with passivity and masculin­ ity with activity. Introduction H E L E N E D E U T S C H PSYCHOLOGY THE 19 OF FUNCTIONS W O M E N OF 'N RELATION TO REPRODUCTION ( 1 9 2 5 ) 1 4 Helene Deutsch's theories are summed up i n her book The Psychol­ ogy of Women. T h e article under discussion forms the central part of this book. H . Deutsch remarks that once the boy lias reached the phal­ lic stage, he has only to continue along these lines and to construct his Oedipus situation. T h e g i r l must, i n addition, give up the mas­ culinity linked to the clitoris and progress from the phallic to the vaginal stage, that is, she must discover a new genital organ. According to H . Deutsch, "the m a n attains his final stage of development when he discovers the vagina i n the world outside himself and takes possession of it sadistically." " T h e woman has to discover the new sexual organ in her own person, a discovery she makes through a masochistic submission to the penis, thus becom­ i n g also the guide to this new source of pleasure." Helene Deutsch tries to understand how the little girl effects this change of erogenic zone. She believes heterosexual l i b i d o to have archaic oral roots. I n her unconscious the little g i r l makes an association between breast and penis; this equivalence gives rise to the common oral theory of sexual intercourse at this stage (fellatio) and also to oral fantasies of pregnancy. I n the following anal-sadis­ tic phase the penis loses it oral quality i n order to become the organ of mastery. Sexual relations are then conceived as sadistic. E i ­ ther the little g i r l identifies with the active father, or masochisti­ cally w i t h the mother. T h e pregnancy fantasy at this stage is that of the "anal­ c h i l d . " T h e anus acquires a passive role similar to the mouth i n the oral phase; breast, penis, and feces are given active roles. T h u s , the way is prepared to a passive cathexis of the vagina. B u t female b i ­ sexuality is an obstacle to this development, and the clitoris keeps its l i b i d i n a l cathexis; therefore the transition from " p h a l l i c " to "vagi­ n a l " (postambivalent) is a difficult one. T h e vagina has no ero­ genic role u n t i l the first sexual relations. T h e little g i r l also cathects her whole body libidinally. F r o m her body and i n particular from her clitoris she progresses to the l i ­ 20 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y b i d i n a l cathexis of the vagina. T h e penis provides this l i n k which invests l i b i d o i n the vagina, just as the mother's breast d i d i n the child's mouth. T h u s , the vagina takes over the role of the mouth i n the passive-oral function of suckling. T h e activity of the clitoris is given up for that of the penis, and the woman (her vagina) be­ comes active by identification w i t h the partner's penis. T h e vagina's orgastic activity is similar to that of the penis (secretion and con­ traction). As with men there is an " a m p h i m i x i s " (Ferenczi) of the anal and urethral tendencies. T h e identification of the functions of vagina and penis allow castration trauma to be overcome, the penis being regarded as part of the woman's body. T h e feminine, passive attitude of the vagina is a repetition on a postambivalent level of the preambivalent oral phase i n which subject and object were united. Vaginal coitus helps the woman to overcome the traumatic separation due to weaning. I n the sexual act women repeat the mother-child relation­ ship; at the same time the partner is identified w i t h the father, who i n fantasy is incorporated and becomes the child i n the womb. H . Deutsch discusses Ferenczi's theory that i n coitus man fulfills his de­ sire to return to the mother's womb and adds that woman, too, identifies w i t h the c h i l d i n her own womb. C h i l d b i r t h represents for the woman the active mastery of the original trauma of b i r t h . T h e vagina becomes the container not of the penis but of the child, and i n the unconscious it represents the c h i l d itself. " A woman who suc­ ceeds i n establishing this maternal function of the vagina by giving up the claim of the clitoris to represent the penis, has reached the goal of feminine development, she has become a woman." T h e function of the male is fulfilled by one event: the emis­ sion of sperm, whereas that of the female proceeds i n two stages. A c ­ cording to Helene Deutsch "the act of parturition contains the acme of sexual pleasure." She also believes that the pleasure felt d u r i n g intercourse is due to the fact that intercourse is a prelude to parturition. Parturition is itself " a n orgy of masochistic pleasure." I n fact the sexual act is not completed u n t i l parturition, which then becomes an erotic gratification similar to the moment when i n masculine coitus body and seed separate. T h e c h i l d i n the womb represents a part of the woman's ego and also the incarnation of the paternal ego-ideal. I n this process the l i b i d o is desexualized and the child initiates a sublimatory process i n the mother. Whereas man creates sublimations i n social and intellectual fields, for the woman the c h i l d is i n itself a sublimation. A l t h o u g h the c h i l d i n the mother's womb is a part of her ego, he is also an object and Introduction 21 therefore doubly cathected, first i n a narcissistic and then i n a conflictual way. Suckling restores the u n i o n broken at birth and represents a sexual act i n which the breast is equivalent to the penis. Suckling is for the mother another way of overcoming the trauma of weaning. A l l inherently feminine activity according to the author helps woman to overcome a series of traumata. She concludes: " B u t for the bisexual disposition of the human being, which is so prob­ lematic for the woman, but for the clitoris with its masculine striv­ ings, how simple and clear w o u l d be her way to an untroubled mas­ tery of existence." The prototype of female genitality is orality, the mouth being the prototype of the vagina. Yet the vagina is not known until coitus (the penis functioning as guide). Sexuality and repro­ duction are inseparably linked in woman; they allow her to over­ come a series of traumata. The clitoris plays a purely inhibitory role; it is a superfluous organ. THE SIGNIFICANCE THE M E N T A L LIFE OF OF MASOCHISM W O M E N IN (1930) 1 5 " M y a i m i n this paper is different: I want to examine the genesis of 'femininity/ by which I mean the feminine, passive-masochistic dis­ position i n the mental life of women." Helene Deutsch seeks some solution to the problem of frigidity. She agrees w i t h Freud's views about the castration complex at the age of four, about the necessity or decathecting the clitoris, and with the fact that children are una­ ware of the existence of the vagina u n t i l puberty. L i k e Freud she believes that the little g i r l gives up her penis envy for the desire to have a c h i l d by the father. T h i s constitutes her Oedipus complex; but she goes on to question what happens to the active erotic com­ ponent cathected i n the clitoris. She thinks that the erotic active­ sadistic instincts are transformed into masochistic ones, the narcissis­ tic-masculine desire to have a penis is substituted by the desire to be castrated by the father, and fantasied as rape. A woman's life is therefore dominated by a masochistic triad: castration = rape = parturition. It corresponds with a definite developmental phase and is linked to the castration complex. Frigidity is due to masochistic tendencies. Consequent fears for the ego may then strengthen female narcissism. T h e identification w i t h the father may represent a retreat i n the face of the danger contained i n 22 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y a masochistic identification w i t h the mother. T h e choice of an object may also be due to repressed masochistic tendencies. I n cer­ tain cases sexual satisfaction being subordinated to irreducible mas­ ochistic fixations, an analysis must, according to the author, en­ courage the patient to give up sexual gratification and allow her to follow a "masculine" path. Patients whose feelings of inferiority are l i n k e d w i t h penis envy are helped i n analysis by converting this envy into the desire for a child. F r i g i d patients have few neurotic symptoms, and the woman who comes into analysis at her husband's request (as he feels narcis­ sistically concerned by his wife's frigidity) presents few conditions which could make the analysis succeed, her masochism having once and for a l l eliminated sexual satisfaction. Masochism can also be found i n the relation of mother to c h i l d (of which the mater dolo­ rosa is the epitome). Female sexuality is closely connected w i t h reproduction, as the woman sees the c h i l d i n her father or her sexual partner. T h e little g i r l becomes (potentially) mother and woman when her mas­ ochistic tendencies appear; she wishes to be castrated and raped and to have a c h i l d by her father. According to the author some women never experience or­ gasm d u r i n g intercourse yet have a perfectly healthy psychic life. T h e y maintain good relations to family and friends, and d u r i n g sexual relations are happy to be the source of pleasure for their partner. T h e y believe that intercourse is only important to men: " I n it, as i n other relations, the woman finds happiness i n tender, maternal giving. . . , T h i s type of woman is dying out and the modern woman seems to be neurotic when she is f r i g i d . " T h i s change is attributed to an increase i n masculine tendencies, Helene Deutsch believes woman's masochism serves the pres­ ervation of the species and regards this as a sublimation i n it­ self. She concludes by saying: " W o m a n w o u l d never have tolerated throughout history to be kept by social ordinances from the possi­ bility of sublimation on the one hand, and from sexual gratifica­ tions on the other, if she had not found i n the reproductive func­ tion magnificent gratification for both these urges." Female masochism is due to the diverting of active instincts originally cathected in the clitoris. This opens the path to feminin­ ity but can also be the origin of frigidity, because it gives rise to fears for the ego's integrity. Introduction SUMMARY OF S Y M P O S I U M ON c H A i R M A N—Helene Deutsch (New 23 FRIGIDITY*. York, December, 1960). ( H . Deutsch's discussion is reported by D r . Burnes Moore i n the Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association. * Helene Deutsch gives an account of her experience and fur­ ther reflections since The Psychology of Women published i n 1944. "She was shocked by the h i g h incidence of so-called frigidity i n women and disappointed i n the results of psychoanalytic treat­ ment. Cases of very severe neurotic illness had been helped without eliminating this problem. She saw psychotic women and aggressive masculine women who experienced intense vaginal orgasm, while loving, giving, maternal, and happy women d i d not, even though they felt fully gratified." 1 17 "Intercourse and motherhood mobilize a struggle between the narcissistic elements of self-preservation and the object-directed demands of reproduction w h i c h constitute a danger for the security and solidity of the ego." " H e l e n e Deutsch questioned whether the vagina was really created by nature for the sexual function we as­ sume and demand for it. . . ." " T h e transition of sexual feeling from the clitoris to the vagina is a task performed largely by the ac­ tive intervention of the man's sexual organ." "She was ready to re­ verse the b u r n i n g question ' W h y are women frigid?' to ' W h y and how are some women endowed w i t h vaginal orgasm?' " " T h e typical function of the vagina d u r i n g intercourse is passive-receptive. Its movements have the character of sucking i n a relaxing rhythm ad­ justed to that of the male partner." " I n the vast majority of women, if they are not disturbed, the sexual act does not culminate i n a sphincter-like activity of the vagina, but is brought to a happy end i n a m i l d , slow relaxation." She says that this is the most typical and the most feminine of fe­ male orgasms. . . . "Postcoital dreams observed i n analysis often re­ veal anxiety after vaginal orgasm. I n contrast to this phenomenon the gratification reached i n a passive-receptive sucking function of the vagina usually brings a peaceful sleep typical for an adequate sexual release." " I f the more passive-receptive way of gratification for women is accepted as normal, Helene Deutsch believes that frigidity is not so common as assumed, nor is it on the increase. W h a t has i n ­ creased are the demands for a form of sexual gratification not fully 24 F E M A L E SEXUALITY i n harmony w i t h the constitutional purpose of the vagina. . . . Such sexual ambition may inhibit the normal function of the vagina." Orgasm belongs to the male: A truly feminine woman has no orgastic climax. The vagina is the organ of reproduction; the clito­ ris is the organ of pleasure. R U T H T H E M A C K BRUNSWICK PRE-OEDIPAL PHASE DEVELOPMENT (1940) OF T H E LIBIDO 1 8 i . The Oedipus complex and the pre-Oedipal phase " U n d e r Oedipus complex we understand not only the positive attachment of the c h i l d to the parent of the opposite sex, but above a l l the situation of the triangle." For both sexes the pre-Oedipal phase is the one i n which the c h i l d is attached to his mother while the father is not yet a rival (dual relation). In boys the pre-Oedipal phase is short. T h e attachment to the mother is made i n an O e d i p a l mode, w i t h the father as a rival. W i t h the development of the castration complex the Oedipus com­ plex is destroyed. In girls the pre-Oedipal phase becomes an attachment to the mother, w i t h the father as a r i v a l , exactly as w i t h boys. B u t the dis­ covery of castration leads the little g i r l toward a passive positive Oedipus complex; she turns to her father and her mother becomes a rival. " A t the beginning of her life the little girl is to a l l intents and purposes a little boy. H e r relation to her first love object, the mother, is precisely that of the boy, w i t h similarly conflicting pas­ sive and active l i b i d i n a l strivings. . . . Once she has attained the Oedipus complex (positive phase), the normal woman tends to re­ m a i n w i t h it. . . . T h e resistance of the female Oedipus complex to the powers of destruction accounts for the differences i n structure of the male and female super-ego." T h e woman has two objects and two sexual organs, whereas the boy has to change his attitude only toward his mother. H e must give up passivity i n order to become active. A c h i l d does not recognize sexual differences among people he knows. " U n t i l approximately three years of age, the pregenital zones outweigh the genital i n importance." Introduction 25 pairs 11. The three antithetical C h i l d h o o d is dominated by two antithetical qualities: "active-pas­ sive" and "phallic-castrated." Adolescence is concerned with one an­ tithesis only: "masculinity-femininity." "Active-passive" I n the beginning the c h i l d is passive. T h e development of activity is based o n an identification w i t h the active mother. Finally, the c h i l d plays the role of the mother toward h i m ­ self, as well as toward the people he knows, and even to his own mother. T h e active-passive phase is prephallic; the c h i l d believes other people to be of the same sex that he is. T h e genital zones do not play a very important part. A t this stage the mother's role is not feminine but active. "Phallic-castrated/' T h e little boy discovers the girl's castra­ tion. A t the outset he still thinks that the mother is phallic. " W i t h the final recognition of the mother's castration and the possibility of his own at the hands of the father, the Oedipus complex of the little boy is destroyed." T h e n o r m a l c h i l d gives up his attachment to the mother and thus avoids castration. T h e neurotic c h i l d does not manage to give u p the attachment; or he may accept the fantasy of castration by the father, giving it a l i b i d i n a l meaning and taking the father as a love object (the passive or negative Oedipus posi­ tion). In the "active-passive" antithesis, the c h i l d at the beginning of his life was passive toward his active mother. N o r m a l l y , activity should prevail over passivity. " W h e t h e r the passivity remains, is given up, or is converted we do not know." Activity is m u c h greater i n boys than i n girls. Identifying with the active mother is the most primitive form of identification. As the child identifies increasingly with the mother's activity, he is able to do without her and thus be­ comes independent of her. Activity won over from the mother is jealously defended. T h e mother's unwarranted interference pro­ vokes aggression. " U n t i l her subsequent depreciation because of her castration, she is not only active, phallic but omnipotent." R u t h M a c k Brunswick then outlines Freud's theory of the phallic phase i n both sexes, of the castration complex, and its conse­ quences for the dissolution of the Oedipus complex, the formation of the superego and of sublimation i n boys, "aided undoubtedly by a m i l d l y contemptuous attitude towards the castrated sex." As for the girl, the discovery of the mother's castration puts an end to her hope of acquiring a penis. She then- turns to her father, transferring her passive tendencies to h i m and identifying herself with the castrated mother. " T h e active strivings are subli­ 26 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y mated at this time and only much later find their real scope i n the relation of the woman to her own c h i l d , i n her final and complete identification w i t h the active mother." T h e "masculine-feminine" antithesis only appears at puberty, and " i n the boy, the flood of masculine l i b i d o brings w i th it for the first time the desire to pene­ trate the newly discovered vagina." in. The pre-Oedipal period R u t h M a c k Brunswick outlines her concept of the phallic mother: "Whereas both the active and the castrated mother exist i n point of fact, the phallic mother is pure fantasy." T h i s fantasy arises when the c h i l d is no longer certain about the mother's phallus. It is there­ fore by nature compensatory. B u t "we shall continue to use the 'phallic mother' . . . because . . . the term is one which best desig­ nates the all-powerful mother, the mother who is capable of every­ t h i n g and who possesses every valuable attribute." Infantile masturbation is initiated by the mother's bodily care of her child. Even at the beginning of the phallic stage, the c h i l d wants his mother to touch his genital organs. Later, he w i l l want to touch and see his mother's genital. T h e p r i m a l scene whether it be really observed or only a fantasy plays an important role i n masturbation. T h e child's interest i n the parents' intercourse is awakened at the same time as the Oedipus complex. B u t one must remember that at this stage there is no sexual difference be­ tween the parents. T h e fantasy of the p r i m a l scene may be oral, anal, or phallic. I n the latter instance, the need for penetration does not exist, since the vagina is not k n o w n and the c h i l d imagines re­ ciprocal " t o u c h i n g " between the parents. iv. The development of a wish for a baby and the wish for a penis T h e wish for a child, "contrary to our earlier ideas," precedes by far the wish for a penis. F o r both sexes this represents the desire to pos­ sess the attributes of the omnipotent mother, that is, above a l l , a baby. Penis envy has both an object-oriented cause and a narcissis­ tic one, since the little girl desires to have a penis not only for her­ self but also because she wants to possess the mother. She gives up her attachment to her mother when she realizes that without a penis she cannot make her pregnant. v. The girl's phallic masturbation " O n e of the greatest differences between the sexes is the enormous extent to w h i c h infantile sexuality is repressed i n the g i r l . " F o r Introduction 27 Freud, the repression of masturbation i n girls is l i n k e d to the nar­ cissistic w o u n d of castration. B u t it is reasonable to assume that if the discovery of the mother's castration evokes " a normal con­ tempt" i n boys, it arouses something different i n the g i r l : she can­ not despise somebody who is like herself, but she abandons the at­ tachment to her mother and the phallic masturbation connected w i t h it. A p p a r e n t l y , there is an early sensitivity i n the vagina which is of anal o r i g i n . vi. The break with the mother T h e discovery of the mother's castration amounts to a trauma for the little g i r l and awakens her hostility towards the mother whom she reproaches for having made her without a penis. I n the face of this castration the boy conceives of the n o r m a l contempt for mother and for a l l women. T h e g i r l turns to her father, and " m a k i n g a virtue out of ne­ cessity," she awaits an erotized castration from h i m . VII. Pre-Oedipal influence upon later femininity T h e author believes that there are many women who do not have a normal Oedipus complex. T h e y come to women analysts because they are incapable of any contact w i t h men. Most women remain partly fixated to their mothers. v i i i . The Pre-Oedipal phase of the male T h e pre-Oedipal phase is for the male shorter and less dramatic than for the female. T h e boy may have a passive attachment to his father, analogous to the girl's positive Oedipus complex, thus form­ i n g "the typical masculine neurosis" T h e m a i n reason for this rela­ tion w i t h the father is a "nucleus of passivity" the importance of w h i c h is due to constitutional factors. Too much aggression toward the mother, due to external factors as well as constitutional ones, reinforces the attachment to the father. T h e inability to accept the mother's castration can lead to a homosexual object-choice. It can also create an identification w i t h the castrated mother and at the same time a passive attitude toward the father. Such people have difficulty integrating their passivity, and this may lead to grave problems (paranoia, neurosis). This article was written in collaboration with Freud. Yet one sees in it certain divergences from Freud's views: The desire for a child precedes penis envy. It is related to the omnipotent mother. Penis envy also has object-oriented roots in the 28 F E M A L E SEXUALITY little girl's attachment to her mother. The boy's pre-Oedipal tion to his mother may be strongly aggressive. M A R I E F E M A L E rela­ B O N A P A R T E S E X U A L I T Y ( 1 9 5 l) 1 9 M a r i e Bonaparte proposes to study i n this work the frequent failure of erotic function i n women. If her views on psychosexual develop­ ment are similiar to those of Freud, she nevertheless has her own views of femininity. She stresses the importance of the biological origins of wom­ en's sexual problems—in particular the question of constitutional bisexuality. For her, as for Freud and others whose views are most like his, woman's "masculinity complex" is primary. It is based on the anatomical existence of a mutilated organ, the clitoris. Follow­ ing Maranon's theory, M a r i e Bonaparte holds that woman can be considered as a man whose development is unfinished. T h e exis­ tence of the clitoris is most important for woman's future psycho­ sexual development: H e r greatest difficulties are due to the fact that she has to give u p the eroticism linked to this organ: " T h e clitoris, woman's little phallus, must follow the fate of those temporary or­ gans which, like the thymus, after having played their role for a transitory moment, are destined to disappear." T h e g i r l must ac­ complish the work of "mourning" her clitoris. Yet, unlike F r e u d , Bonaparte believes that the little girl has very early, a psychical model of what w i l l later become vaginal eroticism. She believes that at the anal stage the g i r l passively cathects the cloaca, that is the va­ gina and the anus coenesthetically combined. T h e vagina does not have a function u n t i l puberty but passive cloacal eroticism is the prototype thereof. T h e girl, like the boy, is passive at the beginning of life. She awaits satisfaction from her mother, be it clitoral or cloacal. T h e clitoris is primarily passively cathected. C l i t o r a l eroti­ cism soon changes direction and the little girl's attachment to her mother becomes active and penetration-oriented (negative Oedipus complex). B u t this phase soon gives way to the castration complex. T h i s i n turn initiates a second passive cloacal phase toward the father w i t h the exclusion of the clitoris; this is the positive Oedipus complex. Finally, at puberty the vagina is cathected erotically i n ­ stead of the cloaca. I n order to reach the genital stage women must Introduction 29 overcome three obstacles. According to the author women have less libido than men. Yet the more complex development of women re­ quires considerable l i b i d i n a l expenditure. Therefore, women are easily blocked i n their psychosexual development because of l i b i d i ­ n a l deficiency. Also woman's reproductive functions form a psycho­ biological nucleus, her care-taking role extending from the fetal stage to the postnatal life of her child, and finally to her whole fam­ ily, thus m a r k i n g her behavior and her l i b i d o w i th relative "dy­ namic inertia." T h e l i b i d i n a l deficiency of women can be defined as "the typically feminine condition of female frigidity" T h e i r strong b i ­ sexuality makes it difficult for them to adapt to vaginal passivity and this leads to "the typically masculine condition of female frigidity." M a r i e Bonaparte tries to examine i n detail the facts and the consequences of bisexuality. T h e vaginal function w i t h its "con­ cave" eroticism comes into being due to "essential feminine masoch­ i s m " w h i c h makes it possible to overcome the obstacles put up by the "convex" eroticism of the clitoris. Passivity must prevail over ac­ tivity and over the sadism connected w i t h the phallic clitoris. " T h e male must resist against passivity and masochism i n general, w h i c h his biological constitution does not impose, whereas woman must accept them." M a r i e Bonaparte examines one interpretation of the fantasy discussed by F r e u d i n " A c h i l d is being beaten": i n the little girl's unconscious the beaten c h i l d represents her clitoris beaten by the father's penis. T h i s is an important stage toward mature feminin­ ity: the clitoris returns to the phase of passive erotization but has changed its object. T h e n the fantasy expresses the desire to be cas­ trated by the father, castration being at this stage eroticized. A c ­ cording to M a r i e Bonaparte erotic function and reproduction are both l i n k e d i n woman to deep fears concerning the preservation of the body, meaning its narcissistic cathexis. T h e conversion of the active-sadistic components into passive-masochistic ones is the only factor w h i c h allows l i b i d i n a l desires to prevail over the fear of "bio­ logical infringements" by creating a receptive attitude toward the "continual laceration of sexual intercourse." T h e author claims that women are less aggressive than men, but they also have greater dif­ ficulty i n separating their aggressive from their l i b i d i n a l impulses. T h e boy, because of his completely different Oedipus complex, d i ­ rects most of his aggression toward his father, and his love toward his mother. H i s parricidal wishes are finally turned back u p o n h i m ­ self, and after they have been internalized they form the superego. T h e process is different for the little g i r l because her active negative Oedipus complex lasts a very short time, so that her aggressive i n ­ JO F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y stincts do not attach themselves to the mother. T h e aggressive and l i b i d i n a l instincts continue to be combined and d u r i n g the estab­ lishment of the positive Oedipus complex are directed toward the same object, namely, the father. As aggression is an obstacle to the "concave" eroticization of the vagina, it has to be turned against the self and eroticized i n a masochistic way. T h e l i b i d i n a l develop­ ment of women therefore follows three rules: — a n object-oriented rule: the equivalence of mother-father; the first passive impulses are the ones w h i c h later determine the feminine at­ titude toward the father. — a n instinctual rule: the equivalence of sadism-masochism. — a zonal rule: the equivalence of clitoris-vagina. These three rules determine the movement from "convex" male eroticism to "concave" female eroticism. I n relation to the problem of bisexuality M a r i e Bonaparte also studies the custom of excising the clitoris i n certain cultures. H e r prognosis concerning vaginal frigidity i n "clitoral women" is pessimistic. female bisexuality is the main obstacle to the Constitutional development of normal sexuality. Psychoanalytical Views on Female Opposed to Those JOSINE M O L L E R THE OF PROBLEM T H E OF GENITAL (published i n 1932) of Sexuality; Freud T H E LIBIDINAL PHASE IN GIRLS D E V E L O P M E N T (1925) 2 0 Josine M i i l l e r believes that the vagina is cathected very early i n life and that it is the most important erogenous zone for the little g i r l . T h i s is particularly true for women who become frigid or who give considerable importance to the clitoris or who suffer from a strong castration complex. M i i l l e r ' s observations of children as a general practitioner led her to the conviction that there are early sensations i n the vagina and that these are linked to masturbation. She thinks this early cathexis is repressed and reinvested i n the clitoris. Self-es­ teem is connected w i t h the gratification of one's sexual impulses. Introduction 31 After the vaginal instinctual cathexes have been repressed, a narcis­ sistic w o u n d results w h i c h then nurtures and aggravates penis envy. W o m e n who can l i b i d i n a l l y cathect their vaginas have greater self-esteem and their penis envy tends to disappear. The vagina is the first sexual organ to be libidinally catkected. The cathexis of the clitoris is secondary and defensive. Penis envy is linked to a narcissistic wound resulting from a lack of gratification of the repressed genital instincts. K A R E N THE H O R N E Y DREAD OF W O M E N ( 1 9 3 2 ) 2 1 K a r e n H o r n e y considers a number of myths and legends w h i c h ex­ press fear and horror of women: the Lorelei, sirens, witches. . . . These fears are also found i n symbols such as water, the ocean, etc., and i n various taboos. H o r n e y thinks that Freud's understanding of the taboo of virginity (as an answer to woman's unconscious desire to castrate man) is incomplete. Men's fears about women have deeper roots. T h e mother was the first object of the little boy's ag­ gressive wishes. H e r prohibitions and her role as an educator make it necessary for her to dominate and frustrate h i m . A l s o the little boy, whose phallic impulses make h i m want to penetrate something hollow, guesses (consciously, preconsciously, or unconsciously) that his object, the mother, has an organ complementary to his own. Yet he is humiliated at being small, impotent, and weak i n comparison w i t h her, and thus incapable of penetrating her. Therefore, he feels narcissistically wounded and this provokes strong feelings of inferi­ ority and violently aggressive desires for revenge; at the same time he projects his hostility on the mother and therefore her vagina frightens h i m . A t this point he decathects the vagina, m a k i n g a phallic-narcissistic retreat and even represses the knowledge he has of the vagina's existence. Phallic organization w i t h exclusion of the vagina is, however, secondary. T o compensate for his early feelings of failure with re­ gard to his mother and to deny his fear, man w i l l attempt the fol­ l o w i n g solutions: he w i l l idealize his object, try to depreciate it, or t r i u m p h over many women, or avoid a l l contact w i t h them (choice of a homosexual object), or again may despise the female sex i n general. J2 F E M A L E The fear of the narcissistic The THE S E X U A L I T Y so-called nonawareness of the vagina is linked to the mother because of projected aggressive wishes and of the wound inherent in Oedipal wishes. phallic narcissistic phase is a secondary occurrence. D E N I A L OF T H E VAGINA (l 9 3 3 ) 2 2 I n this article Karen Horney presents her ideas, this time not from the masculine but from the feminine point of view. She tries to ex­ p l a i n woman's fears connected w i t h her own sexual organ. Discussing Freud's theory of the phallic stage, she makes the following points: Even a normal woman would have to overcome masculine tendencies at each stage of her life (menstruation, sexual relations, pregnancy, parturition, menopause) if Freud's ideas are correct. Female homosexuality w o u l d be m u c h more frequent than male homosexuality. Regression to female homosexuality w o u l d occur easily. Even maternity would be resented according to Freud, as ersatz, and not as an instinctual achievement. Woman's entire life would be marked by resentment. B u t i n fact, the female child is a woman from the start, and not only from puberty, as Freud thought. Also, corresponding to girl's penis envy, the boy expresses a desire to be able to have chil­ dren and to possess other female attributes. These wishes do not ex­ clude an attitude conforming to the child's own sex. Should one then consider them to be instinctual? One must distinguish between wishes expressed at an early stage i n a playful fashion, and similar desires which manifest themselves i n the latency period. As for the belief that the vagina does not exist u n t i l puberty, the author, like Josine M u l l e r , has had pediatric confirmation that vaginal masturbation is frequent i n little girls and begins at a very early age. T h e supposed unawareness of the vagina must be doubted as much as pretended unawareness of the clitoris. One must remember that women who come to analysis have good rea­ sons for not remembering their vaginal sensations. Masturbation fantasies and the dreams of little girls show that they have an i n t u i ­ tive knowledge of their vaginas. As for frigidity, the question is not how the change from c l i ­ torai excitation to vaginal excitation is made but rather why the vaginal excitations have become repressed. T h e answer is to be found i n the existence of castration wishes toward the father, linked with O e d i p a l frustration and fear of revenge. These fears are similar to the boy's, but there are other fears Introduction 33 which are more specifically feminine, for example, fear caused by the disproportion between the father's big penis and the girl's small genital. T h e boy is frightened of looking ridiculous i n front of the mother with his tiny penis; the g i r l is frightened of being destroyed i n O e d i p a l sexual congress. Menstruation, defloration, parturition, abortion reinforce the girl's bodily fears. T h e girl cannot reassure herself that her fears are unfounded, because her genital is invisible. For the little g i r l as for the little boy "the undiscovered vagina is a vagina denied" The girl fears above all injuries inside her body. She re­ presses her vaginal impulses and transfers them to her external sex­ ual organ, the clitoris, for the purpose of defense. M E L A N I E K L E I N PSYCHOANALYSIS OF CHILDREN (1932) 2 3 T h e ideas summarized here are found i n chapter X I of Melanie Klein's The Psychoanalysis of Children, entitled " T h e Effects of Early A n x i e t y Situations o n the Sexual Development of the G i r l . " T h i s chapter is itself a synthesis of her own ideas on the female sex­ ual development, drawn by her from several previous articles. She bases her study o n the problem of the female equivalent of castra­ tion-anxiety. In a 1928 article o n " E a r l y Stages of the Oedipus Conflict" she had already described the girl's anxiety situation. T h e g i r l mainly fears attack to the inside of her body. After the first frustra­ tions of the oral phase the little g i r l turns away from the breast and seeks satisfaction from the paternal penis by incorporating it orally; at the same time genital impulses toward the paternal penis also come into play. The passage from the cathexis of the frustrating breast to that of the penis represents the nucleus of early Oedipal conflict. B u t the father's penis is seen as belonging to the mother, who keeps it inside her body. T h e little g i r l wishes therefore to at­ tack her mother sadistically i n order to steal from her the object she desires for herself. She fears that the retributions of the mother w i l l destroy her own internal organs. According to Freud the castration complex leads the girl to hate her mother for not having given her a penis. M e l a n i e K l e i n be­ lieves the little girl hates her mother for the same reasons, but 2 4 34 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y whereas Freud thought the girl wanted a penis for herself (her aim being a narcissistic one), K l e i n believes that she desires the penis li­ bidinally: "She is brought under the sway of her Oedipal impulses not indirectly, through her masculine tendencies and her penis­ envy, but directly, as a result of her dominant feminine instinctual components" ( M y italics.) Melanie K l e i n here agrees w i t h K a r e n Horney. The oral desire for the paternal penis becomes the proto­ type of the genital, vaginal desire for the penis. T h e penis thus coveted is invested w i t h magical qualities and is thought to be capable of satisfying a l l the impulses aroused by maternal oral frustration. B u t the penis can also be the object of intense aggres­ sion because of the frustration it causes the little girl, and this ag­ gression, projected onto the penis, renders it dangerous, as it then becomes cruel and threatening. The introjection of this penis forms the nucleus of the paternal superego (in both sexes); the sadism l i n k e d w i t h this phase makes this early superego a terrifying one. T h e little g i r l because of her receptive female instinctual i m ­ pulses tends to incorporate and keep the father's penis, that is, the O e d i p a l object. T h r o u g h submission to the introjected father the girl's superego becomes still more powerful and therefore stronger and more severe than that of the boy. H e r ambivalence toward the introjected penis might lead the g i r l , and later the woman, to have many sexual experiences (in reality or i n fantasy), i n order to introject the "good" penis and to fight the " b a d " introjected penis. Sexual intercourse is then used to ward off anxiety. It can also function as a means of "testing" peo­ ple. Indeed, because of her sadistic impulses the girl is afraid of being destroyed; she fears "aphanisis" (Jones). Intercourse can reas­ sure her (as well as the birth of a healthy child, and the possibility of breast-feeding h i m with good milk). Female object-choice de­ pends on how the infantile fears are structured. She may choose a " g o o d " penis to mitigate her bodily fears. I n this case the pleasure * she gets from sexual intercourse is more than mere l i b i d i n a l satisfac­ tion, since it also diminishes her anxiety, thus " l a y i n g the founda­ tions for lasting and satisfactory love relationships." If the internalized penis is too " b a d , " the woman may seek out i n reality a sadistic penis to destroy her bad introjects. F o r M e l a n i e K l e i n female masochism is woman's sadism turned not against herself but against her bad internalized objects. T h i s need to put reality to a test may lead some women toward compulsive sexual activity. But an incapacity on the part of the ego to over­ come the anxiety can lead to frigidity. Fears for the ego can be such that both the external penis and the internalized one are feared and 2 5 Introduction 35 all the destructive component instincts are at once mobilized. T h e little girl's attacks against her mother's body produce strong guilt feelings w h i c h lead her to make acts of reparation w h i c h become the roots of sublimation i n women. She is also trying to escape re­ taliation. Because the little g i r l fears that her attacks against the i n ­ side of her mother's body w i l l revert to herself she cannot, like the little boy, realize that her anxieties are unfounded. She does not possess a visible genital. T h e vagina is "repressed" i n favor of the clitoris, or the vagina is invested w i t h a l l fears concerning the inside of her body. Yet a l l girls have an early and at least unconscious knowledge of the vagina. T h e clitoris, as an external organ, profits from this "repression" but is immediately cathected i n a feminine way; the fantasies w h i c h accompany clitoral masturbation show a desire to incorporate the paternal penis and also stimulate vaginal sensations. The castration complex and penis envy therefore have two m a i n reasons: first, the little g i r l wants to have an organ which she can test i n reality. Second, the dissatisfaction l i n k e d to her wish to incorporate the paternal penis forces her to make a sadistic iden­ tification w i t h the paternal phallus i n order to destroy the frustrat­ ing mother, the breast she refuses to give her, and the paternal penis w h i c h she keeps for herself. T h i s period is often accompanied by enuresis (drowning and poisoning the mother's body by means of a sadistic penis). T h i s forms the aggressive homosexual side of the girl's identification, but paternal identification can also have the aim of repairing the damage caused to the mother and of replacing the penis she has stolen from her. These positions may be decisive i n the girl's sexual development. T h e girl's position w i t h regard to her objects and the receptive function of the female genital organ (hence the great importance of oral impulses) cause the introjection of the superego to be so important i n the little girl's development. T h e absence of an active penis only accentuates her submission to the superego. T h e boy cathects his own penis w i t h narcissistic om­ nipotence, while the g i r l does the same w i t h the introjected pater­ nal penis. Feminine dependence on external as well as on internal objects leads her to be i n intense fear of her superego. T h e little g i r l has to face more obstacles than the little boy i n forming a su­ perego through introjection of the parent of the same sex. " I t is dif­ ficult for her to identify herself w i t h her mother on the basis of an anatomical resemblance . . . because internal organs . . . do not admit of any investigation or reality testing." B u t one must not for­ get that the little girl's relation w i t h her father and w i t h her super­ ego depends o n her p r i m a l relation w i t h her mother (with the ma­ ternal imago). 36 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y The little girVs Oedipus complex begins very early. It is established at the oral phase by a displacement from the mother's breast to the father's penis (desire for the penis). Fears about the in­ side of her body will lead her to fear her own femininity (penis envy). Penis envy is secondary. Oral and vaginal feminine receptiv­ ity are primary. The female superego is more severe than the male superego. ERNEST THE JONES EARLY SEXUALITY D E V E L O P M E N T (1927) OF F E M A L E 2 6 Jones emphasizes the prejudices of analysts about female sexuality: men tend to have "phallo-centric" views and to underestimate the importance of female sex organs, while women tend to express an unconcealed preference for the male organ. Analysis should be able to throw some light on the reason for this prejudice. Jones bases this article on the analyses of five cases of homo­ sexuality i n women. H e tries to find answers to the following ques­ tions: 1. W h a t i n women corresponds to men's fear of castration? 2. W h a t difference is there between the development of a homosexual woman and that of a heterosexual woman? B o t h these questions are centered i n the significance of the penis. Jones notes that women tend to project fears into the future which are more frightening than those of men. H o w can one ex­ p l a i n this if they have already accepted castration as a fact? Jones thinks that the fear of losing the penis is certainly important, but it does not i m p l y that sexuality w i l l come to an end; thus some men wish to be castrated for erotic reasons. I n fact, the fear of castra­ tion i n both sexes conceals the fear of a total and definitive destruc­ tion of sexual desire, or "aphanisis"; the idea of losing the penis is only one expression of this fundamental fear. T h e fear of aphan­ isis manifests itself differently i n each sex. T h u s , women depend more, for physiological reasons, on men for their sexual satisfaction than men depend on women. W o m e n more often fear aphanisis i n the form of separation-anxiety, whence they derive the fear of being abandoned. Jones believes that one can discover the genesis of the super­ Introduction 37 ego more readily i n women than i n men, that is, the link between "lack" and "guilt" T h e c h i l d , according to Jones, creates his super­ ego i n order to project onto the external w o r l d the reason of his own deficiency. Deficiency or frustration alone is sufficient to give rise to guilt and to the formation of the superego, w i t h the aim of sparing the c h i l d the stress of deficiency and of frustration. I n short the superego attacks in particular those desires which are not des­ tined to be gratified. Referring to the stages of the girl's development, Jones agrees w i t h Melanie K l e i n that there is direct transition from oral­ ity to the Oedipus complex. T h e little g i r l passes from her oral rela­ tion with the breast to a fantasied oral relation w i t h the penis (fel­ latio fantasies) and to clitoral masturbation for autoerotic sub­ stitute satisfaction. N o r m a l development toward heterosexuality requires the sadistic phase to develop later, lest the sadistic cathexis of the clitoris lead to masculine penetration desires of a violent k i n d or to fellatio fantasies tinged w i t h strong oral castration-ag­ gression. Jones agrees w i t h F r e u d that the cathexis of the oral erogen­ ous zone is displaced to the anal orifice. A t this stage close and com­ plex links are established between anal and vaginal cathexes, the details of w h i c h are still obscure. This phase is sadistic but clearly also Oedipal. A t this stage of "mouth-anus-vagina," the little g i r l identifies with her mother. A t first the oral relation w i t h the penis is totally positive. B u t soon penis envy appears. Jones agrees with K a r e n Horney's ideas on the autoerotic motivation behind this wish, connected as it is w i t h scopophilic, urinary, exhibitionistic, and masturbatory activities. H e insists, like Melanie K l e i n , Karen Horney, and Helene Deutsch, that one must distinguish between the pre-Oedipal autoerotic penis envy and the O e d i p a l and erotic version (we might say, between envy and desire), the latter repre­ senting the wish to share possession of the penis d u r i n g oral, anal, or vaginal coitus. Jones thinks that penis envy (that is, envy for a penis of her own), is merely a regressive defense i n the face of the wish for the penis d u r i n g intercourse w i t h the O e d i p a l father. Oedi­ p a l disappointment may revive regressively the little girl's desire to have a penis of her own. G u i l t and the establishment of the super­ ego are the first and most important defenses against the unbearable O e d i p a l frustration which produces the fear of aphanisis. A t this stage the little g i r l must either change her object or her desire. E i ­ ther she must give up her father or her vagina (including its pre­ genital representations). I n the first case she may find a happy solu­ tion to her femininity o n an adult level which includes the vagina 38 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y i n her sexuality, her l i b i d i n a l interest being displaced~from the father to other men. I n the second case she remains tied to her father by identifying w i t h h i m (penis complex). T h e situation is the same for the boy who has to give up ei­ ther his penis or his incestuous desires. It is the nongratification of Oedipal wishes associated with the threat of aphanisis which starts this process in both sexes. Homosexual women are d i v i d e d into two groups, those who still are interested i n men but would like to be considered as one of them, and those who are not interested i n men but i n w o m e n — women representing the femininity they themselves have not been able to enjoy directly. O n e can say that women of the first group have chosen to give u p their sex but to keep the object. In this case the woman has identified w i t h her father and desires to be loved by the father i n this fashion by making h i m acknowledge her virility. T h e woman of the second group has given u p the father as an ob­ ject after having identified w i t h h i m . B u t i n reality her external ob­ ject-relation to a woman is simply based on the fact that her part­ ner represents her projected femininity w h i c h is satisfied by the internal object (the incorporated father, object of her identifica­ tion). I n the second case, the woman denies her desire for a penis as she attempts to prove that she does possess one. Jones believes that Freud's description of a phallic stage identical for boys and girls who are both unaware of the vagina is nothing but this defense of homosexual women i n an attenuated form, and, like it, essentially a secondary phenomenon. T h a t this defense assumes such importance as to lead to homosexuality may result from particularly intense sadism at the oral stage. 1. The most fundamental fear for both sexes, more than fear of castration, is the complete loss of sexuality (aphanisis). The non­ fulfillment of Oedipal wishes is sufficient to produce that fear. Guilt and the superego are more of an internal defense against it than formations of external origin. 2. The phallic phase in girls is most probably a secondary defensive construction, rather than a true stage in their develop­ ment. THE P H A L L I C PHASE '( 1 9 3 2 ) 2 7 Jones points out the important theoretical differences i n psychoan­ alytic writings d u r i n g the last ten years concerning male as well as female sexuality. These divergencies, however, are concealed by the Introduction 39 authors' wish to stress the points they have i n common. Jones pro­ poses to examine these differences i n detail and therefore pivots his study on the phallic phase. H e recalls his article of 1927 i n w h i c h he suggested that the phallic phase i n women was defensive and secondary. ("Last year Professor Freud declared this suggestion quite untenable.") Already i n 1927 Jones thought that the phallic phase i n boys d i d not repre­ sent a natural stage i n development. H e refers to K a r e n Horney's description of its defensive character i n boys ("The Dread of Women"). Jones does not doubt that there is a developmental phase i n which the opposites "phallic-castrated" are essential, but he ques­ tions the interpretation of this. H e divides the phallic phase as de­ scribed by Freud into two other phases: the "proto-phallic," w h i c h is characterized by the theory of the monistic quality of the genital organ, thereby excluding the vagina. T h e little boy thinks that everyone has a penis, and the little girl that everyone has a clitoris. T h i s belief causes no conflict at this stage. I n a second, or "deutero­ p h a l l i c " phase, boy and g i r l both believe that the w o r l d is d i ­ vided not into "female" and " m a l e , " but into " p h a l l i c " and "cas­ trated." T h i s phase is accompanied by anxiety and conflicts i n both sexes. T h e passage from one phase to the other is l i n k e d to the fear of castration w h i c h , according to Freud, is mobilized by the sight of the genital organs of the opposite sex. For the boy the deutero-phallic phase is characterized by an overestimation of his penis; it is also linked to a partial withdrawal from object-relations to a more narcissistic relationship. T h i s seems to indicate that what is happening here is a flight and not a normal phase of development. W h e n the phallic phase persists into adult­ hood this is even more obvious. I n adults it is associated w i t h deep anxiety. I n adults as i n the little boy i n the deutero-phallic stage, all interest is focused on the penis, w i t h doubts of its size and qual­ ity and w i t h exaggerated narcissistic compensations. A t this stage the little boy is not interested i n the opposite sex; a l l his sexual cu­ riosity is expressed i n comparing himself w i t h other boys. T h e time when a l l the individual's attention is narcissistically absorbed by his penis is also the time when the desire for penetration (main func­ tion of the penis) does not exist. It is obvious that this desire w o u l d lead to the search for its complement, an organ to penetrate. Jones does not believe that this is a deficiency due to ignorance of the va­ gina; early c h i l d analyses show that the little boy has active and sa­ distic wishes and fantasies about penetration and expresses them clearly i n his play. Jones here agrees w i t h K a r e n Horney that the 40 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y undiscovered vagina is a vagina denied; i n fact the c h i l d has an un­ conscious knowledge of the vagina and this "non-awareness" has something to do w i t h the so-called "innocence" of young women. Freud talks about the " h o r r o r " (Abscheu) that boys feel at the sight of the female genital. T h i s horror w o u l d not arise if the fear of castration had not already been i n existence for a long time. According to Jones the little boy sees i n the so-called "castration" of woman what w i l l happen to h i m if he continues to have feminine desires. T w o infantile fantasies are combined here: i n coitus one of the partners is castrated. Feminine desires lead not only to castra­ tion of the penis but also create a wound (infantile theory of the vulva); according to the author this link between coitus and castra­ tion is established by the boy's feminine wishes toward his father. T h e " h o r r o r " of the female genitals must be understood as horror of the "site where these desires are satisfied." By feminine wishes Jones means the destructive oral (biting fantasy) or anal (castra­ tion of the father's penis d u r i n g homosexual relations) incorpora­ tive impulses. T h e idea that these wishes can be satisfied i n the mother's vagina is i n accord w i t h the infantile conception—discov­ ered by Melanie K l e i n — t h a t the mother has incorporated the fa­ ther's penis d u r i n g intercourse. Entering the mother's vagina means encountering the fa­ ther's penis which has become threatening because of the projection of the boy's sadistic feminine wishes onto it ("feminine wishes" i n this context refers to the desire to incorporate the father's penis w i t h the aim of castration). These feminine wishes are linked w i t h O e d i p a l rivalry: the boy i n the O e d i p a l situation wants to castrate his father, and the fear of castration derives from this wish. T h u s , vaginal penetration is linked with the destruction of the father's penis, and by projection or retribution, with the destruction of his own penis. Here again the fantasy of coitus equals castration. T h e sight of the female genital has no direct effect upon the boy's castration complex. H e does not think—even though he may rationalize his fear—that women have been castrated and therefore that an analogous future awaits h i m , but he thinks that his Oedipal wish to have a sexual relation with his mother and to destroy and remove the father's penis might be fulfilled. T h i s desire is linked w i t h the fear of retribution, and it is this fear which leads h i m into the deutero-phallic phase. Once again it is the Oedipus com­ plex, Jones states, which gives us the key to the problem of the phallic phase. Jones recalls that i n the Freudian conception of the Oedipus complex and of the castration complex, the boy gives u p his Oedipal Introduction 41 wishes i n order to save his penis. However, if the penis is involved i n these wishes, as Freud claims, it surely is so with regard to its own indigenous function, that of penetration. T h e phallic phase is, therefore, according to Jones, not a nor­ m a l phase i n the boy's development but a neurotic compromise. As far as the g i r l is concerned, Jones points out once again the two opposing views about femininity and describes them briefly: the first one assumes that the girl is a little boy, prompted into femininity by the blocking of her masculinity. T h e second view sees the little g i r l as feminine from the start, as if she had been prompted into a defensive masculine attitude by the blocking of her feminine wishes. Jones refers to Freud's criticism of Karen Horney, according to whom the g i r l i n fear of her own femininity regresses to the phallic phase. Jones emphasizes that Freud uses the term regression here because of his conviction of the identity between clitoris and penis. B u t if one does not believe that penis and clitoris are identi­ cal—which is precisely Karen Horney's point—this is not a regres­ sion but a new neurotic structure. I n Jones's view this cannot be es­ tablished just because they are analogous i n the physiological sense. "After all," he says, "the clitoris is a part of the female sexual organ" C l i t o r a l masturbation can be accompanied by entirely femi­ nine fantasies. C l i n i c a l experiences show that contrary to Freud's belief vaginal desires exist at a very early stage, and lead to much stronger anxieties than does the clitoris. A p a r t from these wishes d i ­ rectly linked to the vagina, early fantasies about a l l the body ori­ fices are frequent and take on a typically feminine receptive form. Jones thinks that the Freudian theory of a pre-Oedipal phase w i t h an exclusive pre-Oedipal attachment, girl to the mother, even though clinically observable, does not explain the girl's early unconscious fantasies about the father and, from the beginning on, about his phallus. H e mentions an idea which F r e u d had communi­ cated to h i m personally: the first sexual theory of little girls is an oral one (fellatio). Here Jones agrees w i t h F r e u d but tries to draw further consequences from this idea: first he states that this " o r a l ' ' theory cannot be far away i n time from the oral stage of which one has every reason to believe that the theory is a part. T h i s would lead us to place feminine receptive wish at an early stage i n the lit­ tle girl's development. Jones thinks, like Melanie K l e i n , that the girl, disappointed by the breast, imagines an object more satisfying and "penis-like," T h i s fantasy would become the starting point of her attachment to her father. 42 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y According to F r e u d the child's disappointment is due to the fact that his desires have no aim, but one could also claim quite to the contrary that the c h i l d has definite aims and that his disap­ pointment is due to the fact that he cannot fulfill them. In little girls these aims are very similar to those of adult women: that is, the desire to have a c h i l d is primary and object-re­ lated. The little girl desires above all to incorporate the penis and make a child of it; this is not a substitute for the impossible desire to have a penis for purely narcissistic reasons. A c c o r d i n g to Jones the Oedipus complex begins when the lit­ tle g i r l realizes that what she desires (the father's penis) belongs to her mother, who then becomes her rival. H e firmly disagrees w i t h Freud's "grave" assertion that " i t is only i n the male children that there occurs the fateful conjunction of love for the one parent and hatred of the other as a r i v a l . " H e finds himself obliged to be "plus royaliste que le Roi." Jones agrees with M e l a n i e K l e i n that the girl's phallic desires are associated with sadistic wishes toward the mother's body and that she fears the mother's vengeance against the inside of her o w n body. H e mentions the frequent anxieties i n women of internal illnesses (for example, cancer of the uterus). T h e little girl's masculine deutero-phallic attitude is, i n fact, a de­ fense against the fears connected w i t h her O e d i p a l feminine wishes. T h e little girl, like the little boy, is afraid of being mutilated by the parent of the same sex. T h u s , Jones also answers Freud's argument about the source of energy behind the masculine tendencies. Jones concludes by suggesting that the phallic phase is a neu­ rotic compromise between l i b i d o a n d anxiety rather than a true phase i n the child's development. A s the l i b i d i n a l gratification is preserved and remains conscious i t w o u l d even merit the name of phallic perversion. H e ends his discourse by rendering homage to Freud for his discovery of the Oedipus complex: " I can find no rea­ son to doubt that for girls, no less than for boys, the Oedipus situa­ tion, i n reality a n d fantasy, is the most fateful psychic event i n life . . . ' I n the beginning . . . male and female created H e them.' " Freud's phallic phase is not a normal developmental phase for either sex; it is a neurotic compromise. In the case of both sexes it is related to guilty and dangerous Oedipal wishes. Both boy and girl want to castrate the parent of the same sex; the boy wants to re­ move the father's penis from the mother's vagina and the girl wants to steal the father's penis from the mother. Both fear castration for that reason (external castration for the boy, internal for the girl). Both sexes have a positive Oedipus complex. Introduction EARLY F E M A L E SEXUALITY ( l 9 3 5) 43 2 8 " T h i s lecture is intended to be the first of a series of exchange lec­ tures between V i e n n a and L o n d o n w h i c h your Vice-President, D r . Federn, has proposed for a special purpose. For some years now it has been apparent that many analysts i n L o n d o n do not see eye to eye w i t h their colleagues i n V i e n n a on a number of important top­ ics: among these I might instance the early development of sexual­ ity, especially i n the female. . . ." " T h a t I should have selected the present theme to discuss w i t h you is natural. Already at the Innsbruck Congress eight years ago I supported a view of female sex­ ual development that d i d not altogether coincide w i t h the one gen­ erally accepted, and at the Wiesbaden Congress three years ago I amplified my conclusions and also extended them to the problems of male development. P u t colloquially, my essential point was that there is more femininity i n the young g i r l than analysts generally admit, and that the masculine phase through w h i c h she may pass is more complex i n its motivation than is commonly thought; this phase seemed to me a reaction to her dread of femininity as well as something primary. . . ." Jones summarizes the m a i n points of discussion: Innate bi­ sexuality seems probable, but it is difficult to prove and in any case it must not be brought up as an argument each time one runs into clinical difficulties. W e agree that the mother plays a preponderant role i n the child's life at least d u r i n g the first year. Freud said of this period that "everything connected w i t h this first mother-attachment has i n analysis seemed to me so elusive, lost i n a past so d i m and shadowy, so hard to resuscitate, that it seemed as if it had undergone some specially inexorable repression." Analyses carried out i n L o n d o n (Melanie Klein) w i t h very young children give us precise informa­ tion about this stage of development i n girls. Divergences i n opin­ i o n are probably due to different assumptions about this early stage. Contrary to Freud, Jones believes that the little girl is from the start more feminine than masculine and more concerned with the inside of the body than the outside. A t this stage her mother represents for her not a woman she thinks of as a man, but a source of objects she needs, and wishes to appropriate for herself. T h e frus­ tration at the breast and the search for a "penis-like" object which w o u l d be more satisfying, occur very early and are found again later 44 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y i n the disappointment with the clitoris and the penis envy that fol­ lows it. T h e search for a penis following frustration at the breast does not yet mean love for the father; it is a relation to the part-ob­ ject (penis) which is still concerned with the mother. In the second half of the first year the fathefs personality plays an increasingly important part. A true feminine love for h i m begins to appear, along with rivalry toward the mother. In the second year one can already talk of an Oedipus complex. It differs from the later Oedi­ pus complex (the one of which Freud speaks) inasmuch as it is even more completely repressed and concerns the fantasy of the "com­ bined parent." The "sadistic-oral" and "sadistic-anal" stages which find ex­ pression i n fantasied attacks upon the mother's body are extremely violent i n girls, and the resultant anxiety is greater than it is i n boys, since the g i r l fears revenge against the inside of her body; she has no external organ on which she might displace her fears. Also she cannot, like the boy, displace her sadism onto the father. " I n a word the g i r l has for these reasons less opportunity to externalize her sadism." T h e disagreements between the L o n d o n and V i e n n a schools regarding later stages i n development follow from these divergent opinions about the earlier stages. Everyone agrees on the impor­ tance of the oral state and on the fact that it is the prototype of fem­ ininity, even though agreement on this last point is not complete. Helene Deutsch has shown the oral nature of vaginal function. "One can at all events hardly sustain any longer the view that the relevance of the vagina does not develop before puberty" Vaginal anaesthesia and cases of dyspareunia i n adults, ac­ cording to Jones, confirm the psychological existence of the vagina before puberty since they demonstrate an erotic counter-cathexis, and one cannot fight against something which is not yet i n exis­ tence. The clitoris-penis question: T h i s is the point of greatest the­ oretical divergence. One side (the Viennese group) claims that the g i r l hates her mother because she has not given her a penis; the other side suggests that the g i r l wants a penis because she can thus better express her hatred toward her mother. T h e Viennese view­ point is that she turns to her father because she is disappointed by her clitoris (the castration complex leads her to the Oedipus com­ plex); the L o n d o n group says that she wants a penis because of the obstacles she encounters i n her love for her father. T h e fact that so many girls admit openly that they would like to be boys should not Introduction 45 disguise that they are at the same time coquettish, play w i t h dolls, etc., i n short, that they are truly feminine. T h e little girl's penis envy is related to her sadism toward the mother through the sadistic representation that m i c t u r i t i o n can take on i n the unconscious (urethral sadism). Also, the boy can check at every moment on the appropriateness of his castration fears, whereas the g i r l cannot verify the integrity of her internal or­ gans. Jones answers Freud's objection that penis envy i n women and the whole phallic phase cannot be a secondary formation since its energy w o u l d have to derive from fundamental, primary needs. H e thinks w i t h M e l a n i e K l e i n that the girl's repression of her femi­ ninity is related to her hatred and fear of the mother. T h e girl's primary penis envy is actually the feminine desire to incorporate the father's penis, first orally, then through the vagina. T h e desire­ for a c h i l d is merely the desire to incorporate the penis and make a c h i l d of it. The desire to have a child is not, as Freud maintained, a compensation for the lack of penis, but a basically feminine wish. A l t h o u g h he considers the phallic phase to be a defensive forma­ tion, Jones is not optimistic about its dissolution, as its defensive function may prolong it interminably. Jones and the L o n d o n group think that the phallic phase is a defense against an Oedipus complex already existing, so that their views about its dissolution differ from Freud's. It is achieved: 1. W h e n a fantasy is given up because it is exposed to real­ ity-testing. 2. W h e n the ego grows stronger, less defense is required w i t h the lessening of anxiety. 3. W h e n other defenses take over. T h e little girl's resentment of the mother is not only due to the fact that she d i d not give her a penis, but also because she has kept the father's penis for herself. T h e sight of the penis is not a de­ cisive traumatic event but the last l i n k i n a long chain of events; Jones does not believe "that if the little girl had not experienced this trauma she would have remained masculine"; he does not ac­ cept Freud's theory that it is this experience which leads the little g i r l to femininity. " I n short, I do not see a woman . . . as un homme manque " " I think the Viennese would reproach us for m a k i n g too much of early fantasy life at the expense of external reality. A n d we should answer that there is not danger of any analysts neglecting external reality, whereas it is always possible for them to disregard Freud's doctrine of the importance of psychical reality." 46 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y In this article Jones discusses his views and those of the English school, comparing them with Freud's views and those of the Vienna school. Freud's clinical articles based on female cases w o u l d give further i n ­ formation to those who wish to follow his thought i n greater detail. T h e discovery of the dynamic unconscious arose chiefly through clinical experience w i t h women. (Freud and Breuer, "Studies on Hysteria," " D o r a , " " A Case of Paranoia R u n n i n g Counter to the Psychoanalytical T h e o r y of the Disease". . .). H i s paper on " T h e Psychogenesis of a Case of Homosexuality i n a W o m a n " provides an interesting exposition of the two aspects of the Oedipus complex i n women, according to Freud's conception. " A C h i l d Is B e i n g B e a t e n " and " T h e Economic Problem of Masochism" throw light on Freud's ideas concerning female masochistic attitudes. T o this list should be added his 1927 article o n " F e t i c h i s m " and his paper " O n the Transformation of Instincts as Exemplified i n which Freud studies the symbolic chain i n A n a l Erotism," "penis-child-feces"; similarly, "Analysis, T e r m i n a b l e and Intermin­ able" i n which the difficulties encountered i n the interpretation of penis envy are discussed. One should also include studies such as Abraham's "Manifes­ tations of the Female Castration C o m p l e x " (192i), and the pa­ pers of C a r l M u l l e r Brunschwig, A n n i e R e i c h , and Hans Sachs on female superego formation, the numerous studies of P h i l l i s Green­ acre on femininity, and a l l psychoanalytical studies on masochism, which form a useful basis for reflection on female problems. T h e authors of this book w i l l refer i n the course of their pa­ pers to a l l of these works. I n this Introduction our aim has been re­ stricted to an exploration of the different theoretical approaches to woman's psychosexual development i n the hope that this might pro­ vide a background against which the reader may consider the ideas of the contributors to this volume. 2 9 3 0 3 1 3 2 33 A Masculine Mythology off Femininity Christian David 6 surprise fa tale! L a Femme au corps d i v i n , promettant le bonheur, Par le haut se termine en monstre bic^phalel —BAUDELAIRE T h a n k s to Freud's discovery of infantile sexuality and the continu­ ity between the normal and the pathological, it has become possible to derive a concrete and rigorous psychological study of sexuality from i n d i v i d u a l prehistory. Has sexuality freed itself from this prehistory, preserved as it is by universal repression, secular prejudices, and the irreducible distortions of fantasy? I do not think so, and the hesitations, the dis­ agreements, and the contradictions even w i t h i n the most authenti­ cally psychoanalytic thought provide the evidence. Perhaps the particular problems which female sexuality pre­ sents us w i l l emphasize these residual difficulties. T h e reader may already have realized this from the general introduction to this book. One can even say, without being paradoxical, that many ana­ lytical conceptions of femininity are themselves the stronghold of fan­ tasies and the last refuge of prejudices. Is it the same i n treatment? T o a lesser degree, yes: there is general agreement that ideological differences subside i n clinical practice, yet one cannot deny the i n ­ fluence of a p r i o r i assumptions, nor the unfortunate consequences they have at times. T h e r e are few domains i n w h i c h failure due to counter transference is so difficult to acknowledge or its repercus­ sions so difficult to prevent. There is nothing very surprising about this for sexual life is deeply rooted i n the unconscious. Freud himself, i n spite of the ad­ mirable achievement of his self-analysis and his personal liberation, was not exempt from prejudices or emotional reactions. A t the source of the aforementioned dissensions stands Freud himself, inas­ 47 48 F E M A L E SEXUALITY m u c h as his personality and his clinical experience determined the adoption of certain (frequently prejudiced) positions to be found i n work on female psychology. Didactic analysis, even if carried out according to accepted standards has failed to prevent psychoanalysts from m a k i n g mis­ takes because these preconceived notions are not easily eradicated and the distortions of one's own unconscious are difficult to grasp and deal w i t h . If the desire to know and the spirit of discovery have their origins i n infantile sexual curiosity, then a l l research, a l l reflection on sexuality would appear to involve looking back into the sources of knowledge. If, on the other hand, as Freud claims, concern over sexual difference (even more than perplexity as to the origin of children) and castration-anxiety concur to structure one's sexuality and one's total personality, then research into female sexuality is of great importance, since the female sex constitutes the primum mov­ ens of infantile sexual anxiety for the g i r l as well as for the boy. Femininity, experienced as a deficiency, an absence, a near-proof of castration, is subject to questioning much more than masculinity. T h e female sex is the essential enigma, only to a slightly lesser de­ gree for the g i r l than for the boy. T h i s is so not only d u r i n g child­ hood, as is attested by a l l the ignorance, misapprehensions, and mis­ takes of so many women about their own sex and the functioning of their own genitals. T h e male sex also creates a certain mystery around itself, but this mystery exists for both the boy and the girl i n the same way, at least u n t i l the latency period. A little boy may wonder how his penis can—or one day could—relate to the femi­ nine sex. Whether he scotomizes the phenomenon of erection or is incapable of establishing the link between erection and the girl's sex organ, he w i l l i n any event be confronted by his own sex, by the idea of the sexual act, as though faced w i t h indecipherable signs. I n the beginning each sex is a worrisome enigma for its i n d i v i d u a l members as well as for the opposite sex. Later, certainly, the v i v i d experience of one's own sexual individuality w i l l , bit by bit and i n conjunction w i t h the opposite sex, throw light on the mystery for both sexes. B u t if a certain amazement at man's sexual functions still exists for woman, there is an even more noticeable reaction the other way round. I n fact, the dark mystery surrounding the female sex for a c h i l d is rarely completely dispelled—of course this is true not of rational understanding or scientific knowledge, but only of affective and deeply instinctual experience. T h u s , among others, there is a popular convention of mysteri­ ous " f e m i n i n i t y , " the "typically feminine" tag, a luxuriant and com­ A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 49 plex mythology continually woven around woman and her sexual­ ity. I n fact, these limits to our knowledge of the other sex (limits perhaps related to experiences of the ineffable, the impossibility of communication, whose emotional significance is well known) corre­ late to limits i n our acknowledgment of certain sexual states i n the other sex but which are also present i n our own sex. N o t only do boys and girls ignore their own sexuality as well as the other per­ son's, but adult men and women also persist i n not recognizing what is common to both. One might add that they ignore their b i ­ sexuality, or, if they acknowledge it, they frequently do so only i n the pathological area of perversion. Even if, at first, it seems incongruous, it may well be fruitful to approach some problems of femininity through certain observa­ tions about masculinity drawn from psychoanalytical clinical experi­ ence. O f course, one could also argue the other way around, but that would make less sense because the ideas we commonly have of sexuality i n general, and female sexuality i n particular, derive essen­ tially from conceptions of male sexuality. Furthermore, it is important to look beyond sociocultural and anthropological considerations into the nature of fundamental human bisexuality and to clarify it. T h i s does not mean though that one should continually have recourse to bisexuality as if to a dexis ex machina every time one comes up against theoretical or clinical difficulties. Probably because of its existence as a psychic fact, the reality of a true sexual intersubjectivity imposes itself, so that we cannot, even according to a strictly analytical view, postulate a true autistic sexuality. There is, I believe, a possibility of communicating and even exchanging experiences, particularly sexual experiences, that enables us to understand what is u n k n o w n to us, and to share what, i n the face of our differences, we thought we were excluded from. . . . B u t the fact is, such i l l u m i n a t i o n is obscured, the prospect of communion jeopardized. Yet this failure can be attributed for the most part to the luxuriant mythology which prevents the sexes from knowing and encountering each other, especially as these fallacious images of sexuality, rooted as they are i n the collective unconscious and not simply i n the i n d i v i d u a l unconscious, are found secretly preserved i n certain social institutions. T h e dominant aspect of sexual mythology concerning women is the image of woman as a deficient man, Its importance lies i n the direct repercussion it has on feminine mentality. T h e idealization of women, equally common and often representing a conception complementary to the preceding one, is a reaction formation due to 50 F E M A L E SEXUALITY the misapprehension of women as a castrated gender. Neurosis is al­ ways accompanied by sexual problems. Even if they appear to be , absent at first they w i l l show up i n the long r u n . Similarly, I would argue that there are few ideas i n a man's m i n d designed to demean woman or to idealize her which are not linked to overt or covert neurotic problems. A phenomenological description of such ideas w o u l d be end­ less. O n e has only to think of certain significant masculine reactions to a woman's figure, her sexual organs, menstruation, defloration, c h i l d b i r t h , breast-feeding, and even the menopause. One person might express fear and disgust at the idea of vaginal penetration d u r i n g menstruation, or regard the clitoris as a ridiculous substi­ tute, or the rupture of the hymen as ending a purity preserved u n t i l then, or feel embarrassed i n the presence of a pregnant woman, or be strangely disturbed by the prospect, and then the experience, of c h i l d b i r t h , or lose erotic interest i n his own wife once she becomes a mother, or consider the menopause (more or less consciously) the end of a l l real feminine life. Another person—and i n some respects it could be the same one—might idealize woman's body and glorify pregnancy and maternity i n general. Yet another might be able to appreciate women only when they are clothed and only according to their degree of "sophistication," these artifices giving h i m some protection against his anxieties. So far I have referred only to masculine reactions immedi­ ately l i n k e d to the structure and function of woman's sexuality. Re­ actions to feminine personality i n general are similar. W e find more or less the same subjective patterns (with the same mainly defensive but at any rate unconscious features), built upon distrust and con­ tempt or, conversely, an illusory exaltation. M o r e than being the vicissitudes of a poorly resolved O e d i p a l conflict, I tend to believe that the persistence of an archaic oral relation, strongly marked by an ambivalence i n which l i b i d i n a l and aggressive features are intimately entwined, is responsible for the distorted conception of woman and her sexuality, of what she is and what she is supposed to be. T h i s persistence of misconception looks like revenge for the radical narcissistic wounds inflicted by the mother and follows from the situation of the baby at the breast for both boys and girls. Is this revenge not the source of the " r a c i a l " discrimination which so many show toward women (a certain p r i m i ­ tive tribe refers to women as "the race which is not entitled to speak"), as well as the root of the masochistic attitude many women have toward men? T h i s is not to say that the obverse is the truth—the " n a t u r a l A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 51 superiority of women," as some people hold. A n unbiased approach to both the common and the distinguishing psychosexual character­ istics of both sexes seems preferable. T h e differences may be smaller than one is inclined to think, but they certainly exist and one has reason, therefore, to find out what true femininity is. W h a t , i n fact, is the most satisfactory mode of sexual functioning for a particular woman, irrespective of a l l prejudice about its worth and away from the sterile opposition between masculine and feminine militants? However, once the relativity of notions like virility, femininity, ac­ tivity, and passivity is accepted, we can more easily clarify the deter­ minants of preconceived notions about feminine sexuality. O n l y after the m a i n prejudices are noted and set aside can we proceed to study the subject directly and independently—as J . Chasseguet rightly proposes—and not, as is so frequently the case, on the basis of, and i n response to, masculine sexuality. T h i s is a basic condition for correctly understanding femi­ ninity. T h e r e is no doubt that the pervasive influence of masculine myths has been an obstacle to this endeavor. If their influence per­ sists I w o u l d suggest that the men who created these myths either managed to make women accept them or believed they were right i n considering the protestations of some women as exceptions. I n this study I wish to draw attention to the difficulties en­ countered o n the borders of such researches on femininity but I do not propose to investigate the subject itself. A t the risk of adopting a very narrow purview, marked by relatively unusual conditions, I w o u l d like to examine a case of phobia, with numerous perverse manifestations. A t the beginning of his analysis this patient held a conscious and an unconscious representation (one might say, mythology) of femininity, strongly marked by his own bisexual ten­ dencies. By this I mean an attitude toward women and a passivity i n sexual behavior, both significant i n themselves. T h e y gained more significance as their meaning w i t h i n a hysteric structure, with its phobic and perverse symptomatology, became clearer d u r i n g treat­ ment, which eventually led to broad and significant changes. (Be­ cause of the strong l i n k between this patient's sexual mythology and his other problems, it is difficult to separate the investigations with which this book is more explicitly concerned from material irrele­ vant to its purpose.) Phobic problems brought P h i l i p into analysis. I n fact, he had suffered from them for many years, but they became aggravated after repatriation and the difficulties caused by subsequent changes i n his way of life; so much so that eventually he sought medical help. H e was first sent to a psychiatrist who started face-to-face 52 F E M A L E SEXUALITY treatment and adopted a hyperactive, directive approach; the pa­ tient terminated treatment after a few weeks. H e was so anxious that he immediately consulted someone else, and this time lie was sent to me. P h i l i p is i n his forties, tall, stout, rosy-cheeked, w i t h a r o u n d , puffy face, shifty yet inquisitive, piercing and apprehensive blue eyes, shielded by tiny, gold-rimmed glasses. H i s speech is rapid, even hasty, marked from time to time by a high p i t c h i n a relatively deep voice. H i s facial movements are expressive and varied, his ges­ tures frequent and demonstrative. H e explains his symptoms, history, and present situation, de­ scribing his personality, his family, friends, and acquaintances with­ out my having to prompt h i m . W h e n I speak he butts i n , not out of aggression but urged more by a feverishness which does not conceal his timidity. H e seems afraid of me and tries to control and avoid his apprehensive reaction to our encounter; his overtalkativeness, nevertheless, does not hide his desire to avoid and conceal his fears. T h i s behavior is surprising i n view of the fact that it is combined w i t h exhibitionism and a strikingly theatrical pose. H e sighs, utters exclamations and onomatopoetic words, coughs loudly, wriggles, and fidgets, while at other times he pretends to be well controlled. I n recalling from time to time his past and present somatic complaints (both varied and benign) he supports his explanations w i th evocative gestures. W i t h an evident complacency, and with no embarrassment or modesty, he spontaneously begins to talk about his concern over some features of his sexual l i f e — a n d he continued to do so throughout the analysis. Superficial anxiety mingles from the beginning w i t h a strange k i n d of gloating. In short, this pat­ ently hysteric patient affords us a glimpse of a more complex per­ sonality than a superficial appraisal of his condition would have suggested. Philip's reason for coming to analysis, about which he knew almost nothing, lay i n the realization that his scope of activity was rapidly d i m i n i s h i n g and that his anxiety occurred w i t h increasing intensity and frequency. D u r i n g the past fourteen years, complicated and perverted compromises i n his sexual life apparently afforded h i m an unstable but sufficiently workable balance i n association w i t h phobic restrictions and a deceptive and erratic use of medica­ tion. O n l y when he had to adapt to a new, more restrictive and more demanding style of existence involving h i m i n new relation­ ships which aroused anxiety, d i d a sudden breakdown occur leading h i m to seek help. T h i s confirms the notion of the functional efficacy A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 53 of perverse organization and behavior and illustrates the ignorance or at least indifference of perverts regarding their distorted beliefs and the consequent anomalies and restrictions of their lives. W h e n P h i l i p felt a serious need for treatment he simultane­ ously felt an uneasiness, never experienced before, concerning the significance and value of his relations w i t h other people. H e often asked me if other people thought and acted as he d i d , if he was not abnormal, even monstrous. T h i s uneasiness was obviously due to his sexual behavior and beliefs, rather than to his anxieties. I n short, it is only w i t h the intensification of neurotic suffering that a perverse attitude can be "objectivated," really questioned, so that displaced impulses and obliterated needs, having been stifled for years, can again demand attention. T h e smug complacency of prejudices about female sexuality seems to me to bear comparison w i t h the blindness of certain perverts, or w i t h the narrow-mindedness typical of some character neurotics. P h i l i p has a panic fear of going out alone and makes his wife escort h i m everywhere. Whenever, by chance, they take an unusual route, her protection is not enough and he feels overwhelmed by anxiety. I n order to prevent this he repeats to himself, " I shall get over it, I shall get over i t , " even though this intolerable situation seems to last forever. Sometimes he wrings his hands and moans, "Mummy! Mummy!" D u r i n g analysis it appeared that his need for an auxiliary ego was linked w i t h the need to be simultaneously protected and su­ pervised by a maternal figure. T h i s restraint is both hated and sought after. " I shall get over i t " refers to an unconscious fantasy of the p r i m a l scene. T h e anxiety attack, strongly eroticized, was i n ef­ fect the phobic echo of long-buried feelings of identification w i t h the passive parent. H e calls for his mother to stop the unbearable specter of intercourse as well as his own guilty participation i n it. Several years ago, when his symptoms were more sporadic and less intense, he experienced a period of depersonalization which was particularly stark and painful. O n boarding his daily train, he suddenly felt that his usual seat near the doorway was on the left instead of the right. Conse­ quently, he immediately lost the notion of where the front and the back of the train were. T h i s disorientation aroused such confusion i n h i m that for a moment he felt like getting off the train and giv­ i n g up his trip for that day. T h i s episode of depersonalization, brought about by a subjective impression of a change i n the spatial orientation seems to me linked to the presence of an unconscious sexual fantasy. H e real­ 54 F E M A L E SEXUALITY izes that the penis is neither where he thought it was nor where he had believed it was i n his fantasies. T h e front is then confused w i t h the back. Frequently, i n order to combat his anxiety, for example be­ fore going to sleep, P h i l i p created the following fantasy: a woman who is not his wife comes toward h i m and he finds himself next to her. H e stands close behind her and then penetrates her anally, a practice u n k n o w n to h i m i n reality. H e feels completely protected and his erection never fails. H e becomes one w i t h his partner. It is as though they had only one head, two arms and " n o t h i n g i n front." H e w o u l d like to pass into the woman by penetrating her a l l the way u p to her shoulders. U n a b l e to achieve that, he contents h i m ­ self w i t h a substitute for the fusion; arms and legs are bound tightly by thin strings. H i s partner is wearing panties, stockings, garters, and high-heeled shoes. She controls the whole situation. She goes off when it pleases her and i n whatever direction she wishes. W h e n he experiences this close u n i o n , he wants to become entirely female, but at the same time keep his penis safely inside the woman's body. T h i s is the astonishing solution, almost hermaphroditic, to his cas­ tration anxiety. H i s fears not only have to do w i t h space but also w i t h his body. Since his earliest youth he has been concerned over the slight­ est disturbance affecting his body. A n y p a i n , however insignificant, any malaise, however fleeting, precipitates a spate of hypochondriacal fantasies. If he has hemorroids he immediately sees himself the vic­ t i m of rectal cancer; a feeling of heaviness i n the lower abdomen immediately becomes cancer of the testicles. H e has only to hear of a disease to experience its symptoms shortly afterward. I have outlined Philip's varied symptomatology without yet describing his perverse tendencies and his peculiar sexual mythol­ ogy. T h e y are closely allied and need to be considered as a u n i t throughout his treatment. T h e patient married when young and virginal and had fathered three children. In twenty years of domes­ ticity this man from a strict moral and religious background had penetrated his wife only on rare occasions. A l t h o u g h penetration was not especially difficult for h i m and gave h i m no conscious anxi­ ety, his conscious sexual fantasies led h i m i n another direction. I n his wife he had been able to find a partner who, by her extreme passivity or by complementary reactions, or both, always had com­ plied w i t h his requirements. These consisted essentially i n persuad­ ing her to play an active and sometimes sadistic role i n their sexual relations. Indeed, he could achieve real pleasure only under these A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 55 conditions. D u r i n g sex he insisted that his wife "possess" h i m by her sitting on his chest, w i t h her back towards h i m and buttocks resting on his face, and then masturbate h i m , while he imagined (with many variations) that he was at the "mercy" of a mysterious, u n ­ known beauty imperious and cruel and m u c h older than himself. It d i d not matter to h i m whether his wife had any " p h y s i c a l " pleasure or not i n this relationship, for she seemed to j o i n i n willingly and spontaneously, without complaining, and even seemed happy about it; consciously, this brought h i m supreme pleasure, but at a deeper level it reduced h i m to impotence. H e had never been u n f a i t h f u l to her, not even d u r i n g long periods of separation, ostensibly keeping a tacit pact between them, but i n reality fearful at a preconscious level of not being able to re­ create his sexual arrangements w i t h another woman. Nevertheless, his erotic life was not l i m i t e d to this sado-masochistic relationship w i t h his wife: he had always needed to masturbate i n front of pho­ tographs or illustrated magazines (chosen carefully, but always i m ­ proved on by his imagination). T h e pictures sometimes showed particularly beautiful, "sophisticated," cold women who were not completely nude or, if nude, w i t h the mons pubis hidden or with­ out pubic hair; preferably wearing either panties or "tights" w h i c h w o u l d outline the figure and emphasize "the lack of c o n t i n u i t y " at the base of the abdomen. A t other times, the pictures were of heter­ osexual scenes w i t h the woman playing a role, sadistic, directly, and manifestly. I n early adolescence to increase the physical excitement of his fantasies, he had adopted the habit of hanging i n m i d a i r from his suspenders while masturbating, finding particular pleasure i n the sensation of clothes cutting into his flesh. A t the same time he had the fantasy of being violently subdued and "crushed" by a ruthless beauty; of a torture scene disguised as a surgical operation —complete castration coincided w i t h his orgasm. Because these masochistic fantasies d i d not exhaust his sexual tension, he took delight i n dressing up whenever possible i n wom­ en's underwear and masturbating i n front of a m i r r o r while trying to hide his genitals by wedging the penis between his legs. H i s desire to be a woman was strong and conscious. It seemed wonderful to have " n o t h i n g between the legs," to be dressed i n lit­ tle nylon panties fitting closely over his buttocks and, at the same time, revealing no protuberance i n front. Ballerinas i n tights were his favorite image of female perfection. T h i s also contributed to his fetishistic love of high-heeled shoes, panties, stockings, and women's girdles (as long as they were light and d i d not r e m i n d h i m of the 56 F E M A L E SEXUALITY long corsets his mother used to wear). " A r e n ' t a l l men like me, and don't they a l l wish to be like women?" he would ask i n his early ses­ sions. T h e desire to be a woman, common i n boys, but usually de­ nied, can be understood i n several ways. It is a compensation for "feminine castration," a replacement of the desire to possess the mother, as well as a wish to participate i n women's power to attract admiration and courtship and i n their ability to bear children. In sharp contrast to these erotic needs and the explicit (and, above a l l , implicit) representation of the female sex and the femi­ ninity underlying it, was Philip's desire to be virile i n every other respect. H e manifested a vigorous and unceasing virility which one could almost call a "masculine protest." T h i s behavior was most ob­ vious i n his home, where he could not tolerate the slightest ques­ tioning of his authority from his wife (jokingly referred to as "the half portion") or from his children. H e exploded i n anger if he had to wait, and one day even smashed open a wardrobe i n a fit of anger caused by a brief delay. H e also showed considerable intoler­ ance when his pride was hurt, as frequently happened i n his civil service office when lower-ranking colleagues overlooked his preroga­ tives or encroached on his fields of responsibility. H e projected the maternal image onto anyone who attempted to restrain or belittle h i m , reacting violently, for example, by writing notes " i n strong terms" i n order to set things right w i t h his superiors. H e nearly a l ­ ways succeeded i n obtaining compensation for the infringement of his rights or his offended dignity. H e was adaptable, diplomatic, and sociable i n everyday life, as long as nothing gave h i m the feeling of being ignored or dispar­ aged. I n social gatherings he would go to some pains to get the at­ tention of the group for himself, exerting his charms, and making everyone laugh; he was at his best when circumstances allowed h i m to display his amateur talents. N o t h i n g provided h i m w i t h greater joy than the applause he would receive after his interpretations of " L ' A i r de la calomnie" or "Toreador prends garde!" i n which he displayed his full vocal range before a gathering who had begun by laughing, then became intrigued by the spectacle, and finally suc­ cumbed to his charm. According to h i m , this should have been his vocation: to appear i n front of an audience, beguiling it i n such a way as to dominate it. Jealous as he is by nature, P h i l i p cannot bear the favors lav­ ished u p o n singers, actors, artists, and political figures when their true worth or talents do not justify them. Hypocritical praise or A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 57 undue adulation makes h i m furious. H e feels then as if he person­ ally has been abused by the latest illusion-monger. T h e triumphant exhibitionism i n the narcissistic strata of his life is balanced by extreme guilt w i t h regard to his sexual life. H i s polymorphous drives found no outlet other than fetishism and transvestitism w h i c h provided a k i n d of compromise. T h e fact that his parents came from very different social backgrounds has troubled P h i l i p since childhood and has even af­ fected h i m i n adult life. H e has always suffered because his father, who was of peasant extraction, was looked down upon and criti­ cized by his mother for his manners and his way of dressing and talking. T h e mother's attitude was no doubt aggravated by the fa­ ther's physical handicap, resulting from an operation involving tre­ panning w i t h various sequelae, i n c l u d i n g fainting attacks. T h i s tragedy had l i m i t e d his father to an inferior job and had forced his mother, who came from a middle-class family, to become a teacher. " M u m m y was always spick and span, very tidy i n her cloth­ ing. She intimidated me, always wearing the same severe tailored suit. D a d , on the other hand, was rather sloppy and grubby-looking. Everyone liked h i m even if they didn't respect h i m . M u m m y wore the pants i n our home." T h i s woman, w i t h her masculine traits, dis­ played to her two sons, and to P h i l i p i n particular, a narrow solici­ tude and pestering authority, which corresponded more or less to the attitude she had toward her husband. H e never had a say i n i m ­ portant discussions or decisions; he was controlled and henpecked. Yet she was obviously devoted to h i m , too. P h i l i p had overheard his mother say that his father was "rather too keen on i t , " which never ceased to surprise h i m . A l t h o u g h aware that his parents got o n well together, he could not help thinking that his mother must be ungrateful and mean. T h e neglected father, with his few social graces, was i n the habit of spitting openly: this was one of my patient's most v i v i d and most disagreeable memories. Even now P h i l i p admits that he cannot help feeling sick and that he shudders whenever he sees any­ one spit. D u r i n g his session he often spontaneously associated phlegm with sperm. T h e horror i n which he held his father's sexual activities, that is, the image of his father as the possessor of a penis, was less of an " O e d i p i f i c a t i o n " of pregenital needs than an identification w i t h the penis which he felt to be threatened by the mother who had ap­ propriated it for herself. H e also felt his penis threatened deep i n ­ side his wife's vagina. T h i s is one of the conscious reasons for shun­ 58 F E M A L E SEXUALITY n i n g penetration: several times d u r i n g intercourse he had had the impression that his penis was encountering the glans of another penis. K a r l A b r a h a m long ago discovered this idea i n some of his patients—that women had a hollow penis which the smaller male penis could penetrate. T h i s fantasy probably has an oral origin, through an unconscious assimilation of the penis into the breast, an idea w h i c h contributes an important part to the formation of the image of a p h a l l i c mother. P h i l i p cannot understand how women can desire men who have only "that miserable little t h i n g . " H e dreamed: he is on the beach w i t h his wife. T h e r e is another person, too, who represents for h i m W o m a n . H e goes toward her, flirts w i t h her, and tries not to be seen by his wife. Soon he is r u n n i n g along the edge of a big lagoon. Suddenly, he scrambles up a tree to make himself more i n ­ teresting to the woman who is subdued and now is watching h i m . F r o m the branch on which he is sitting he can see a deep puddle at the base of the tree. H e is about to j u m p into the puddle when sud­ denly he sees a huge, multicolored fish chasing another, much smaller one and about to swallow it. A t that moment he feels very sick. T h e scene changes. N o w he is at a banquet. H i s wife is oppo­ site h i m . T h e other woman is on his side of the table but separated from h i m by an u n k n o w n m a n who came and sat down between them. D u r i n g his childhood, P h i l i p often imagined that he was i n ­ side his father's trousers—or i n those of a teacher representing his father—with his head down and his nose between soiled buttocks. E v en more than a negation of the wish to castrate the fecal penis, or an anal expression of a homosexual impulse, I believe this shows a desire to be assimilated into the paternal penis. If P h i l i p became the father's penis, his father w o u l d no longer be castrated by the phallic mother, nor w o u l d P h i l i p r u n the risk of a similar predica­ ment. One day d u r i n g a family outing, as he got out of the car w i t h his father for a short stop, P h i l i p was overcome by a violent and i n ­ comprehensible emotion which made h i m throw himself against his father's chest while repeating between sobs, " O h , my Daddy, my poor D a d d y ! " Yet nothing had upset h i m other than his mother's p i t y i n g attitude toward his father, as well as toward himself. Even today, when she calls h i m "my poor P i p ! " he goes into a fury and can hardly control himself. T h i s refers also to the fact that his younger brother had to endure more than his share of this ambigu­ ous pity d u r i n g the years of illness from the effects of polio. " M y poor D a d d y " signified " Y o u who are castrated by M u m m y . " " M y A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 59 poor P i p " therefore means " Y o u who are like your father." It is hardly surprising that thereafter P h i l i p could not bear that expres­ sion, w h i c h i m p l i e d his castration. B u t " M y poor Daddy," a varia­ tion of his mother's expression, also implies P h i l i p ' s adoption of a maternal role toward his father while a l l y i n g w i t h h i m by affirming the solidarity between victims of a common enemy. T h i s is a com­ plex, homosexual l i n k which lends to Philip's masochistic position its characteristic tone. P h i l i p tries through sexual submission and self-inflicted h u m i l i a t i o n to achieve some sort of u n i o n w i t h the father. Here is a reconstruction of Philip's first memory of anxiety: when he was about three years o l d his grandmother took h i m for a walk and left h i m sitting on the low w a l l of a community washing­ place, or perhaps a fish pond. T h e n she walked away for a little while. H e fell into the water and remained at the bottom for sev­ eral interminable seconds. H e remembers the sparkling surface of the water, the sensation of his body being crushed, yet at the same time he also remembers an acute pleasure, perhaps due to his body being rubbed after the accident. H e recalls his strong emotional reactions to the discovery of the anatomical difference between the sexes—the sight of a little friend, Lisa, whom he remembers looking at h i m while she squatted beside a tree to urinate just a few feet away from h i m . W h y was she not made like him? H e suffered the first unbearable h u m i l i a t i o n by being forced to wear long, curly hair tied w i t h a r i b b o n (his mother had always wanted a little girl) and ridiculous clothes quite unsuitable for his age. After school, d u r i n g kindergarten, his mother brought h i m a banana which she compelled h i m to eat i n front of his friends. After kindergarten he went to a Jesuit school w i t h an atmo­ sphere of censorship, suspicion, false kindness, and duplicity, which seemed to foster and increase the smallest feelings of guilt. " H o w many times have you passed urine today?" " H a v e n ' t you two been touching each other?. . . ." D u r i n g this time his mother showed great respect and a k i n d of attraction toward some of the priests whom she invited to her home. P h i l i p d i d not enjoy the sight of those sexually ambiguous robes swirling r o u n d her. Yet he. had to appear polite. Possibly P h i l i p ' s religious u p b r i n g i n g accentuated his original ambiguity about the sexes and enabled h i m to " f e m i n i n i z e " men easily. T h e priests' relations w i t h his mother disturbed h i m , i n ­ tensifying his feeling of sexual ambiguity and reviving his nauseous disgust over the p r i m a l scene. One day he was i n the school playground d u r i n g recreation 60 F E M A L E SEXUALITY period, playing w i t h a b a l l i n the sun. Suddenly, he felt weak and confused. H e scarcely had time to go to the nearest priest and col­ lapse "onto his robe," struck by his first fainting fit. (His father, one recalls, had suffered from these since his operation.) T h i s first attack was the unconscious symbolic equivalent of an amorous swoon. F o r a long time following this incident, he was terrified by the idea of going to school alone. Each time he needed his mother's reassurance, " I t w i l l be a l l right." Whenever she forgot to calm h i m he turned back on the steps to beg her to say the magic words that w o u l d encourage and protect h i m . F r o m this same period he also remembers a strange emotion —often accompanied by m i c t u r i t i o n — p r o m p t e d by the curious be­ havior of one teacher who enjoyed teasing h i m by lifting h i m by the arms and swinging h i m r o u n d , g i v i n g h i m the feeling of being totally at the teacher's mercy. A n y t h i n g to do w i t h sex was kept i n the dark by his family. Masturbation d u r i n g adolescence made h i m continuously uneasy. W h a t he observed or overheard troubled h i m , and he d i d not fully understand it. H e was embarrassed when dogs were "glued to­ gether," fascinated but horrified by the castrating of pigs w h i c h went o n frequently i n his village. W h a t did happen? These animals squealed as if being slaughtered, but soon people loosened the strong straps which had held them down on the wooden planks and the pigs l i m p e d away to squat i n a corner. . . . " K e e p yourselves pure for the woman you w i l l marry! She is no doubt alive, not far away, waiting for you. . . ." H e obeyed the priests' i n j u n c t i o n , m a k i n g no advances to any woman u n t i l his en­ gagement to a young g i r l as ignorant and inexperienced as he was himself. One day he asked his fiancee to lie down on a high table and reveal her sex organs to h i m : she obeyed. H e saw " a mass of thick h a i r " but could distinguish little else and was therefore no more en­ lightened than before. Before his wedding he occasionally indulged i n sexual play w i t h his fiancee but never entered her. O n the wed­ d i n g night she produced a l l kinds of obstacles to penetration which were not overcome u n t i l after several weeks of futile effort. Docile and i n i t i a l l y w i l l i n g , the young wife tried to help her shy partner, but most of the time she participated only to the extent of " t a k i n g pleasure i n pleasing h i m " w i th the sensual pleasure she provided for h i m . P h i l i p found this mixture of apathy and obligingness quite natural. It was only due to the hints, the "authorization," of a third party that complete u n i o n was achieved rather hastily and A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 61 without sufficient pleasure to induce them to strive for this k i n d of relationship. Several years went by. One day a second "swoon" suddenly occurred when P h i l i p was finishing a meal with his wife and one of her friends. D u r i n g the previous week he had suffered a professional failure. T h i s new attack threw h i m into panic and coincided with the onset of his agoraphobic symptoms. F r o m then on he always feared that "another swoon might come over me out of the blue" w i t h a l l the catastrophic results which he could imagine. These are the m a i n features, the relevant parts of the picture w h i c h appeared clearly d u r i n g the first phase of the analysis. I could see that the sexual attitude of this patient had been arrested at the regressive stage w h i c h marked the beginning of his adoles­ cence and the start of his married life. Just as P h i l i p tended to be passive i n his sexuality but fiercely to reject this passivity i n other aspects of his life, so d i d he display a two-sided attitude toward me: most obvious was his r a p i d continuous talking, which allowed no interruption and which ig­ nored my few interventions. One might say that he drowned i n his flood of emotion and excess of feeling. O n the other side, the less apparent part of himself, he treated me as a mysteriously threaten­ ing person (through an identification with his castrated father) whom he feared but whom he wished to touch and whose intrusion he even invited. Whatever the reality and importance of his homo­ sexual tendencies which I observed (in dreams, for example, I ap­ peared more or less disguised, tending to h i m , kissing h i m , giving h i m injections, or operating on him), I do not think that he was es­ sentially affected by their emergence, at the level w h i c h I am con­ cerned w i t h here. O n the contrary, I think that, i n association w i t h a precocious negative Oedipus complex—or w i t h a d u a l relationship to either parent of a predominantly sado-masochistic k i n d — t h e person who aroused hatred i n P h i l i p together w i t h strong dependence, later on l i n k e d to an ambivalent admiration, was the mother. She was m a i n l y a phallic mother because she possessed the hallucinatory penis and, thereby, omnipotence. T o characterize Philip's basic rela­ tional behavior I w o u l d describe it as the result i n fantasy, of a gen­ uine reversal of the parents' sexes: it is the father who lacks some­ thing fundamental and it is the mother who has it. O f course, this is probably so because she took it from h i m — b u t this conclusion is the result of a construction. T h e father was loved without being de­ sired, the mother feared and hated but also desired and envied. Supposing the mother is regarded as masculine and the father as 62 F E M A L E SEXUALITY feminine, one could, after a fashion, speak of Philip's m a i n t a i n i n g a genuinely passive, homosexual attitude. . . . i n relation to the mother! It w o u l d be a deep-seated attitude, covered early by many layers of disguise, but, i n this example, never neutralized or u n ­ done. F o r a demonstration of it see his sexual life and his perverse dispositions as well as his phobic symptoms. T h u s , the desire to be a woman, usually closely linked to the father, is rooted i n P h i l i p i n the wish to play the passive partner to the mother-with-the-penis, i n a sado-masochistic relationship. Since this unconscious fantasy developed as an attempt to deal w i t h cas­ tration anxiety, it seems to have resulted i n a particularly important l i b i d i n a l investment i n fantasies at the price of a decathexis of real sexual objects. Distortion seems to have started at a very early age, leading to perverse developments. Perversion may have resulted from a split between fantasy and reality at a primitive stage of sex­ uality rather than from a fixation to a transitory mode of satisfying a component instinct. Such a hypothesis w o u l d allow the concep­ tion of a new relationship between perversion and neurosis. It may be considered not from the point of view of its expression i n actual sexual behavior, as is usually done, but from an understanding of the basic fantasies determining it. If perversion is considered as a re­ deployment of l i b i d i n a l energy i n fantasies, it would not be neces­ sary anymore to see perversion as "the negative of neurosis." A t the same time the origins of perversion w o u l d from this point of view be better understood. 1 I see i n P h i l i p , therefore, a meaningful l i n k between his per­ verse tendencies and his phobic symptoms. T h e connection is so complete that his conscious and unconscious representations of women and their sexuality, as well as his own feminine attitudes, inasmuch as they a l l are a detour of primitive l i b i d i n a l energy—ex­ press i n condensed form the consequence of some k i n d of traumatic sidetracking of psychosexual development. I would like to point out that i n referring to the mother­ with-the-penis I am simplifying the undifferentiated and amalga­ mated image of the father and the mother. T h i s image, as has often been pointed out, was constructed from the idea of the primal scene, whether it has really been observed or merely imagined. F u r ­ thermore, i n the course of development, the early fantasies are re­ constructed i n relation to later experiences. Masochistic, oral, anal, or p h a l l i c fantasies formed around the image of the phallic mother, or the "father-mother," can be reconstructed around the O e d i p a l image of the father i n a classical, passive homosexual pattern. In this light one can better understand that P h i l i p ' s compulsive cough A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 63 at the sight or thought of spit, as well as his fantasy of "the nose be­ tween the buttocks," are the p h a l l i c reconstruction of his early oral and anal experiences i n the dyadic relation w i t h his mother. T h i s is what P h i l i p ' s transference, which rapidly became pre­ dominantly paternal, suggested to me: the absence of imposed re­ straints, of moral guidance, and active intervention i n the face of persistent provocations, and the creation of conditions favorable to much-needed assertion of narcissism resulted i n a decrease of dis­ trust and fear. T h i s coincided w i t h a m o b i l i z a t i o n of the ideal fa­ ther's characteristics, which were projected on me i n the transference. Progress was fragile and precarious at the beginning, i n v o l v i n g many ups and downs, i n c l u d i n g regressions. I was like a shelter, a sanctuary i n w h i c h he could let himself go, g i v i n g u p a l l active and aggressive pretensions. Whenever I refused h i m i n any way, or demonstrated some k i n d of authority, the protective barriers would immediately break down and the shelter became a dangerous den full of mysterious threats. Parallel to the internal progress of the treatment, I noticed, after a few months, a basic transformation i n P h i l i p ' s sexual and affective behavior, and simultaneously an almost total cessation of his phobic problems. M a i n l y , perhaps, because of identification the patient arrived one day at his session to tell me that something new and important had occurred: for the first time he had felt a desire to penetrate women and even his wife. H e had satisfied this desire and had also for the first time felt intense pleasure. H e had felt that he was "the master," that he had "taken her," and he was happy to experience that he had his partner "at his mercy." A t the same time he felt he w o u l d like to give her pleasure and had not felt his usual disgust at the vulva. T h i s almost schematic reversal of his usual re­ lationship w i t h his wife eventually caused h i m to alter his view of the "feminine sex," an alteration which was almost too spectacular not to seem artificial. It was not necessary, after a l l , to see women as inaccessible, impassive, yet deliberately pitiless, angels; nor as i m ­ pure, despicable creatures rightly relegated to vile, inferior tasks. It was perhaps natural that they should, like men, seek their own plea­ sure, rather than only that of their partners, and if the mons pubis, the clitoris, the vagina and a l l the " o d d " feminine sex organs, seemed mysterious and repulsive objects it must have been the re­ sult of his educational taboos. H e h a d now come to realize that i n order to overcome his i n ­ i t i a l fear and horror he needed to consider this deficiency as perfec­ tion, and then identify himself w i t h this deceptive perfection. N o w the penis a n d the testicles were fragile and ridiculous, 64 F E M A L E SEXUALITY and the bestiality of masculine desires had to be condemned. It was so m u c h more harmonious to have nothing between the legs, so m u c h more noble and pure not to know the pleasures of voluptuous­ ness. W h a t could be more enviable than a belly created for child­ bearing, breasts for suckling, a graceful body w i t h a well-defined figure to arouse desire without feeling any oneself? T o wear only a diaphanous covering over one's sex and to walk w i t h an imperious air, proudly perched o n one's h i g h heels, ah! what rapturel . . . As for the periodical "indispositions," w h i c h were difficult to glorify both i n themselves and i n Philip's distorted view of them, he had found the unconscious expedient of taking responsibility for them by psychosomatic enactments of displaced images of menstrua­ tion (bleeding piles, epistaxis, or even momentary queasiness, "va­ pors"). P h i l i p has particularly acute and disagreeable memories of finding his mother's sanitary napkins i n the bathroom. T h e wound w h i c h he had tried to deny, was bleeding; " N o t only do women not have a penis, but o n top of a l l that they have this bleeding gash!" T h e r e was only one way to defend himself against i t : by inflicting the same i n j u r y on himself and thus warding off the risk forever. T h i s method of self-punishment, due to an obvious and active de­ sire for castration, at the same time represents a way of actively d o m i n a t i n g the terrifying fantasy of undergoing castration (or even of "aphanisis"), clue to an unconscious mechanism of identification w i t h the aggressor. M o r e than one man, w h i m p e r i n g at little pains which he fears are b i g ones, owes his tendency to hypochondria or psychoso­ matic afflictions to a similar process. As for the women, many are themselves the victims of this problem because of a m o r b i d , uncon­ scious apprehension of the role of the menstrual cycle. It is clear that P h i l i p has, on the one hand, a desire to be a woman, l i n k e d w i t h an admiration a n d an idealization of women w h i c h is at the basis of his perverse masochistic and fetishistic sex­ u a l experiences; on the other hand, he has a virile exhibitionism, associated w i t h a horrified disgust and hatred of women, w h i c h per­ meates his everyday behavior and mentality and which i n an i n t r i ­ cate fashion also affects his phobias. It seems, at least i n this case, that the phobia functions to re­ strain his perverse attitude by giving vent to affects resulting from the displacement of erotic needs and perverse pregenital behavior. H e has i n some sense a fear of a threat w h i c h is consciously unas­ signable, a fear w h i c h provokes both a painful uneasiness and an A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 65 exciting shudder, both related to the masochistic pleasure obtained either i n fantasies of castration or i n sexual relations w i t h reversed roles. H i s double sexual polarity is rarely seen i n such a dissociated way as it is here, although it does not conceal the radically comple­ mentary nature of antagonistic tendencies. T h e polarity appears to involve a pathological partition of the whole personality, as w e l l as a highly conflicting, ambiguous attitude of the patient toward his own femininity and a mythical conception of women's nature and role, the one largely influenced by the other. Philip's attitude to­ ward the feminine part of himself is largely determined by his intol­ erance toward his mother's appearance and masculine behavior. H e has not been able to tolerate the phallic mother's penis, created by himself i n his imagination and referring to his own castration. T h i s , i n turn, is confirmed by the father's castration. H e is " t r a p p e d " on a l l sides, the mother has "got h i m . " T h i s explains his need to divide the feminine universe i n two: i n one half are the women who "do not belong to i t , " creatures who frighten and hor­ rify h i m ; i n the other half are the pretty, young, and desirable women, the only real women, those he calls " w o m a n l y " and to whom he is strongly attracted but w i t h whom he can have pleasure only i n fantasy. T h i s division parallels the one which separates his psychic life and his nonsexual behavior, dominated by demands of virility, from sexual behavior, where he abdicates his virility. Whenever P h i l i p adopts an erotic, masochistic attitude to­ ward an all-powerful woman, even though she may have " n o t h i n g between her legs," that woman is a phallic image. Therefore, he si­ multaneously identifies himself w i t h a castrated father as well as the repressed image of a castrated woman. Whenever he adopts a posi­ tively virile attitude, particularly to women, he revives archaic fan­ tasies of the mother-with-the-penis castration. T h i s unconscious operation is made possible by perverse l i b i d i n a l cathexis. T h i s is be­ cause he feels the castration attested to by women's inferiority has already been achieved. O r it may also be because his aggression is aroused by the authoritarian attitude of a woman to whom he then speaks harshly i n order to prove his masculine prerogatives, and this precisely because his masochism strikes an unconscious balance. In order for Philip's sexual mythology to establish itself and flourish i n this mixed psychopathological picture his wife's complic­ ity and complementary neurotic behavior are necessary. It is this morbid, but vital, response that he is afraid he w i l l not find i n any other woman, at least not w i t h i n the same context of security. Is 66 F E M A L E SEXUALITY not the masculine mythology of women's sexuality and femininity to some extent an offshoot of a corresponding feminine mythology about virility, or even femininity itself? It is not by chance that the characteristic dispositions and sexual attitudes i n this case are linked to a psychological distur­ bance. T h e v i v i d and specific nature of these phobic problems, as well as the spectacular and sometimes unusual aspects of these per­ verse tendencies emphasize the pathological etiology of masculine mythology on the substrata I have here examined. I believe, how­ ever, that even i n less melodramatic examples, masculine mythology is usually linked to psychological disturbances. If such distortion often escapes our attention it is because it is common and because perverse attitudes have such strong links w i t h the total personality. Even though masculine mythology is widespread and deeply rooted we need not accept it. Character-neurosis easily reveals cer­ tain ideologies w h i c h are far too pronounced not to be the equiva­ lent of symptoms or at least to serve as indications of a conflicted organization. One could sum u p i n this fashion: " T e l l me what you think of women, express your attitude toward your own femininity, and I shall tell you who you are. . . Whatever the positions and attitudes toward women are at the start of analytical treatment, one notices—if progress is made— changes not i n the direction of uniform affective and conceptual at­ titudes (as might be supposed), but toward an independence i n the norms of feeling, behavior, and thought and to a freer relationship. I n this way sexual values are questioned and reshuffled. T h e femi­ nine mystery no longer seems so specific or so deep; the "sex w a r " no longer seems to be a necessity of nature; the romantic conven­ tions are weakened. T h i s does not mean that henceforth a l l w i l l be simple or easy i n love-relations. F a r from i t , but the difficulty has been tracked back to its vital roots: the vicissitudes of personal de­ velopment i n a particular cultural, social, and family background. These vicissitudes are either real (for example, linked w i t h contingent traumas and conflicting identifications), or they are imag­ inary (belonging to fantasy determining relatively autonomous de­ velopments). T h i s choice must be faced as F r e u d points out, but its very form suggests the complex genesis of our myths. T o r i d sexuality of these myths does not necessarily mean, contrary to many people's beliefs, " t a k i n g the fantasy away," taking the poetry out of our conception, which as a m a n or as a woman we have of the person we desire. If one denounces as myth certain mas­ culine attitudes toward female sexuality, one does not challenge the prerequisites of the imagination, but, o n the contrary, helps to re­ A Masculine Mythology of Femininity 67 late them to facts d r a w n from experience, w h i c h moreover can be understood better by free communication with the unconscious. "Prejudices" and compensatory fantasies must not be confused w i t h the fruitful creations w h i c h continuously enrich the relations be­ tween the sexes as well as the image m a n has of himself. B y emphasizing bisexuality—an orthodox psychoanalytical attitude—one can encourage such creations. Bisexuality, w h i c h F r e u d saw as clearly more marked i n women than i n men, seems to have essentially the same relevance for both. (Or perhaps there has been a swift evolution i n masculine mental attitudes toward a cer­ tain k i n d of " f e m i n i n i z a t i o n " related to sociological causes, which are as yet poorly understood.) W h e t h e r this is so or not, I think one must stress the impor­ tance of one characteristic of this bisexual structure: a disposition to identify oneself both w i t h the male and the female roles lessens sex­ u a l differences. B u t this attitude of "assuming as m u c h as possible of sexual­ i t y " does not mean that psychosexual d i m o r p h i s m is not as real and as important as biological d i m o r p h i s m , w h i c h is its basis. I n recognizing osmosis one does not need to deny cellular individuality and differences. As it is the differences between sexes that are so often stressed, it may be more revealing to consider the similarities, by studying their source i n bisexuality. T h u s , Groddeck said that we are bisex­ ual throughout life a n d therefore i n each m a n there is a woman and i n each woman a m a n . W o u l d not a l u c i d and detailed recognition of this duality provide the p r i n c i p a l feature of a conception of sexual life, more open, more free, and more genuine? Outline for a Study of Narcissism in Female Sexuality Bela Grunberger Preliminary Remarks T h e study of female sexuality is a relatively neglected area i n psy­ choanalysis. T h i s discipline centers o n the Oedipus complex, "the nodal complex of neurosis," and its method is the study of normality by means of the pathological. T h e Oedipus complex applies to both sexes, but Freud was constantly i n difficulties over establishing a symmetry here for both men and women. I n 1931 F r e u d wondered whether "what we know of the Oedipus complex is only valid i n the boy's development, and not i n the girl's," an expression of the insecurity he felt i n the face of the problem of femininity, which shows u p i n everything he has written on the subject. H e never fails to stress the tentative nature of his subject and refers both to the u n ­ satisfactory results and to the task that research has still to complete. Freud's uncertainties about the problem of femininity were aggravated by his wish to reconcile his revolutionary studies w i t h the scientific orientation peculiar to his time. F r e u d claimed that the mother is the first sexual object for both the boy and the g i r l because their first sexual sensations occur d u r i n g feeding and bathing, activities which stimulate the erogen­ ous zones. T h i s is perfectly true, but it is unlikely (we shall return to this point later) that the quality of these sensations is identical for the two sexes, even though the agent bringing them about is the same. Indeed, a l l of Freud's difficulties over O e d i p a l theory arise from this purely hypothetical symmetry. One could also wonder whether the mother's ministrations themselves might not be the source of such sensations. W e might reverse the statement and as­ sume that there is already a potential sexuality—different, from the beginning, for boys and girls—which the mother merely activates. Psychoanalytical writers are habitually cautious about the 1 2 68 Narcissism in Female Sexuality 69 manifestations of sexuality and accept only visible and verifiable reality (following Freud's anatomical-pathological background and the aforementioned scientific orientation). These writers deny, for example, that a little g i r l acknowledges the existence of her vagina u n t i l she has reached a certain age (which varies, according to the author, from eight to twelve). C l i n i c a l evidence certainly shows the importance of repressing this knowledge which we w o u l d otherwise accept. (We only have to admit some k i n d of primitive instinct which, after a l l , exists i n this context i n the a n i m a l world). I n ad­ d i t i o n , F r e u d himself refers on several occasions (as E . Jones points out) to "elementary fantasies," that is, to an unconscious recognition which to some extent makes this knowledge independent of actual experience (placed by analysts at various stages i n psychosexual de­ velopment). O n it depends the castration complex and the entire psychosexual development of the child. I do not wish to minimize the importance of the scientific method* which depends on precise laboratory observation. T h i s method is excellent for the study of biology, of which sexuality is a part. B u t we know that the study of sexuality, particularly female sexuality, goes beyond biological facts. T h e study of masculine sex­ uality accommodates itself to a relatively clear and simple system, but the study of female sexuality encounters problems for which the classical psychoanalytic method proves inadequate. Accordingly it has been given second place and is studied as an appendage of sorts to the study of male sexuality, w i t h which it is constantly compared. Writers on female sexuality know only too well the limits to our scientific knowledge of the subject. Yet they pay no attention to them, w h i c h leads to another difficulty: the adoption of highly subjective positions which, i n the absence of a rigorous scientific dis­ cipline, often derive from unacknowledged personal problems. T h u s , we try to steer a course between the Charybdis of scientific materialism and the Scylla of nonscientific or pseudoscientific sub­ jectivity. H o w should we then approach the subject? It seems, first of a l l , that we must give u p our customary ap­ proach, based strictly on the theory of instinctual drives. T h e phe­ nomena we wish to study do not fit into this r i g i d theory. Nevertheless, these phenomena exist and, despite nuances which are tricky to define, we must try to understand them i n and by them­ selves as well as their relation to the instinctual system of which they are a part. A particularly rewarding approach to the study of female sexuality can be made by taking the theory of narcissism as a start­ i n g point. T i m e and time again F r e u d noted the importance of nar­ 70 F E M A L E SEXUALITY cissism i n female sexuality and i n " O n Narcissism: A n Introduc­ t i o n " even described a particular type of narcissistic woman as being basically representative of a l l women. H i s students, M r s . L a m p l de Groot i n particular, have also stressed the importance of female narcissism; it is presented as an undeniable fact, but has not yet been made part of the Freudian system as a whole. 3 A n attempt w i l l be made here to integrate the theory of nar­ cissism into the instinct theory, although this entails modifying somewhat the Freudian system. I n an earlier publication I stressed the importance of narciss­ ism, giving it the status of an organizing agent (in the same way that the i d , the ego, and the superego are agents) and emphasizing also the dialectic interplay between narcissism and other component instincts, especially the sadistic-anal. These ideas become even more important when we consider female sexuality, where the narcissistic factor is truly basic. A n approach to the study of woman's uncon­ scious merely from an object-oriented viewpoint w o u l d soon lead to a deadlock. Freud insisted that the narcissistic woman wants "to be loved." " T o be loved" means primarily to be chosen and, above a l l , to be loved "for herself." She wants to be specially valued i n a nar­ cissistic way. W i t h o u t doubt there are many reasons for this, i n c l u d ­ ing the need to free herself from conflict-producing guilt (which J . Chasseguet studies i n this book and to w h i c h we shall refer later). But this is only one aspect of female narcissism. W e must try to u n ­ derstand this peculiarity of womanhood w h i c h confronts us i n this characteristic way. W e must try to understand why women seek nar­ cissistic gratification above a l l else, even to the detriment of their own strong sexual needs and why they offer themselves sexually i n order to be loved; whereas men tend to seek sexual satisfaction p r i ­ marily, giving their partners narcissistic gratification only i n order to obtain their own sexual satisfaction. ( M e n love i n order to be satisfied.) Influenced by the trend i n society toward reducing the differ­ ences between the sexes, a woman may seek the same sexual free­ d o m as men, but then w i l l be unable to invest her love life other than narcissistically. H e r body self w i l l become increasingly impor­ tant, extending from her body to her clothes and accessories to her " h o m e " : her house and the material premises of her love life. O f course, this extension of her body self w i l l cover her part­ ner and her children, a l l marked by the singleness characteristic of narcissistic investments and i n contrast to the fundamentally p r i m i ­ tive tendencies of the male's polyvalence. (Here we touch on the 4 Narcissism in Female Sexuality 71 problem of polygamy and of the interchangeability of man's "ob­ ject".) As man's sexual life is focussed on immediate instinctual re­ lief, woman's love also is located i n time, but she dreams of eternity and thereby suppresses the material elements, the real instinctual derivatives, of her love. O n the whole, women's sexuality is narcissistically oriented. " L o v e " bears the marks of this orientation, especially because it is the central interest of her life. A t least i n our civilization love is the core of woman's existence, whereas it is a stage of man's life (his more or less prolonged adolescence, the narcissistic age par excell­ ence), for later he is supposed to be interested i n serious matters alone. M e n i n love are considered effeminate and bashful lovers, more or less ridiculous. Love, as a narcissistic form of sexuality, must enrich the woman; being l i k e d , loved, having a certain radiance or a certain influence are a l l narcissistically enhancing factors. W h a t then is the basis of woman's uneasiness, her constant complaints about being a woman and about the female condition? I am referring, on the one hand, to woman's psychosexual condition (leaving aside her social status, since I believe that both factors are linked to common u n ­ conscious motivations w h i c h apply to both men and women) and, on the other, to the form the uneasiness takes i n the unconscious: penis envy, masochism, feminine guilt. 1. According to Freud, O e d i p a l development is identical for boy and g i r l up to the phallic stage, at which point the castration complex orients them differently, leading to the decline of the Oedipus com­ plex i n the boy and to the O e d i p a l situation itself i n the girl. B u t up u n t i l this time they both experienced the mother as the sexual object. T h i s conforms w i t h Freud's ideas about the anaclitic origin of object relations which become sexualized through the unavoida­ ble excitement arising from the mother's physical care of her child. W e might first question whether body care alone is sufficient to establish a satisfying sexual object (and i n this context we might cite Spitz's study of hospitalism). Second, the mother-child rela­ tionship effects what I have referred to i n previous publications as "narcissistic confirmation." D u r i n g the lengthy course of psychomo­ tor development the c h i l d integrates his component instincts, which must be cathected narcissistically i n order to lead to harmonious i n ­ stinct maturation. T h i s narcissistic cathexis (meaning, the child must recognize that his instinctual needs are his own and must ac­ cept them as such) has to be accomplished by the mother who loves 5 72 F E M A L E SEXUALITY her child and all expressions of his life. Viewed from this angle the mother as a sexual object has a different value for the little g i r l than she has for the boy. T h i s has important consequences. As Freud points out, the only really satisfactory relationship is that of mother and infant son. W e have every reason to believe that even the most loving, most maternal mother w i l l be ambivalent toward her daughter. Furthermore, I believe, as I said before, that sexuality is al­ ways sexuality, whether it be oral or anal, and that maternal care can only activate it. B u t a true sexual object can only be of the op­ posite sex and (unless some k i n d of congenital homosexuality is as­ sumed) the mother cannot be the satisfactory sexual object for the g i r l that she is for the boy. Psychoanalysts often claim that women are more fixated at pregenital stages than are men. T h i s viewpoint is questionable. A l t h o u g h I accept the actual Oedipal reasons which cause the c h i l d to regress to earlier stages I nevertheless agree with J . Chasseguet's o p i n i o n that if an unconscious awareness of the geni­ tal organs exists virtually from the beginning, then the pregenital stages must be, by definition, frustrating. Even pregenital satisfac­ tions are frustrating as they are only substitutes for genital satisfac­ tions. T h e pregenital stages are much more frustrating for the girl because the maternal object is only a substitute for a truly adequate sexual object. I believe that this uniquely feminine situation is it­ self the cause of many disturbances. Freud claims that the g i r l encounters difficulty i n changing sexual objects, that is, i n shifting from mother to father. F r o m the point of view of narcissistic confirmation, I believe the g i r l does not have to change objects because, i n fact, she has never had one; or rather, she had an object which was essentially frustrating. For this reason she w i l l immediately and b l i n d l y choose her father as her narcissitic ego-ideal and l i b i d i n a l object. T h e girl's life, then, begins w i t h frustration, which i n turn exerts considerable influence. A c h i l d gives himself narcissistic con­ firmation when he is mature enough to do so, but u n t i l then the mother is the source of this confirmation. However, it seems that the little g i r l attempts to obtain that confirmation for herself i n some way long before the boy does. Those who work w i t h children are aware that girls mature sooner than boys. M u c h d o l l play, for exam­ ple, is a way of taking over the mother's role and achieving by use of the d o l l (with which the girl also identifies herself) a narcissistic confirmation which otherwise is the mother's responsibility. T h e mother does provide such confirmation, but often with­ Narcissism in Female Sexuality 73 out the deep love and the narcissistic cathexis that the little girl re­ quires. She, therefore, attempts to give it to herself, thereby becom­ ing essentially narcissistic i n an effort to make u p for the maternal deficiency. T h i s attempt, lacking the solid basis maternal love should give, is bound to fail, and because of this the little girl is more dependent on her love objects than is the boy. (I believe that the intellectual precociousness of the little g i r l is due to this partic­ ular situation.) T h e girl's O e d i p a l development is held back i n some way by this state of affairs; it can best be understood by comparing it to that of the boy. H e has, we might say, a sexual object and an ade­ quate sexual object at that. H e w i l l be able to obtain his narcissistic confirmation from it, as well as an ally i n the O e d i p a l battle w i t h his father. B u t these gains are offset by certain disadvantages. I n spite of some pregenital satisfaction he w i l l be essentially frustrated i n O e d i p a l genital satisfaction. T h i s happens very early, at a stage when he is too immature to cope w i t h it, causing h i m an early nar­ cissistic wound. It is difficult to compensate for this, as he w i l l soon change his relationship to his mother into a fixation on the bad (that is, frustrating) aspect of that object, owing to the numerous frustrations and obligations of this period. O n the other hand, having experienced pregenital satisfac­ tions at an early age, some of an authentically heterosexual quality, he w i l l tend to "genitalize" them, thus creating certain polymor­ phous perverse fixations. If we now consider the little girl, we see that her pregenital satisfaction is not authentic because its source is merely a substitute object. T h i s leads her to despise the pregenital components of sex­ uality and later on fosters guilt about pregenital experiences. T h i s affects particularly the O e d i p a l relationship to her father, whom she w i l l blame for his comparative absence d u r i n g the pregenital period and for the frustrations resulting from it. T h a n k s to the necessary distance between her and her true love object (the father), and i n spite of this blame, the g i r l has had time to mature, to reach the true O e d i p a l position, and to construct an ideal image of her father, for whom she has waited so long and whom she would like to love, especially as she despises the pregeni­ tal satisfactions provided by the mother. T h e frustration and lengthy wait accentuate her narcissism, compensating her somewhat and enabling her at the same time to deepen the feeling she has for her father. I n general, therefore, her love w i l l be more idealized, but nevertheless w i l l show the defective integration of the pregeni­ tal components. T h i s explains the peculiar survival of her manifest 74 F E M A L E SEXUALITY O e d i p a l attachment, her tendency to dichotomize (that is, between an ideal O e d i p a l love and the pre-Oedipal attachment w h i c h is op­ posed to it), as well as her tendency to feel guilty about her love re­ lationships. F r o m the start of the O e d i p a l complex, the female has a slowly m a t u r i n g affective intensity which is infinitely greater than that of the boy. T h i s partly explains why incest occurs more fre­ quently between father and daughter and is less pathological than incest between mother and son. As we have seen, the boy, unable to fill his O e d i p a l desires, suffers an early narcissistic wound which he then completely re­ presses i n favor of a precocious, pregenital sexuality. T h i s pregenital emphasis adversely affects his narcissistic image, causing h i m to de­ spise his narcissistic needs i n the same way that the woman rejects her component instincts, especially the anal-sadistic ones of love. T h e girl, nevertheless, has an advantage over the boy: she has learned to wait, and through this she has acquired an optimistic at­ titude toward her narcissistic wounds. B u t she does not yet know whether to accept them or whether to hope that some day they w i l l be repaired and she w i l l have a phallus, symbol of completeness. T h i s uncertainty probably influences her attitude toward reality, but it is also the source of hypersensitivity and leads to an exacerba­ tion of her frustrations. She seeks someone to support her and to provide the narcissistic confirmation which she d i d not get earlier and which she continually seeks. T h e tragedy of this situation is that the person who could give her this confirmation, her sexual partner, is precisely the one who, as we have just seen, has come to despise narcissistic needs i n an effort to disengage himself from them by strongly cathecting the anal-sadistic instinctual compo­ nents. 6 I have already pointed out that woman has deep narcissistic needs and seeks narcissistic satisfaction even at the expense of i n ­ stinctual gratification. In satisfactory instances she may manage to achieve a synthesis between these two and thus obtain a degree of narcissistic completion: that is to say, an instinctual maturity with a satisfactory narcissistic confirmation, w h i c h is symbolized i n her u n ­ conscious by the phallus. T h e acquisition of this phallus may be l i n k e d to identification. (I once had a patient whose dreams cen­ tered on phallus problems: the phallus, representing perfect feminin­ ity, was also equated w i t h the mother w i t h whom she tried to iden­ tify. B u t i n order for this identification to be complete she had to introject the father's phallus.) Needless to say, this identity of rep­ resentation between the phallus and the penis invariably becomes a source of conflict, especially as the phallic image (phallus-penis) is Narcissism in Female Sexuality 75 always the center of women's unconscious preoccupations, whether it be the paternal penis which the mother possesses (the mother having thus achieved the image of narcissistic integrity of "con­ tained and containing" which she denies her daughter), or the penis of the father himself which she hopes to have through Oedi­ p a l u n i o n with h i m . I n fact, there is a k i n d of equivalence between the possession of the paternal penis and a successful narcissistic cathexis. T h e woman who is loved thereby possesses i n her unconscious a phallic equivalent. She sometimes becomes this phallus herself and thus achieves a state of narcissistic autonomy by cathecting herself narcis­ sistically: becoming beautiful, charming, and desirable. T h i s devel­ opment depends upon her narcissistic investment of herself, but often to the detriment of her object-relations and instinctual life. (Freud noticed that men are attracted to women who remind them of their own narcissistic tendencies. W e might add that men see i n these women a successful narcissistic integrity which they themselves have not been able to achieve because of their specific way of expe­ riencing the castration complex.) 7 8 T h i s narcissistic cathexis may not succeed completely for rea­ sons of conflict and women often fail to achieve a satisfactory bal­ ance between narcissism and instinctual needs. Viewed from an economic standpoint, we can understand how Freud's narcissistic woman, who puts a l l her l i b i d o into her narcissistic cathexis, can no longer cathect her sexual instincts and becomes frigid. (Woman's orientation is narcissistic-oral, w i t h orality expressing an equally i m ­ portant part of her libido.) It is necessary to add, nevertheless, that a narcissistic cathexis can use diverse elements as its substratum and that women may achieve i n many ways the narcissistic comple­ tion w h i c h they seem to need so much. T h u s , one woman may ful­ fill her narcissistic ideal through cathecting her beauty and seduc­ tive powers, while another, lacking these qualities, may cathect them negatively and develop an " a n t i l i b i d i n a l " superego which she w i l l narcissistically cathect as she first cathected her ego. T h e possi­ bilities for narcissistic investment are infinite, and there is even an ideal narcissistic cathexis which does not need such support as was mentioned before. I n analysis we can follow step by step the freeing of narcissis­ tic cathexes which had been i n h i b i t e d by guilt. T h e y now provide narcissistic fulfillment through cathexis of the instincts, thus allow­ i n g the person to give pleasure to himself (to love himself). A p p a r ­ ent restriction of sexual life i n women who have exceptionally little self-regard (for example, i n nymphomania) gives way i n analysis as 76 F E M A L E SEXUALITY they acquire self-regard and cease devaluing themselves i n a self-de­ structive fashion through negative object choices. W e said that singleness is the mark of narcissism and, indeed, there is a concentric aspect characteristic of woman's l i b i d i n a l cathexis; she is always at the center of it, but at the same time the center is the phallus w h i c h is also essentially unique. W o m e n are usually demanding i n their object-cathexis and attempt several processes of introjection and identification at once. B u t as they are trying to achieve, i n spite of appearances, a single­ ness of object their ideal tends toward a robot-image, who brings to­ gether a l l the elements belonging to their various models of identi­ fication designated by narcissistic cathexis. T h u s , the woman's partner, unable to fill a l l these requirements, is bound to disap­ point her. She w i l l accept her disappointment, however, as long as she can count on the essential condition of being loved. I do not mean to say that this need for love is the essential sign of normality or maturity; I have simply tried to formulate some hypotheses which could explain this need i n so many women, by tracing it back to the mother-daughter relationship, frustrating to both of them because neither is a satisfactory object for the other. 11 A c c o r d i n g to psychoanalytical theory, woman's psychosexual devel­ opment goes through two different stages which are i n opposition to each other: the male-clitoral stage and the female-vaginal one. For F r e u d , the l i b i d o is essentially male, and the only sexual organ is the penis. Female sexuality, therefore, hardly exists, and women do not have any sexual organ except a hole, that is to say, nothing. Here it is necessary to state that this allegation is wrong, since woman does have a complete sexual organ which is fully alive and v i v i d l y represented i n her body image. Women's sexuality is probably richer than men's, although i n analysis we come across only its deficiencies, inhibitions, and guilt which, i n turn, testify to its force, for something which does not exist cannot be cathected negatively. Analysts do not agree about the two stages of development which women are supposed to go through; some hold that the sen­ sation of the vagina occurs before that of the clitoris. (This ques­ tion has been debated thoroughly elsewhere, so I shall not go into it here.) W e might note before continuing our presentation that woman does not have only two sexual organs. H e r erogenous zones extend over a great deal of her anatomy and her body as a whole can be considered a sexual organ. One often encounters this i n anal­ Narcissism in Female Sexuality *\n ysis as an unconscious phallic representation of the body self. T h i s is not to be confused w i t h a pathological phallic identification, i n w h i c h the phallus is a symbol of completeness and not of virility. In fact women have a powerful sexuality which gives them a feeling of narcissistic integrity (symbolized by the phallus), but there is a sharp contrast between this phallic image and the clitoris. If one insists on the importance of the clitoris as a sexual organ, but at the same time attributes to it an essentially male quality, one assigns it — b y that very token—only a short-lived cathexis. According to classical theory, at a certain moment the clitoris should be ex­ changed i n some way for the vagina, w h i c h is from then o n the only sexual organ or, as we have just seen, a nothing. T h e clitoris is supposed to give up its l i b i d i n a l cathexis (Marie Bonaparte thinks it is a vestigial organ, like the pronephros of the thymus). Most analytic writers insist on the notion that women must give u p their interest i n the clitoris, whereas my psychoanalytical experience leads me on the contrary to emphasize the need to inte­ grate the drives and their cathexes rather than allowing them to dis­ appear. I have referred several times to the mysterious guilt w h i c h ac­ companies a l l manifestations of narcissism. If we examine the charac­ teristics of the clitoris, the organ condemned to disappear, we realize that it is primarily narcissistic, for its only function is to pro­ vide pleasure, i n contrast to the penis, an organ of pleasure but also of reproduction and e l i m i n a t i o n , not to mention its dynamic unconscious meanings. T h e clitoris seems to be blamed for its narcissistic qualities. It is the organ of narcissistic pleasure, that is, the pleasure one gives oneself, the solitary pleasure. T h e clitoris does not need another person, i n contradistinction to the vagina, an organ of pleasure we might call social because it does not exist for itself but only as a re­ ceptacle. I n a sense the clitoris is the sexual organ most typical of woman. T h i s is not because it is derived embryologically from the penis (a filiation whose meaning has already been corrected by E r ­ nest Jones) but rather because it is invested w i t h the same narcissis­ tic enhancement w i t h which woman invests her body as a whole. T h i s narcissistic cathexis i n no way negates the phallic significance of the clitoris i n the unconscious. T h e r e is a rivalry between men and women for the posses­ sion of this narcissistic integrity and wholeness symbolized by the phallus i n the unconscious. T h e historic origins of this investment are connected w i t h the father's penis. T h i s brings us to the impor­ 9 78 F E M A L E SEXUALITY tant question of "the war between the sexes," but that lies beyond the scope of the present paper. I should like to point out, however, that men sometimes blame woman for "acting as though she had one," but at the same time blame the clitoris for "acting as i f it were a penis." (In societies where excision of the clitoris is practiced, it might be due to its being given a masculine significance and therefore the prerogative of man alone.) These considerations bring us to another problem which, though different, is of great importance for our present study: that of harmony, or rather disharmony, i n sexual relations. W o m e n usually complain about their partners, and popular literature tends to justify this: m a n appears to behave like a lout; he is clumsy; lacking understanding of women, he cannot give them sexual satis­ faction. Is there any truth i n this? It certainly is an oversimplifi­ cation, but is there also something to it? It is clear that from a psychophysiological viewpoint coitus follows a different course for men than for women, that particularly woman's orgasm has a different rhythm. Elaborate graphs have been constructed to prove this. Yet it seems that these slight differences do not prevent n o r m a l lovers from finding happiness through inter­ course, without needing synchronization, organized techniques, or preparation by the partners, or, more precisely, the male partner. Each case of disharmony has its specificity; analysis usually leads to spontaneous relief and to a love life w h i c h does not require highly technical approaches. B u t here I must underline again that I am considering neither special cases of disturbance w i t h their ge­ netic, historical, or other explanations, nor normal cases which need no special attention or study. W h a t I am e x a m i n i n g here are ten­ dencies w h i c h exist i n a sufficiently large number of people for me to say that they are characteristic of women (as opposed to men); these tendencies have their o r i g i n i n the woman's unconscious, thus characterizing a l l women, at least i n our society. E v e n if there are women whose sexuality is uncomplicated, whose orgasms are adapted to their partner's activity, and whose sexual satisfaction is achieved without their partners losing spontaneity, their sexuality, nevertheless, is fundamentally different from men's. I n other words this fundamental difference exists even between partners of a well­ matched couple because it is due to a basic difference between the sexes. W h a t exactly does this mean? A m o n g the tacit or overt grievances women have is that the m a n does not care sufficiently for her, that he does not show that he appreciates, needs, or values her. (One might add to the list "loves her," but we know from Freud that to be loved is a narcissistic de­ Narcissism in Female Sexuality 79 sire; women need their narcissism satisfied and men seem unfit to do so.) A woman is narcissistic before a l l else. Narcissism's motto is " a l l or n o t h i n g / ' for perfection cannot be divided or rationed; it ei­ ther exists or it does not, A woman cathects her ego. T h i s cathexis spreads outward i n a concentric manner (like the circles i n water around the spot where a pebble has been thrown) w i t h herself al­ ways i n the center: her own love and love i n general receive a l l her investment, and woman w o u l d like this center also to be invested in. m i r r o r fashion by her partner, too. W o m e n live i n , and by, love. Be­ cause they are deprived of adequate narcissistic confirmation from the beginning of their lives they project their badly integrated, u n ­ fulfilled narcissism onto their relations w i t h their partners; i n a sense their lives are the story of this projection, its partial and fleet­ i n g successes and its inevitable failures. W h a t is the difference i n man's attitude? One could delib­ erately simplify or exaggerate and say that it is fundamentally dif­ ferent. O f course, there are narcissistic men, w i t h the unintegrated and unfulfilled narcissism w h i c h is the prerogative of women, but such men have an important feminine component, and their sexual­ ity has deficiences different from those of nonnarcissistic men. Men's attitude has an instinctual basis which is organized along anal-sadis­ tic lines: things exist for h i m i n a hierarchy of realities, delineated precisely i n their relation to one another. W o m a n and her love are perhaps man's first object of cathexis, but they are certainly not his only one. Furthermore, the narcissistic portion i n his cathexis is subordinated to the truly instinctual one. H e cathects not his rela­ tionship to the ego and its object (which leads to instinctual satis­ faction) but the instinctual satisfaction itself. T h a t is why m a n is only partly engaged i n love and why he is less vulnerable if his love relation fails. As his involvement is more instinctual than narcissis­ tic, a narcissistic w o u n d w i l l be less deep and more likely to heal. W e can now return to the problems of sexual disharmony and, i n particular, the problem of woman's preparation for the sex­ ual act. W h a t I shall say about this problem is merely an integra­ tion on the level of coitus of what has been said about the respec­ tive relations of men and women to narcissism. I n classical psychoanalytic theory preparation for the genital act includes partial instinctual needs and forepleasure. These i n ­ stinctual needs are autoerotic, but they normally occur i n coitus (see Ferenczi's theory of amphimixis). T h e genital event is a cluster of pregenital components. Coitus begins w i t h the partners becoming sexually intimate, w i t h the time between the beginning of the act and actual sexual intercourse depending on the perfection and 8o F E M A L E SEXUALITY promptness w i t h w h i c h the cluster organizes itself. It a l l apparently depends on the strength of the organizing anal-sadistic component and on the energetic origins of the sexual act. I n other words, the more intact and vigorous the anal-sadistic component, the faster and better w i l l the cluster organize itself u n t i l the act occurs, bringing instinctual satisfaction and relief for both partners. (I am not, of course, considering ejaculatio praecox or severe ejaculatio retardata, signs of functional disturbance i n the component i n question which correspond either to superficial clitoral orgasm or total frigidity i n women.) T o say that woman is mainly narcissistic means: independent of a l l instinctual components of the cluster. She introduces into her sexual life an additional element (narcissism), an element whose ef­ fects are numerous. Indeed, instinctual maturation is achieved through narcissistically cathected instincts and narcissisms providing a well-integrated instinctual basis for harmonious development. B u t i n neurosis this synthesis is disturbed, producing conflict; what should be synthesized becomes a source of interference. T h e more narcissism grows i n importance i n normal object-relations, the more w i l l object love intensify. I n neurosis the process is inverted: the more narcissism, the less important become object-relations. As long as a l l is well, narcissism and the instincts collaborate, but when there is conflict they become antagonistic and turn against each other. I n other words, if the woman i n a slightly neurotic couple i n ­ vests too much i n the narcissistic aspect of that relationship, less of her l i b i d o (absorbed by that aspect) w i l l be available to be i n ­ vested into the instinctual side of that relationship. Instead of facili­ tating synthesis of the pregenital elements, the state of her l i b i d o w i l l block an adequate fusion of them, slowing it down and even preventing it altogether. I n women, therefore, there is a narcissistic stage between the instinctual and true genital stages; this intermedi­ ate stage can serve as a l i n k , but also as an obstacle, according to the circumstances. I n a neurotic context, narcissism tends to become "less sex­ u a l . " B y this I mean an isolation of the component instincts, partic­ ularly the anal-sadistic component, which I described earlier as the essential element i n feminine sexual guilt (in male sexual guilt, too, but to a lesser extent). T h i s leads the woman to idealize sexuality and to emphasize the asexual elements of love but to despise "carnal relations" (so that even the phrase itself has a depreciatory connotation for her). Narcissism in Female Sexuality 81 Such narcissistic opposition to the anal-sadistic component prevents complete and satisfactory sexual fulfillment. Sometimes the clitoris is isolated from the rest of woman's sexuality. I n such cases narcissism, intervening as it does between component instincts and genitality, proves more an obstacle than a l i n k . If female sexuality must pass through a narcissistic stage (in­ serted each time into the sexual act) it results i n a neurotic i m ­ passe: the clitoris cannot fulfill its function of i n d u c i n g true sexual or vaginal pleasure. A l l this is quite different when the woman is less inhibited sexually. W h a t role does the clitoris have then? W e know that geni­ tal sexuality emerges from the pregenital cluster and that the com­ ponents of the cluster a l l play a certain role u n t i l genitality is at­ tained. T h e various components are not a l l equally important: for example, either orality or anality may dominate. Excitation of the erogenous zones (or an equivalent function) can arouse true sexual excitation by its predominance—indeed this may be its prerogative. One might mention here the role of kissing i n genital excitation, as well as that of various erogenous zones and the functions of the anal-sadistic component, i n c l u d i n g a l l kinds of body movement. O n e could speak of elective genital induction, especially as the geni­ tal function tends i n each case to take on the pregenital character of that component, for example the oral or anal one. T h i s must not be confused w i t h perversion, where the pregenital component does not contribute to genitality but replaces it. Therefore, when woman's sexuality is relatively n o r m a l the chief inductors are the clitoris and narcissistic sexual excitation, which is the specific function of the clitoris. T h e impulse passes from its apparent source, the clitoris, to the sexual region, more instinctual and broader i n its capacity of i n ­ vesting sexuality narcissistically and thereby supporting the cathexis of instinctual sexuality. T h i s "sexualization" of narcissism should, probably, be called "resexualization," that is, a return to autoeroti­ cism, integrated into the object-related instinctual ego, w h i c h at the beginning of development is identical w i t h a l l eroticism. Later it leads to complete sexuality, after passing through an obligatory po­ lymorph-perverse stage, where i t might have been held up indefi­ nitely, had there been a narcissistic perversion. Narcissism has several forms because its roots lie buried i n undifferentiated layers of psychic life which, according to F r e u d , could just as easily have become l i b i d o or aggression. T h i s stratum holds w i t h i n it a potential of great variability w h i c h cannot be studied i n any more depth here. 82 F E M A L E SEXUALITY C h i l d r e n , and sometimes adults, are often tempted to mastur­ bate immediately when they are alone, not only because solitude permits solitary pleasures but because there is a simultaneous nar­ cissistic sensation associated w i t h being alone, which arouses a spe­ cifically sexual excitation i n the c h i l d . It demands adequate mastur­ batory satisfaction unless the c h i l d employs the l i n k to an object—a sexual relationship w i t h someone else. A n d women, because of their essential narcissism, the specifically narcissistic cathexis of their bodies, their occupations, their family and friends, their " i n t e r i o r , " are at least to some degree always i n this stage of narcissistic sexual excitation, even if it does not have a truly erotic quality. Such exci­ tation should normally be an inductor to sexual intercourse, and this is often its role. B u t it is not always so, and i n these exceptional cases the sexual partner can achieve what the woman's own induc­ tive, narcissistic stimulation is incapable of doing by itself. I have said that the clitoris, as a narcissistic sexual organ, must project the narcissistic cathexis onto the vagina, the true cen­ ter of the instinctual drive, but also onto the whole—internal and external—anal and perineal region. O f course, there are other possi­ ble inductors (muscular, sadistic, oral, etc.). Here I am considering only the instance of the clitoris as the dominant inductor because it is the most common one, not wishing thereby to e x p l a i n bisexuality but only the narcissism which i n my observation mainly attaches it­ self to the clitoris. I am not concerned here w i t h woman's purely instinctual preparation for coitus—that would lead us beyond the subject of this study. Let me therefore return to the study of the narcissistic " p r e p a r a t i o n " which, i n an anatomical or physical way, consists of the excitation of the clitoral region; we have noted, however, that this is not sufficient and that narcissistic sexuality cannot be limited to it. W e know, and this was our starting point, that women feel a certain lack i n narcissistic confirmation and look to men to give it to them. W e also know that such confirmation must be achieved i n a manner w h i c h is both erotic and endorses its subject. Each aspect strengthens the other when they are combined, and this is pre­ cisely what is missing i n woman's n o r m a l development because the first object, the mother, is a homosexual one. M a n provides woman w i t h narcissistic confirmation and, i n her need for recognition (that is, for being loved), this means love, since love is a narcissistic con­ t r i b u t i o n . Indeed, what does it mean to " c o u r t " a woman? In order to obtain her favors, the m a n acts like a courtier, flattering and praising the sovereign. Does not " c o u r t i n g " mean to give sover­ Narcissism in Female Sexuality 83 eignty to women? T h e man who is courting tries his best to say agreeable, flattering things to the woman and takes advantage of every occasion to acknowledge her value, her uniqueness. H e show­ ers her w i t h presents i n order to demonstrate how much he appre­ ciates the gift he hopes to receive from her, thus expressing true ad­ oration and h o l d i n g up to her a narcissistic mirror, as satisfactory as he can possibly make it. A l t h o u g h one cannot speak of a true sexual excitation, women on such an occasion experience the agreeable feeling of receiving the long-awaited narcissistic confirmation. I n the end, even the use of a coldly skillful technique which aims at a purely instinctual " p r e p a r a t i o n " owes much of its effec­ tiveness to the fact that it testifies to the man's attraction and his interest i n the woman. In other words it implies narcissistic confir­ mation. T h u s , narcissistic preparation means m u c h more than c l i ­ toral or erotic excitation and covers a l l the intricate relations be­ tween men and women. The Change of Object Catherine Luquet-Parat T h e change of object is a crucial step i n woman's development. It is the move i n which the little girl decathects her mother as the object of love i n order to cathect her father. B u t this definition is inade­ quate as i t ignores many changes which occur simultaneously i n the cathexis of the love object, or erogenous zones, and i n the structure of the entire ego. Probably, i n view of this complexity Freud spoke of a " t r i p l e change" d u r i n g the little girl's Oedipus complex: change of the love object, change of the leading erogenous zone (the erotic cathexis of the clitoris yielding to that of the vagina), and change from a position of activity to one of passivity toward the love object. I n fact, i f one compares the situation at the end of the preO e d i p a l period to that at the passing of the Oedipus complex, one notices that this passage through the O e d i p a l period d i d end with such a triple change. I consider it most pertinent that attitudes and emotions of the female related to the penis have also been changed considerably. It is as though there were at the time certain transfor­ mations w h i c h while undoing a n d e l i m i n a t i n g the o l d attitudes substantiate the claim for the penis. W e shall come back to this point later. Yet no two authors agree o n the details of this " t r i p l e change," neither o n the coordination and possible interrelationship between the various elements, each of different origin, nor o n their relationship i n time, be i t successive or simultaneous. Therefore, the problem is always stated ambiguously, further affecting our grasp of the complexity of this period. D u r i n g the period immedi­ ately preceding the change of object the little girl manifests toward her mother, the m a i n object of her love, both an active and a pos­ sessive attitude. She identifies herself w i t h her father, who is at the 84 The Change of Object 85 same time seen as a rival. A t this stage the clitoris is the primary erog­ enous zone. Most authors agree on these points. Some believe that this attitude represents the most natural and spontaneous tenden­ cies of the feminine self, while others hold that it results from defen­ sive attitudes w h i c h conceal the naturally passive inclination of the feminine ego. For Freud the change begins with a d i m i n u t i o n of the active and an increase of the passive impulses; the passive tendencies are the ones which facilitate the transition to father as an object. J . L a m p l de Groot believes that first the active attitude toward the mother becomes a passive attitude toward her. O n l y later does the c h i l d turn toward her father and, simultaneously w i t h this second move, the aggressive needs turn into more masochistic ones. Accord­ ing to M a r i e Bonaparte there is a reversal of the clitoris-centered sa­ distic fantasies about the mother now become passive fantasies about the father. T h i s transformation is possible if one calls upon the idea of the unfolding female, masochistic, passive drives. T h e transition from clitoral passivity to vaginal passivity represents a secondary development. According to H . Deutsch it is the active sa­ distic l i b i d o , following u p o n the little girl's castration complex ex­ perienced after discovering her lack of a penis, which is changed into masochism. T h i s masochism becomes then the basis of female sexuality. A l l these theories, focused on the instinctual drives and their biological origins and implications, ignore the significance of object relations and their fundamental role i n the formation of the ego. T h e instinctual drives cannot exist without object relations, except at the very early stages of life. It is, therefore, important to consider briefly instinctual development up to the point discussed here, and i n particular the changes from activity to passivity and from aggres­ sion to masochism. I n early life, when immaturity precludes object relations and when the infant is as yet unable to distinguish between himself and the outer world, the baby goes from moments of need, i n w h i c h he actively manifests his tensions (due to hunger, cold, etc.) by cries and gestures, to moments of satisfaction, w i t h varying proportions of active and passive components. I n the first few weeks there is no apparent difference between the behavior and instinctual manifesta­ tions of either sex. However, d u r i n g this very first period changes from activity to passivity do already occur. T h e infant may accept them easily, but when they are associated w i t h organic illness or de­ faults of maternal care, such changes can be j o l t i n g and p a i n f u l . T h e y may also vary i n time, quantity, and quality. T h e anaclitic re­ 86 F E M A L E SEXUALITY lationship and the appearance of anxiety setting the tone for the re­ lationship w i l l surely influence the way the c h i l d experiences situa­ tions i n which he must be passive. Aggression, which at this stage may easily be confused w i t h the increase of tensions r e q u i r i n g discharge (resulting as it does from the failure to differentiate between the self and the outer world), is experienced as unbearable. It is probably insufficiently discharged by the infant's tension-releasing cries, w h i c h often end only w i t h exhaustion and sleep, unless a real decrease of frustration allows a sudden return to e q u i l i b r i u m . It is at the end of this pe­ r i o d that the c h i l d develops a system of important fantasies reflect­ i n g the beginning of the object relations. A t the age when the c h i l d is capable of object relations, his active and aggressive drives are blended. T h e y are directed toward the same object which is simultaneously gratifying and frustrating. T h e active search for passive pleasure is colored by primary anxiety because the fear of passive situations derives from the fear of the ac­ tive mother. Studies on children have confirmed Melanie Klein's ob­ servation that the truly external object is used by the c h i l d to re­ duce the internalized object at a very early stage and, p r o v i d i n g he has a good relation to his real (that is, external) object, he can over­ come anxieties arising from his ambivalent desires. It is w i t h these vicissitudes of thwarted and unsatisfied desires as well as of diverse frustrations that the c h i l d progresses from an age at which neuro­ logical immaturity restricts an important part of his pleasures to the condition of passivity to an age at which his m o t i l i t y allows h i m to start conquering the w o r l d actively. T h i s is true for girls as well as for boys. It is easy to see that aggression of preverbal children is sometimes diverted when they find i n the outside w o r l d an obstacle blocking the satisfaction of their active, possessive, and aggressive drives. I n such an instance the c h i l d gets angry and becomes more aggressive. B u t at the same time this anger makes h i m suffer. H i s cries denote to what extent his anger affects h i m directly and to what extent it makes h i m regress and turn it against himself, be­ cause the anger is now turned to the internalized object as much as, or even more than, to the real external object. T h e child's cry re­ leases tension and expresses aggression as well as distress. A double strand of aggressive drives combined at an earlier stage now progressively divides: one to the external object the other to the internal object. D u r i n g the dyadic ambivalent phase, m a r k i n g the beginning of object relations, activity and passivity are only partly linked. T h e normal c h i l d enjoys many passive pleasures and directs m u c h of his The Change of Object 87 activity to obtaining passive ones. Frequently, the c h i l d accepts or benefits from passive pleasures only inasmuch as he wishes or seeks them. If what a parent does to h i m is imposed it w i l l , even if it leads to pleasure, be experienced as dangerous, disagreeably aggres­ sive, and, above a l l , ambivalent. (This is a possible source of pain­ ful passive eroticism.) T h e O e d i p a l triangle apparent at the eighth m o n t h is impor­ tant throughout development. T h e ambivalent internalized object (the imago) is projected onto two real objects, one w h i c h is felt to be good and the other bad. T h e O e d i p a l triangle facilitates the i n ­ corporation of the object, r i d d i n g it of projective modifications. B u t its m a i n function is to help resolve the masochistic component of the two aggressive developments. One object can then be rejected as being of no use for the ego. T h e triangular arrangement fails when sexual identification takes place. D u r i n g the p r i m a l scene the good and the bad object become one and i n this way lead to the experience that something destructive is going on. T h e development of the concept of the p r i ­ m a l scene spans a long period of time and impinges upon affects re­ lated to the oral, anal, and p h a l l i c modalities. One must not forget, as F r e u d often emphasized, that i n reality these stages do not follow one another but overlap, superimpose upon, and partly coincide w i t h each other. Aggression can easily be discharged by means of identification w i t h the active sadistic agent of the scene, whether this sadism be oral or anal. Yet the child's activity is, at this period, strongly marked by the affects characteristic of the anal stage now at its peak and is naturally l i n k e d to the sadistic drives. W h e n the g i r l because of fantasies of the p r i m a l scene has projected an intense ag­ gressiveness onto the breast or the penis it becomes particularly dif­ ficult and anxiety-producing for her to adopt a passive attitude to­ ward the penis. T h e parents' attitude, toward the c h i l d and toward each other, is important for the identifications and the confirmation or nullification of the infantile fantasies about the p r i m a l scene viewed as sado-masochistic. I n every case it seems that there is suffi­ cient projected anxiety to make it impossible to adopt a role w i t h i n the p r i m a l scene without anxiety. Probably, this is why one notices first a change i n the dyadic relation w i t h the mother; the little g i r l takes on the active role (penile-anal) toward her mother, simulta­ neously manifesting her desire to have a penis, and i n this way en­ ters the pre-Oedipal phase or that of the negative Oedipus complex. She is both active and aggressive toward her love object, the mother whom the g i r l w o u l d like to possess exclusively, and therefore sees her father as a rival. 88 F E M A L E SEXUALITY According to a l l authors the change from active to passive positions occurs before the positive l i b i d i n a l O e d i p a l relationship w i t h the father is established. L a m p l de Groot believes that i n the relationship w i t h her mother the little g i r l ceases to be active, be­ comes passive, and then transfers this passive relationship to her father. Other authors are less precise, merely noting that d u r i n g the change of object the active tendencies are converted into passive ones. M a r i e Bonaparte thinks that there is a reversal of the sadistic fantasies directed against the mother, w h i c h then become passive fantasies about the father. I n his article " A C h i l d Is Being Beaten*' (1920) F r e u d pointed out this l i n k between masochism and passiv­ ity i n the masochistic O e d i p a l fantasy. It seems to me that the girl turns to her father i n an active, possessive, and sadistic way first. She simultaneously displaces her l i b i d i n a l desire and shifts her demand for the penis from the mother to the father. I n spite of the O e d i p a l triangle w h i c h has lead her to assert her instinctual drives (love d i ­ rected toward her father and hate toward her mother), at this point i n her development the little g i r l pursues active and possessive solu­ tions resulting from the anal stage. T h e feminine passive receptivity can occur only by diverting the sadistic drives directed toward the father's penis. A great part of a woman's femininity depends on this essential process which I should like to call "masochistic feminine move." A t the beginning of this period i n w h i c h she actively adopts the passive role w i t h the object closely related to the process of identification w i t h the aggressor, the c h i l d makes use of a mecha­ nism that can be summarized by the following sentiment: " I t is I who want h i m to penetrate me with his penis, even though I feel this penis to be dangerous." It seems impossible for the little g i r l (in the fantasy relationship which she maintains p r i o r to the Oedi­ pus complex) to change objects, to give up the aggressor-possessor role so n o r m a l for her development and so appropriate for the nat­ ural development of her ego, without m a k i n g a concomitant return to masochism. I n most women the return is accepted by the ego, al­ though it influences to some extent the development of woman­ hood. T h e analysis of some women shows clearly the sequence of these instinctual moves. It is of particular interest that at certain stages i n the analysis of the Oedipus complex, erotic and masochis­ tic needs make a transitory appearance, l i n k e d to the revival of well-defined historical material. B o t h the analyses of little girls and the direct observation of their games, fantasies, and spontaneous creations lead to the same The Change of Object 89 conclusion. O n e can p i n p o i n t this, which we might call the second step, i n the change of object i n the development of girls who never had a n d probably w i l l not have any prominent masochistic disposi­ tions. T h e masochistic fantasies and daydreams of the second step accompanying masturbatory activities are very important. If their subject matter is repressed d u r i n g latency, these fantasies frequently reappear i n adolescence. T h e y enjoin masturbation or its equiva­ lents. T h e y are also directly related to the revival of O e d i p a l i m ­ ages, the importance of w h i c h is aggravated by a feeling of guilt. T h i s i n turn is l i n k e d to a process of identification and its echo-like variations a n d is stimulated by the mother who, under the guise of protecting the adolescent, stresses the dangers of seduction. If analysis of the pregenital o r i g i n of these masochistic fanta­ sies is omitted, insoluble problems occur, l i n k e d to overly strong masochistic affects w h i c h have i n some sense "frightened" the ego and provoked a regression, thereby obstructing the development of the entire sexual organization. O n e can easily see how any increase i n the psychological weight of this process may i m p e r i l the whole development of the Oedipus complex. Because of this pathogenic increment, l i n k e d to earlier pregenital conflicts, the conflict the lit­ tle g i r l experiences, when she actively and sadistically desires the father's penis, is made worse by residual conflicts w i t h the mother (the pregenital maternal imago). T h e masochistic inflation w h i c h still has the same significance that it had d u r i n g earlier develop­ ments, is felt as a grave danger generating insuperable anxiety. It puts a stop to further development and invokes defensive proce­ dures. If the wished for penetration is then imagined as something which w i l l truly affect both the integrity of the body and that of the ego i f the penis still represents exaggerated phallic power (the penis that is "too b i g " even while the little g i r l desires it, a penis disproportionate i n comparison w i t h her, the image of p h a l l i c power, overwhelming, destructive, tearing apart the primitive ma­ ternal phallus), then intercourse a n d penetration w i l l be experi­ enced as an unbearable wish unacceptable to the ego, and contra­ dictory both to fundamental narcissistic defenses and to self­ preservation. A t this point regression occurs and the little g i r l returns defensively to an active position and, because she considers i t a vital defense, to the wish for the penis: she wants the penis for herself; she wants to have i t so that she w i l l not be penetrated by i t . T h i s may also mean that she wants a c h i l d for herself, a wish w h i c h differs widely from that of being impregnated by father. I n this respect secondary feminine narcissism can be seen as a QO F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y defense against the wish to be penetrated, w h i c h is too frightening. T h e wish to be desired represents an identification w i t h the phal­ lus, w h i c h stands for seduction, penetration, possession, for clinging to one's possession, and for depreciating and reducing the other person. T o prevent the masochistic wish of penetration from taking this turn the father must be considered as a sufficiently good object. B u t for the genital imago of the father-possessor-of-the-penis to be considered good it is essential that d u r i n g the pregenital period the c h i l d be able to separate sufficiently (thanks to the O e d i p a l trian­ gle) a good imago from a bad one. T h e good maternal imago, pro­ jected and transferred onto the father, allows the O e d i p a l triangle to succeed. T h e difficulty some girls have i n accepting their desire for masochistic penetration compares to the difficulty certain boys have i n considering their fear of O e d i p a l castration. I n both cases regres­ sion and flight are l i n k e d to the intensity of the anxiety, due i n reality neither to the idea of penetration nor to castration but to the fear of disintegration which w o u l d throw either boy or g i r l back into a w o r l d of archaic fantasies. I n clinical work it is therefore nec­ essary to analyze the persistent pregenital conflicts w h i c h have ob­ structed development. Indeed, the o r i g i n of those insuperable fears w h i c h are provoked by masochistic desires can always be located i n strongly sado-masochistic representations of the p r i m a l scene at its different stages. T h e regressive move to w h i c h I just drew attention is often reinforced by classical O e d i p a l guilt toward the maternal object (the dreaded O e d i p a l mother becoming a pregenital sadistic mother). T h i s guilt can sometimes create illusions inasmuch as it helps to mask the essential part of the conflict. A s for the change of erogenous zones, the misleading and over­ simplified, but commonly held view is that the g i r l has two geni­ tal erogenous zones and that the quality of being focal or even ex­ clusive passes from one to the other. It would, however, mean distorting reality if one were not to take into account the fact that there is a " p h a l l i c " stage for the little g i r l , the acme of which occurs i n the pre-Oedipal period. T h i s p h a l l i c stage immediately following what is usually called the anal stage should more rightly be called (at least i n the early part of its development) the anal-phallic stage. W e know that the "stages" partly overlap a n d merge rather than abruptly succeed each other. F r o m the point of view of erogeneity, the anal phase is r i c h and complex and its repercussions w i l l influ­ ence the femininity yet to come. F o r a time, both the passive anal-cloa­ The Change of Object 91 cal erogeneity and oral erogeneity r u n parallel u n t i l the former en­ tirely succeeds the latter. F o r a time passive oral erogeneity is expressed and prolonged i n passive anal-cloacal erogeneity, even while active oral erogeneity is experienced through the oral zone. G r a d u a l l y , anal-cloacal activity w i l l predominate. T h e anal-cloacal zone w i l l be cathected as an organ to be taken, to be appropriated, to be actively contained, to be possessed, to be destroyed. T h e fecal content is experienced both as a part of the person and also as "apart" from the body, and a part of the object (in relation w i t h the mother-object), and it is progressively identified w i t h the father's penis. H a v i n g been identified first w i t h the mother's phallus then w i t h that of the father this penis is itself a modality of object relation w i t h the mother. One can therefore say that the girl's origi­ nal phallic needs now take on the form of an anal need. T h e recog­ n i t i o n or, more precisely, the possibility of appreciating the dif­ ferences between the sexes occurs at a particular moment i n development. " A p p r e c i a t i n g " is used because the knowledge some little girls have of the difference between the sexes takes o n a spe­ cific significance only at the age when c h i l d r e n generally discover this difference. N o t enough significance has been attached to the little girl's urethral eroticism w h i c h is l i n k e d to both clitoral and anal eroti­ cism. E d u c a t i o n represses anal eroticism much more than it does ur­ ethral eroticism, w h i c h naturally influences the phallic aspect of both the erotic and instinctual development of the girl. D u r i n g the change of erogenous zones, the erogeneity of the clitoris is modified a n d may even disappear. T h e modification shows i n an increase i n passivity at the expense of activity, as the er­ ogeneity of the clitoris has both a passive and an active component. T h e actual experience of vaginal erogeneity implies both conscious sensations and a precocious yet often repressed knowledge as well as anal erogeneity by virtue of their functional and anatomical affin­ ity. V a g i n a l erogeneity usually occurs later and is therefore at this stage only " p o t e n t i a l . " For the little g i r l it is often the m o u t h w h i c h is symbolically equivalent to the vagina (see E. Jones). T o be more precise, the active vaginal erogeneity (vaginal-anal-cloacal) is modified by an increase i n passivity at the expense of activity, and is therefore more closely related to passive and anal erogeneity (which at the preceding stage was its basis) than to the active anal one. A l t h o u g h there is a parallel between object relations and ero­ geneity it would mean distorting them if they were considered only i n terms of zones a n d stages, forgetting that the essential part of the 92 F E M A L E SEXUALITY developments mentioned before occurs on the level of fantasy repre­ sentation of love for an object. For the same reason, words like breast, cloaca, vagina, clitoris, and penis tempt one to give too pre­ cise a meaning to these anatomical realities of the adult world. I n fact, these words designate both anatomic realities and symbolic representations of certain functions, but it is the latter that is usually intended by the words. For the development and the organi­ zation of her future femininity and sexuality, it is important that the g i r l synthesize and elaborate the dispositions resulting from the several stages into a specifically feminine receptivity. T h e masochistic move has placed the little g i r l i n a passive love position toward her paternal object. Does this mean that there is no longer any activity? It would be more correct to say that activ­ ity, having cathected passive strivings, can prepare feminine recep­ tivity. Receptivity therefore seems to be activity w i t h a passive aim, which also happens to correspond to the physiology of sexual inter­ course. T h i s passivity relates to the particular form of object rela­ tionship which is also true whenever one refers to passivity. D u r i n g the change of object and the masochistic comeback sexual fantasies and object relations transform activity into passiv­ ity, or activity w i t h a passive aim. However, some activity and some of the "move toward ego development" are also subject to a parallel transformation, this time by identifications rather than by sexu­ alized object relations. T h i s feminine masochistic position refers to a series of identifications w i t h the mother, but the identifications w i t h the father, which were so important d u r i n g the anal and phallic stages, do not entirely cease. One of the most important modifications which occurs both d u r i n g and because of the change of object is the disappearance of the wish for a penis. T h e little girl has got over the desire to have a penis like her father i n order to penetrate her mother. (The desire for a penis is a readaptation, i n a more or less genital fashion, of the pregenital desire of phallic power, phallic possession, primitive phallic reassurance, and phallic participation.) W i t h the help of the masochistic move she has developed the desire to acquire the father's penis by being penetrated by it and by having a child by the father. T h r o u g h her love for and her nonconflicted identifica­ tions w i t h her mother the little girl can experience a true O e d i p a l love for her father and for men i n general. T h i s is an essential point i n her development. H e is the different object, the possessor of the penis, while she accepts the fact that she does not have a penis. She has thus achieved, by cathexis of her own gender the pos­ sibility of m a k i n g her love come true as something that comple­ The Change of Object 93 ments another person. O n l y at this point is heterosexuality achieved. M a n , the image of her father, is from then on the other person: different from yet complementary to her and, because of this, loved and desired. T h e genital stage, the world of genital sex­ uality, has thus been attained. I have already said that the masochistic move occurs at a specific transitory moment i n feminine development: Does this mean that it disappears altogether? I have already mentioned the possibility that if coupled w i t h great anxiety, it activates mecha­ nisms of regression and reaction formations, leaving a negative mark on development. A p a r t from it one can still see traces of the masochistic move i n the organization of feminine object relations representing trends of perverse, erogenic masochism. I shall not fol­ low up this aspect of feminine development, as I have tried to re­ strict my study to the preparation of the change of object i n an ideal, normal, case. I should like to conclude by considering what seems to me another frequent remnant of this masochistic move: the feminine dependence o n man, or, more precisely, the adoption of an attitude of dependence due to choice rather than to necessity. One could say that erotic dependence never really ceases for women, because of their anatomical and physiological make-up. B u t this search for a position of dependence often reaches beyond sexual behavior and characterizes large segments of behavior i n general. W o m e n take on a certain " r o l e " i n an eroticized adaptation to the role another person has, m a i n t a i n i n g it according to the pleasure thereby derived from it. I believe one must distinguish this from the actual dependence w i t h w h i c h one might easily confuse it. T h e latter behavior, i n c l u d i n g the taking of secondary and subordinate positions, is due to inhibitions, regression, and guilt and is based on a feeling of obligation or represents a defense rather than a prefer­ ence according to pleasure. O f course there are many women w i t h m i x e d etiologies of whom one cannot say a p r i o r i whether passivity is due to a free erotic choice or to a neurotic obligation. Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex Janine Chasseguet-Smirgel " T h i s is i n disagreement with Freud's formidable statement that the con­ cept of the O e d i p u s complex is strictly applicable only to male children a n d *it is only i n male children that there occurs the fateful conjunction of love for the one parent a n d hatred of the other as r i v a l . ' W e seem com­ 1 pelled here to be plus doubt toy alts te que le toy. . . . I can find no reason to that for girls, n o less than for boys, the O e d i p u s situation i n its reality a n d phantasy is the most fateful psychical event i n life." — J o n e s ( " T h e Phallic Phase," 1932) It is troubling to note that Freudian theory gives the father a cen­ tral role i n the boy's Oedipus complex but considerably reduces that role i n the girl's. I n fact, i n considering Freud's article "Female Sexuality" (to which Jones replies i n his article " T h e Phallic Phase") it is suggested that the girl's positive Oedipus complex may simply not exist. If it exists, i t is usually an exact replica of her rela­ tionship to her mother. Freud says i n the same article, "except for the change of her love object, the second phase had scarcely added any new feature to her erotic l i f e " (this second phase being the pos­ itive Oedipus complex). Freud maintains that it is not because of her love for her father nor because of her feminine desires that the little g i r l arrives at the positive Oedipus position but because of her masculine de­ sires and her penis envy. She tries to get what she wants from her father, the possessor of the penis. W h e n the O e d i p a l position is reached, it tends to last some time as i t is essentially a "haven." ("The Dissolution of the Oedipus C o m p l e x , " 1924). "She enters the Oedipus situation as though into a haven or refuge." A s the lit­ tle g i r l has no fear of castration, she has nothing to give up, and she does not need a powerful superego. D u r i n g the period preceding the change of object, if it occurs at a l l , the father is "scarcely very different from an irritating r i v a l " ("Female Sexuality," 1931), b u t at the same time the rivalry w i t h 94 Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 95 the father i n the negative Oedipus complex is not so strong and is not i n any way symmetrical w i t h the boy's O e d i p a l rivalry accompa­ n y i n g his desire to possess his mother. T h e little g i r l i n her homo­ sexual love for the mother does not identify w i t h the father. If we turn from the study of n o r m a l or neurotic behavior to that of psychotics, we note the importance Freud gave to the role of homosexuality i n his theories of delusion formation. Desires of pas­ sive submission to the father, dangerous for the ego, play the m a i n role i n masculine delusions. One of the most important of these wishes is the desire to have a c h i l d from the father. It is surprising that F r e u d , when he considered this desire i n the context of a little girl's n o r m a l development, d i d not believe it to be a primary desire arising from her femininity but, on the contrary, a secondary desire, a substitute for penis envy. Paradoxically, the father seems to occupy a m u c h more i m ­ portant place i n the psychosexual development of the boy than of the g i r l , be it as a love object or as a rival. I w o u l d even say that Freud, if one accepts a l l the implications of his theory, believes the father to be much more important i n general for the boy than for the g i r l . However, F r e u d , w i t h the open, scientific m i n d and con­ cern for truth which characterize genius, never considered his stud­ ies of femininity to be complete or definitive, and he encouraged his disciples to continue their exploration of "the dark continent." One need only refer to the final sentence of one of his last works on the psychology of women: " I f you want to know more about feminin­ ity, enquire from your o w n experience of life, or t u r n to the poets, or wait u n t i l science can give you deeper and more coherent infor­ m a t i o n " (in " F e m i n i n i t y , " 1932). M y aim i n this study is to discuss certain specifically femi­ nine positions i n the O e d i p a l situation which are not found i n that of the male. Perhaps I shall be able to reveal a little of their deeper motivation and describe their eventual consequences. T i m e w i l l prevent our studying i n detail many problems of woman's psycho­ sexual life o n which this study w i l l inevitably touch, such as penis envy, female masochism, the superego, and the resolution of the Oedipus complex i n girls. I shall treat of them only inasmuch as they relate to my central theme. Because of the numerous difficul­ ties involved i n this type of study a somewhat artificial presentation becomes unavoidable. I have placed greater emphasis on the partic­ ular characteristics of the girl's relation to her father, without tak­ i n g into consideration, as one should, the significant early history of this relationship; neither have I touched on the particular problems of identification so important i n homosexual development, as Joyce 96 F E M A L E SEXUALITY M c D o u g a l l deals w i t h them more fully i n her article i n this book. Whenever one discusses "the specificity" of certain female attitudes one should compare them to male ones. I n this study such a com­ parison can be no more than i m p l i e d . Most psychoanalytical authors have noted that women on the road to genital and O e d i p a l maturity are faced w i t h greater diffi­ culties than men, so much so that Freud, as we know, was led to re­ consider his belief i n the universality of the Oedipus complex as the nucleus of the neuroses. Those authors who do not agree w i t h F r e u d generally believe that the difficulties the little g i r l encounters i n her psychosexual development are due m a i n l y to the fears for the ego—narcissistic anxieties awakened by the feminine role. For my part, I shall concern myself w i t h aspects of the fe­ male Oedipus complex which have no counterpart i n the male, and which are the source of a specific form of feminine guilt inherent i n a specific moment i n woman's psychosexual development: the change of object. I Object Her Idealization in the Girl's Relation to Father T h e theories of Freud and those who have followed h i m , as well as the theories of those who oppose h i m (Melanie K l e i n and Ernest Jones i n particular), a l l agree on one point about the girl's develop­ ment: the change of object inherent i n the O e d i p a l development of women is based on frustration. T h u s , for Freud, the girl's Oedipus complex is due to a dou­ ble misapprehension, having to do first w i t h objects, then with her own narcissism. T h i s disappointment is caused mainly by the fact that the little g i r l discovers her "castration"—the mother has given her neither the love nor the penis she wanted. According to Freud, this frustrated penis envy, replaced by a desire for a penis substi­ tute, a c h i l d , prompts the little g i r l to turn to her father. Melanie K l e i n and Ernest Jones, on the other hand, thought that "the girl is brought under the sway of her Oedipus impulses, not indirectly, through her masculine tendencies and her penis envy, but directly, as a result of her dominant feminine instinctual components" (Mel­ anie K l e i n , The Psychoanalysis of Children, 1932). Most of a l l the little g i r l wants to incorporate a penis, not for itself but i n order to have a c h i l d by it. T h e desire to have a c h i l d is not a sub­ Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 97 stitute for the impossible desire to have a penis (Jones, " T h e P h a l ­ lic Phase," 1932). These authors, i n spite of their refusal to admit the secondary quality of the feminine Oedipus complex, believe that the little girl's O e d i p a l desire is activated and awakened preco­ ciously by the frustration caused by the maternal breast, which then becomes " b a d . " It is, therefore, the bad aspect of the first object w h i c h (in both these views opposing Freud) lies at the basis of the change of object, the little g i r l seeking a good object capable of pro­ curing for her the object-oriented and narcissistic satisfactions she lacks. T h e second object—the father or the p e n i s — w i l l be idealized because of the disappointment w i t h the first object. Indeed, a belief i n the existence of a good object capable of alleviating the shortcomings of the first one is vital i n order for any change of object to take place. T h i s belief is accompanied by a projection of a l l the good aspects of the primary object onto the sec­ ondary object, while at the same time projection onto the original primitive object is maintained (temporarily at least) of a l l the bad aspects of that (new) object. T h i s splitting is the indispensable con­ d i t i o n leading to the change of object which w o u l d otherwise have no reason to occur. It is at the base of the girl's triangular orienta­ tion, as Catherine Luquet-Parat's article i n this book has empha­ sized. B u t the splitting of the maternal image implies an idealiza­ tion of the second object, if one may so refer to the projection of qualities a l l of which are exclusively good. Several authors have stressed the importance of the idealiza­ tion of this second object i n girls. T h u s , i n Envy and Gratitude, K l e i n refers to the exacerbation of negative feelings toward the mother, which turn the little g i r l away from her: " B u t an idealiza­ tion of the second object, the father's penis and the father, may then be more successful. T h i s idealization derives mainly from the search for a good object." T h e idealization process on which the change of object is founded weighs heavily on women's future psychosexual develop­ ment. I n fact it implies an instinctual disfusion, each object being, at the time of the change of object, either entirely negatively ca­ thected (the mother, her breast, her phallus) or entirely positively cathected (the father and his penis). Because of this the little girl w i l l tend to repress and countercathect the aggressive instincts which exist i n her relation to her father i n order to maintain this instinctual disfusion. As a result there arises a specifically feminine form of guilt attached to the anal-sadistic component of sexuality, which is radically opposed to idealization. T h e conflicts the little girl experiences i n her relation w i t h 2 98 F E M A L E SEXUALITY her father are, of course, linked to her first experiences w i t h the ma­ ternal object as well as the peculiarities of the second object. If positive experiences and progressively dosed " n o r m a l frus­ trations'* (those which are necessary for the development of a strong and harmonious ego) prevail i n the girl's relation to her mother, if the father's personality offers an adequate basis for the projection of the object's good aspects onto h i m , and if at the same time he is solid enough, the little g i r l w i l l be able to go through that change of object when prompted by these frustrations, achiev­ ing thereby a nonconflictual identification w i t h the mother without the idealization of the second object becoming unduly important at this particular moment of her development. T h e need to make permanent the idealization of the object concomitant w i t h an instinctual disfusion is i n this situation less pressing, and feminine psychosexuality can now progress under more satisfactory conditions. O n the other hand, if the first attempts turn out badly, and if the second object does not offer the attributes nec­ essary for the projection of good qualities, then character problems, perversions, and psychoses may develop. Nevertheless, i n most cases—and this seems practically inher­ ent i n woman's situation—the change of object coincides w i t h dos­ ages of maternal frustration at the wrong times. T h e father then be­ comes the last resort, the last chance of establishing a relation with a satisfying object. Indeed, the relation between mother and daugh­ ter is handicapped from the start; one might even say intrinsically so since, as D r . Grunberger points out i n the article on female nar­ cissism, this state is due to the sexual identity between mother and daughter. Freud himself stressed that the only relation that could avoid "the ambivalence characterizing a l l h u m a n relations" is that of mother and son. Later, I shall try to show some aspects of the father-daughter relationship which may help to e x p l a i n why the idealization of the second object can be induced by the paternal at­ titude itself. In most cases the father-daughter relation is characterized by the persistence of instinctual disfusion; the aggressive and anal-sadis­ tic components are countercathected and repressed, since the second object must be safeguarded. A t the same time the counteriden­ tifications with the bad aspects of the first object are maintained. T h e fact that the g i r l encounters greater difficulties i n her psychosexual development than the boy is stressed by a l l authors. T h e frequency of female frigidity shows this. T h e guilt toward the mother alone is not sufficient to explain i t ; if it were, there ought to be something i n the male that corresponds to it. Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 99 W h e n M a r i e Bonaparte says that the cause of frigidity is to be found i n the fact that woman has less l i b i d i n a l energy, while H£l£ne Deutsch believes it to be l i n k e d to "constitutional inhibitions," or when other authors believe it to be due to bisex­ uality, then it seems to me that they are sidestepping the discovery and interpretation of unconscious factors which, as Jones stressed i n " E a r l y Female Sexuality," form the m a i n part of the analyst's task. M a n y writers have noted, on the other hand, that woman's tendency toward idealization of sexuality is commonplace. One has only to think of adolescents or even of mature women who live i n a romantic dream a la Madame Bovary waiting for Prince C h a r m i n g , for eternal love, etc. . . . (In a recent sociological study Evelyne Sullerot mentions that the publishers of romantic p u l p sell sixteen m i l l i o n copies a year.) T h u s , i n The Psychology of Women, H£l£ne Deutsch notes: 3 As a result of a process of sublimation, woman's sex­ uality is more spiritual than man's. . . . T h i s process of sublimation enriches woman's entire erotic affective life and makes it more i n d i v i d u a l l y varied than man's, but it endangers her capacity for direct sexual gratification. T h e constitutional i n h i b i t i o n of woman's sexual­ ity is a l l the more difficult to overcome because, as a result of sublimation, it is more complicated (and the conditions for its gratification more exacting) than the primitive desire to get r i d of sexual tension that more commonly characterizes masculine sexuality. H£l£ne Deutsch stresses the "spiritualized" character of fe­ male sexuality and speaks of " s u b l i m a t i o n " when she refers to it. B u t if this were a true sublimation the process would not end i n i n h i b i ­ tion. O n the contrary, it seems to me that this is a reaction forma­ tion based on repression and countercathexis of those instinctual components opposed by nature to idealization or to anything spirit­ ual or sublime; i n other words, the anal-sadistic component i n ­ stincts. I shall now try to show the consequences of the repression of the anal-sadistic component for woman's psychosexual development. I shall make no attempt here to reconsider the concepts of activity and passivity, let alone the death instinct, but I w o u l d still like to quote certain statements by F r e u d about these concepts inasmuch as they concern the subject of this paper. Discussing sexuality i n general (not simply masculine sexual­ ity) and referring to the Three Essays, F r e u d says i n Beyond the 100 F E M A L E SEXUALITY Pleasure Principle: " F r o m the very start we recognized the presence of a sadistic component i n the sexual instinct . . . later, the sadistic instinct separates off, and finally, at the stage of genital primacy, it takes on, for the purposes of reproduction, the function of overpow­ ering the sexual object to the extent necessary for carrying out the sexual act." I n this passage Freud identifies sadism with destructive and death instincts, pointing out that i n the sexual act these instincts are subordinated to Eros i n order to secure control of the object. T h i s instinctual control explicitly links Freud, i n Three Essays (1905), to the anal-sadistic stage and to mobility. I n the 1915 revi­ sion he adds: "It may be assumed the impulse of cruelty arises from the instinct for mastery and appears at a period of sexual life at which the genitals have not yet taken over their later role." I n The Ego and the Id (1923), Freud repeats this idea but this time insists on the importance of instinctual disfusion: 4 5 T h e sadistic component of the sexual instinct w o u l d be a classical example of a serviceable instinctual fusion . . . M a k ­ ing a swift generalization, we might conjecture that the es­ sence of a regression of l i b i d o (e.g., from the genital to the sadistic-anal phase) lies i n a disfusion of instincts. . . . Freud shows, i n Inhibitions, Symptoms, Anxiety, that Eros desires contact because it strives to make the ego and the loved ob­ ject one, "to abolish all spatial barriers between the Ego and the loved object"; "the aggressive object cathexis has the same a i m . " Here again we see that aggression, according to Freud, is put i n the service of Eros, desiring close contact w i t h the object. I n these quotations we can see a sequential chain: mastery­ sadism-anality; this chain is indispensable for sexual maturity, and its effective formation is a sign of genital maturation. Does the fact that this chain also has another link, "activity," mean that female sexuality is excluded from the Freudian concept of instinctual fu­ sion which I have just mentioned? Once more, it is beyond my pur­ pose to consider the concepts of activity and passivity i n general. I merely wish to recall that one can follow Freud's thought and its numerous variations through a l l his writings on female sexuality i n terms of antagonistic pairs of "masculine-feminine" and "active-pas­ sive." Whenever Freud attempts to liken these pairs of concepts he feels compelled to retract what he has said. I n spite of his attempt to avoid equating these terms, other authors have completely identi­ fied activity w i t h masculinity, passivity w i t h femininity, and have 6 Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 101 reached doubtful conclusions as a result, especially as they have taken passivity to mean inertia or inactivity. T h u s , J . L a m p l de Groot, i n her article " C o n t r i b u t i o n to the Problem of F e m i n i n i t y " (1933), equates masculinity w i t h activity and passivity w i t h femininity. She draws a series of conclusions to the effect that " f e m i n i n e " women do not know object love, activity under any guise, nor aggression. Since activity and love undoubt­ edly play a role i n maternity, L a m p l de Groot makes her famous postulate that i t is women's masculinity which is expressed i n the experience of pregnancy; and as this masculinity is opposed to fe­ male sexuality, "good mothers are frigid wives." T h i s is not really proved because the postulate w i t h which the article begins is merely repeated throughout i n various tautological ways. H e r essay ends w i t h the statement that introjection, because it activates aggression, does not exist i n truly " f e m i n i n e " women. Helene Deutsch e m p h a s i z e d the idea of a typically femi­ nine activity "directed i n w a r d , " and the amphimixis of oral, anal, and urethral instincts connected with the vagina d u r i n g coitus and orgasm. Yet i n a symposium on frigidity (1961) at w h i c h she pre­ sided, she held that orgasmic climax could only occur i n men, be­ cause it is a sphincter activity typical of the male. As early as 1930 authors like Imre H e r m a n n , Fritz Wittels, and P a u l Schilder had warned against the theoretical and therapeu­ tic dangers of identifying femininity w i t h passivity, or even inertia. Therefore, i n order to avoid ambiguity i n the use of such terms as "passivity" and "activity," I shall refer instead to the anal-sadistic component, whether it is the aggressive component of incorporative impulses or the aggressiveness l i n k e d to a l l attempts at achievement, for these two seem to me especially charged w i t h conflict for women. 7 How Incorporation Becomes Charged with Conflict Referring i n the Three Essays to infantile masturbation Freud states that the g i r l often masturbates by pressing her thighs to­ gether, whereas the boy prefers to use his hand. " T h e preference for the h a n d w h i c h is shown by boys is already evidence of the impor­ tant contribution w h i c h the instinct for mastery is destined to make to masculine sexual activity." I n fact I believe that F r e u d is also i n ­ dicating the importance this same instinct w i l l have i n female sexual activity. I n coitus the vagina replaces the hand and like the hand it grasps the penis; this is reflected i n the fantasies and prob­ lems characteristic for female sexuality, to the point that the anal 102 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y component i n the control of the vagina causes conflict. Psychoana­ lytical writings frequently refer to man's fear of the vagina (Freud, " T h e T a b o o of V i r g i n i t y , " 1918; Karen H o m e y , " T h e Dread of W o m e n , " 1932), but they rarely mention the other side of the prob­ lem, w h i c h is the attitude of the woman (her superego) toward her own aggression to the penis; if the problem is mentioned, the aggres­ sion is usually attributed to penis envy, or to defense against the penis considered dangerous because of certain projections, but the problem is never linked to the anal-sadistic component—as though female sexual desire contained no aggressive or sadistic elements. I n general, women's aggression toward the penis is never seen as a source of guilt. I do not wish i n any way to deny the existence of the forms of female aggression which are frequently discussed, but I should like to insist particularly on the problems i m p l i e d i n a ba­ sically feminine wish to incorporate the paternal penis, w h i c h invar­ iably includes the anal-sadistic instinctual components. One must remember that d u r i n g sexual intercourse, the woman does actually incorporate the man's penis. A l t h o u g h this i n ­ corporation is only partial and temporary, women desire i n fantasy to keep the penis permanently, as Freud pointed out i n his article " O n Transformations of Instincts as Exemplified i n A n a l E r o t i s m " (1924).* I shall illustrate the problems connected with wishes of i n ­ corporation toward the paternal penis through one case only, though i n my experience the same conflicts are to be found i n all women's analyses. 8 T h e patient whom I shall call A n n had idealized the image of her father. In order to protect this image she split her erotic ob­ jects into two very distinct types. T h e first, a substitute for the father, is represented by a m a n , far older than she is, whom she loves tenderly and purely. T h i s man is impotent. H e loves her, protects her, encourages her career. She speaks of h i m i n the same terms as she speaks of her father, who w o u l d give her a warm stone i n winter to prevent the c h i l l i n g of her fingers while going to school, kiss her tenderly, or sit w i t h her on a bench i n front of the house, offering wine to the neighbors passing by. T h e other man is represented by a Negro, to whom she feels she could show her erotic impulses, which are linked to the anal impulses. D u r i n g analysis, she says, "Before, black and white were sepa­ rate, now they are m i x e d together." A n n is i n her forties, she is an opthalmologist, married and Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 103 with two children, full of vitality a n d spirit, but paralyzed by deep conflicts which reveal themselves i n strong anxieties, depersonali­ zation, a n d the impulse to throw herself into the river o r off a building. T h e theme of engulfment i n water is frequent i n her asso­ ciations i n the transference. In the first session she is already very anxious a n d sees the green wall of m y consulting r o o m as a n a q u a r i u m . She feels she is in this aquarium herself a n d says: "I a m very frightened . . . T h e s e ideas of aquaria are fetal. . . . I feel I a m becoming schizophrenic/' Several times d u r i n g the analysis she expressed her anxiety i n the following terms: "I a m cracking u p , I a m drowning. I need a branch to save me. W i l l y o u be that branch?" She often expressed the fear that I might become pregnant. She also suffered from claustrophobia: fear o f being alone i n a r o o m with n o exit, fear of elevators. She dreams she is enclosed i n a very tiny a n d very dark r o o m similar to a coffin from w h i c h she cannot escape. A n n ' s parents were farmers. She was, along with her sister, brought u p by a severe a n d castrating mother. T h e father, m u c h older than the mother, was "gentle a n d k i n d . " " M y mother bossed h i m around. She was the ruler of the home. She r u l e d us a l l with a r o d o f iron. . . . Father was good; he forgave her everything. She took advantage of it." A n n often recalled incidents which represented the father's castration by the mother. F o r example, one day her father comes back from the fair where he h a d been d r i n k i n g a little, lies down, a n d goes to sleep. T h e mother takes advantage of this occasion by stealing his wallet a n d then accusing h i m o f having lost it. T h e pri­ m a l scene which reveals itself through A n n ' s association is fantasied as a sadistic act d u r i n g which the mother takes the father's penis. I cannot give the whole development of A n n ' s analysis, b u t her treatment was centered o n her difficulty i n identifying with her mother. T h i s difficulty was the major obstacle to a satisfactory O e d ­ ipal development. It was as though loving her father meant becom­ i n g like the castrating mother, sadistically incorporating his penis, a n d keeping it w i t h i n her. B u t her love for her father could not allow her to adopt such a role. Very early i n the analysis, A n n expressed this conflict i n the form of a dream: " T h i s is a very frightening dream. J was walking with my mother (an attempt to identify with the mother) i n the river where 104 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y I had my first impulse to throw myself into the water. W e were looking for eel traps. It reminds me of the penis i n the vagina (sa­ distic and castrating aspect of intercourse). M y mother was mean to my father. T h i s dream frightens me." Another dream of the same night: " M y mother was coming back from the river w i t h my father's jacket on her shoulders. She had gone mad. I n real life it is I who am afraid of going mad, of giving i n to my impulses." B e h i n d her impulses of throwing herself into the river or off a b u i l d i n g lies the unconscious fantasy of identification with the mother who castrates her father d u r i n g intercourse (the mother coming back from the river w i t h the father's jacket). She expresses her castration wishes i n the transference i n many ways, sometimes even i n a quasi-delirious way. She feels guilty because she is sure that by shaking hands with me (to b i d good-bye) she has strained my wrist (she associates this with the paternal penis). T h e transference expressions of her anal-sadistic impulses d i ­ rected toward the penis were predominant i n her relation w i t h me and were m i x e d w i t h anxiety and guilt. One day she associated the following recollection w i t h her feeling of cracking up and drown­ ing: " I n the R i v e r Gave there are potholes, you know, and deep eddies. One day my father nearly drowned i n one; he was carried away by the current but caught h o l d of a branch at the last minute. . . . I am afraid of elevators. T h e elevator could fall i n its shaft, and I w o u l d fall w i t h it. I have the image of a penis drawn i n by a vagina. . . ." I believe A n n ' s conflict appears clearly i n these associations of her fear of the impulse to throw herself into the river or off a b u i l d i n g . T h e parents' intercourse signified for A n n an aggressive incorporation of the father's penis by the mother (the father's jacket on the mother's shoulders, the eel i n the trap, the father en­ gulfed by the eddy). I n order to arrive at the O e d i p a l phase she must identify with the castrating mother, that is to say, engulf the father's penis i n her vagina. Yet, behind the patient's symptoms (her phobic impulses) there is a reverse fantasy: she is the contents (father's penis or father) of a destructive container (mother or mother's vagina). H e r own body or vagina is identified with the mother or the mother's vagina. T h e destructive feature of the vagina is linked with the sphincteral anal component. T h e first fantasy hidden behind the symptom is therefore a compromise between the fulfillment of a de­ sire and its punishment. Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 105 A n n achieves through guilt i n fantasy the genital O e d i p a l de­ sire to "engulf" the father's penis (like the mother did), but she does this by turning the aggression against herself, her whole body identified w i t h the paternal penis, whereas her destructive vagina, projected onto the outer world, is experienced as a cavity into which she disappears. The contents and the container are reversed. Ann herself be­ comes the contents, which have disappeared into the container. W e realize that the first fantasy (the most superficial one), i n which the punishment (superego) occurs, resulting i n a compro­ mise between the instinct and the defense, merely conceals another more primitive fantasy, w h i c h directly expresses the instinct: " I am the hole i n which my father (his penis) is engulfed." H e r phobic symptom contains a double unconscious fantasy which is i n accord with the F r e u d i a n theory of symptoms: a com­ promise concealing a primitive instinct. It is important to add that one of the precipitating factors i n mobilizing Ann's neurosis was her father's death just before her analysis, when she herself was pregnant. W h e n she spoke of her father's death it was always i n relation to her pregnancy. It became obvious d u r i n g the analysis that the fantasy underlying this was that of the father's destruction by incorporation. H e r fear that I should become pregnant, her projection of an aquarium onto the green wall of my consulting room, along with her fantasy of fetal regression, manifested the same symptomatic reversal of her fantasy: the fear of being engulfed and shut up inside me, like the fetus i n its mother's womb, the fecal stool i n the anus, or the penis i n the vagina. H a v i n g had a number of female patients w i t h phobias of being engulfed by water, claustrophobia, compulsive ideas of throw­ ing themselves into water or from a great height, vertigo, and pho­ bias of falling, I came to realize that they a l l had a common mean­ ing. I n my experience they signify reversal of contents and container. T h e patient, by t u r n i n g the aggression onto herself, expe­ riences the sensation that she is the contents threatened by a dan­ gerous container. T h e genital level of these phobias does not mean that the ego is not severely affected; as we have seen the guilt involved i n the relation w i t h the idealized father often results from early con­ flicts with the primary object, since these conflicts are numerous and dangerous. T h e sexual problems of these patients are of various kinds. 106 F E M A L E SEXUALITY Sometimes the splitting of the desired objects is enough to maintain a normal sexual appearance, but sexual pleasure is often restricted to the clitoris only. T h i s particular sexual problem should be re­ lated to the same incorporation-guilt that forbids the erotic cathexis of the vagina, the organ of incorporation displacing its cathexis then onto an external organ, the clitoris. T h e analysis of this incor­ poration-guilt often allows for a more or less r a p i d extension of the clitoris's erotic cathexis to the vagina. T h i s happens through the liberation of anal erotic and aggressive drive components which are then invested i n the vagina. I n some cases active homosexual wishes carry the same meaning of defense when conflict over incorporation is the issue. A patient suffering from dyspareunia manifested this by a lack of vaginal stricture d u r i n g intercourse. T h i s symptom, which is i n some way the reverse of vaginismus, is relatively frequent, but the patients who suffer from it believe it to be due to their anatomi­ cal make-up and become conscious of its psychogenic character only when it disappears d u r i n g treatment. T h i s symptom is the one w h i c h expresses most clearly the countercathexis of the anal-sadistic instinct of control. W h e n this component is well integrated the va­ gina can allow itself to close a r o u n d the penis. I n F r e u d i a n terms, one could say that desire of the Eros to unite w i t h the object is satisfied, due to the instinct of control subordinating itself to the former. 1 0 Guilt Concerning Feminine Achievement A girl's guilt toward her father does not interfere merely w i t h her sexual life but extends to her achievements i n other fields if they take on an unconscious phallic significance. I n h i b i t i o n related to this guilt seems to me chiefly responsible for women's place i n cul­ ture and society today. Psychoanalysts have noticed that O e d i p a l guilt, l i n k e d to the guilt of surpassing the mother, is associated i n many intellectual, professional and creative activities w i t h a feeling of g u i l t toward the father, a guilt which is specifically feminine. In­ deed, I found that i n patients suffering from chronic headaches their guilt over surpassing their parents on an intellectual level (which is so often the o r i g i n of cephalic symptoms, as though re­ producing an autocastration of the intellectual faculties) was usually l i n k e d to the father, i n both male and female patients. For both sexes successful intellectual activity is the unconscious equiva­ lent of possessing the penis. For women this means they have the father's penis and have thus dispossessed the mother, the O e d i p a l drama. I n addition they have also castrated the father. Moreover, Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 107 the adequate use of such a penis also involves from the unconscious point of view the fecal origin of this image, ultimately, that of re­ taining an anal penis, w h i c h i n turn engenders guilt. One of my patients, a young g i r l of fifteen and a half who had severe migraine as well as school problems, was particularly poor i n spelling and always had low marks on oral tests. W h e n she tried to think, her thoughts blurred. She felt as though she were i n a fog. H e r ideas w o u l d become imprecise, she grew muddled and felt stumped—in other words her ideas lost their anal compo­ nent. H e r headaches began while she was preparing for an examina­ tion w h i c h she kept failing. T h e diploma she was trying to obtain was exactly the same as the one her father had. T h i s i n h i b i t i o n concerning the intellectual field she shared w i th her father was analyzed i n relation to her O e d i p a l guilt about her mother, but it was soon obvious that interpretations on these levels were insufficient to b r i n g to light the meaning of her symp­ toms. She had a dream i n w h i c h she wanted to h o l d her h a n d up, as a sign that she could answer the questions i n the tests, but she felt it was " f o r b i d d e n " ; she had another dream i n w h i c h she had a snake i n her hand w h i c h turned into a pen, so she took it to the po­ lice station because "the man to whom it belonged could not write without his p e n " ; . . . these dreams led to interpretations i n rela­ tion to her guilt about castrating her father and resulted i n the ces­ sation of her school inhibitions as well as a satisfactory O e d i p a l evo­ l u t i o n . Indeed, once her aggression toward the paternal penis was accepted she was able to create fantasies about an O e d i p a l sexual relation w i t h the father. T h e last dream she brought was one i n w h i c h she received an attractive pen as a present from her father and then went w i t h h i m for a walk along a sunken road, while her mother, who i n the dream looked like me, was away on holiday. A n n , the patient w h o m I formerly discussed, thought a l l her problems were due to her professional promotion. " I am classless," she w o u l d say, " I am neither peasant nor bourgeois. I would have done better to have stayed working on the farm like father." W i t h the people who praised her for her professional success she suddenly felt like "shouting, saying stupid things, acting like a mad woman." Before her analysis she had had a period of anxiety d u r i n g w h i c h she could not write any prescriptions, a l l the formulas b l u r r i n g i n her m i n d . H a v i n g a profession meant having a penis w h i c h she had stolen from her father just as her mother had done d u r i n g the p r i m a l scene. 108 F E M A L E SEXUALITY T h i s meaning is expressed clearly i n the following dream: " I am beside an operating table. T h e surgeon is operating on the brain of an elderly man who could be my lather. H e ablates the whole frontal part of his brain away. I think to myself, 'Poor man, he is going to be a b n o r m a l / W h e n the surgeon has finished, he ad­ dresses the people who are there and says of me: 'She is extremely intelligent and an excellent doctor, and she has a very pretty little g i r l w i t h dark hair.' " H e r associations about this dream are: " I worked for that surgeon when I was a student. H e used to congratulate me on doing my medical studies simultaneously w i t h working as a nurse. O h ! What a headache I've got . . . I had an­ other dream: " I was at your place and I was cutting bread. A patient came i n . Y o u diagnosed h i m and phoned the diagnosis to someone. I ad­ mired how fast and sure you were i n your diagnosis. T h e n you came up to me and said, 'What is the diagnosis?' I gave the same diagnosis as you had. T h e n I felt embarrassed because it is as though you thought I hadn't overheard your conversation on the phone and that I thought of that diagnosis myself. So for the sake of intellectual honesty I told you that I had overheard your diagno­ sis. I thought I w o u l d have no difficulty i n telling you this dream, but on the contrary I feel embarrassed as though I had cheated you. I n the dream I had the feeling I was lying, and stealing something. One day I made a girl-friend of mine steal a toy. W e were little then. W h e n I said good-bye to you last time I again had the feeling that I had sprained your wrist. I have the feeling you are fragile." For A n n professional capability has the meaning of castrat­ ing the father, or the analyst i n the paternal transference, and this castration represents an identification w i t h the mother who steals the father's power. T h i s is an anal castration as one can see by her feeling that she is telling lies and cheating me, analogous to her fan­ tasy of the P r i m a l Scene as shown i n the screen memories: the mother stealing the father's money after he had come back drunk from the fair, followed by her accusation that the father had lost the money; the mother ordering h i m about, h i d i n g for hours to frighten h i m , m a k i n g h i m believe that she was working a l l the time, while i n fact she d i d nothing. She seemed to be like Delilah, taking advantage of Samson's trusting sleep to cut off his hair. T h e guilt linked with this desire to identify w i t h the sadistic mother leads A n n to castrate herself (have headaches, fantasies i n Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 109 which she "loses her m i n d / ' professional inhibitions) and to per­ form acts w h i c h restore what has been taken away (she gives me back the diagnosis she has stolen, she worries about my sprained wrist). T h i s fantasy of possessing a phallus is so conflict-laden that any small intervention touching on it stimulates guilt i n women who otherwise seem quite free of work i n h i b i t i o n s . I had a patient who, before she came to analysis, gave lec­ tures on a rather feminine topic—children's education. A t the end of one of her lectures, someone came up to her and said: " A l l that is very well but, you know, the sight of a woman carrying a brief case and a whole lot of files—really, that just isn't a woman's r o l e ! " F r o m that day on, this patient never gave another lecture! 1 1 A n a l y t i c a l interpretation of these conflicts brings relief to women involved i n fields they feel belong to men and w h i c h have an obvious phallic meaning (for example, taking exams, d r i v i n g a car) as well as i n those which are specifically feminine, such as preg­ nancy. Here again guilt toward the mother, the O e d i p a l r i v a l , is coupled w i t h the guilt of having taken the father's penis i n order to make a c h i l d w i t h it. T h i s attack against the essence of the love ob­ ject applied i n transformation is experienced as anal guilt. T h e symbolic connection "child-penis" becomes significant i n this context. Uncontrollable v o m i t i n g d u r i n g pregnancy, a n d a l l the psychosomatic difficulties l i n k e d w i t h the problems of accepting motherhood are often related to this guilt, as one can see i n the analytical material of pregnant women. Creativity.—It is commonplace that women (with few excep­ tions) are not great creators, scientific or artistic. Man's creativity has been attributed to a desire to compensate for the fact that he cannot bear children (K. Horney) and thus create life. I believe that this is indeed one of the deep motives of creative work. Yet creating is a means of alleviating deficiencies at various levels of instinctual maturity, a n d this results i n attempts to achieve narcissistic integrity—represented i n the unconscious by the phallus (Grunberger). T h e p h a l l i c significance of creativity is emphasized i n Phyllis Greenacre's article dealing w i t h women who are creative artists. She believes that this sometimes results i n inhibitions due to fear that a phallic achievement might interfere w i t h the fulfillment of femi­ nine desires. I agree w i t h the author about the phallic meaning of HO F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y creativity, but I w o u l d here again stress the part played by feminine guilt concerning possession of the penis and aggression toward the idealized father. W o m e n who have not idealized their fathers usually have no urge to create, because creation implies the projection of one's narcissism onto an ideal image w h i c h can be attained only through creative work. If creative work signified only the act of parturition, then women w i t h children w o u l d lack any desire to create, but analysis proves this to be untrue. T h e giving of life is not the same thing as being creative. T o create is to do something other and something more than what a mother does, and it is i n this respect that we see the p h a l l i c meaning of creation and its relation to penis envy. T h a t so many different achievements are symbolized by the possession and use of a penis results from the unconscious meaning of the phallus for both men and women. Whatever works well is represented i n the unconscious by the phallus. Grunberger demon­ strates i n his essay on " T h e Phallic Image" that the phallus is the symbol of narcissistic wholeness. W h y is it that valor, creativity, i n ­ tegrity, and power are a l l , on different levels, symbolized by the male sex organ? I n order to attempt to answer to this question we shall consider the problems of castration and penis envy i n women. 11 The Female Castration Complex and Penis Envy "I've got one, a n d you've got n o n e ! " (Gay little song sung by a three-and­ a-half-year-old boy to his six-year-old sister.) O n the subject of penis envy Freud's views are opposed to those of Josine M i i l l e r , Karen Horney, Melanie K l e i n , and Ernest Jones. Freud holds that, u n t i l puberty, there is a phallic sexual monism, and therefore a total sexual identity between boys and girls up t i l l the development of the castration complex. A c c o r d i n g to H£l£ne Deutsch, who agrees w i t h Freud on these points, the little g i r l has no complete sexual organ from the age of four (age of the castra­ tion complex) to puberty—she has only her clitoris, which is seen as a castrated penis. She has no vagina as she has not yet discov­ W e can u n ­ ered it and does not even know of it unconsciously. derstand easily why Freud and those who followed h i m i n his theory o n female sexuality believed penis envy to be a primary phe­ 12 Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex x 11 nomenon and fundamental to women's psychosexuality, since the little g i r l wants to compensate for the instinctual and narcissistic defects w h i c h mark most of her childhood. A u t h o r s who do not agree w i t h Freud's theory of female sex­ uality refuse to consider woman as "un homme manque " (Jones). A c c o r d i n g to these authors the vagina is the first sexual organ to be l i b i d i n a l l y cathected. T h e little g i r l is a woman from the start. T h e cathexis of the clitoris is secondary and serves a defensive function w i t h regard to conflicts concerning genital impulses l i n k e d to the vagina: " T h e undiscovered vagina is a vagina d e n i e d " (Karen H o r ­ ney). 1 These authors agree that repression of vaginal impulses is due to narcissistic anxieties concerned w i t h attacks against the inside of the body. Therefore, the erotic cathexis is transferred to the clitoris, a safer, external sexual o r g a n . T h i s throws a new light on the theory of penis envy. Josine M i i l l e r believes that self-esteem is l i n k e d to the satis­ faction of the impulses peculiar to one's own sex. Penis envy, there­ fore, is due to the narcissistic w o u n d resulting from unsatisfied geni­ tal (vaginal) desires, w h i c h have been repressed. F o r K a r e n H o r n e y penis envy results from certain characteristics of the penis (its visibility, the fact that its m i c t u r i ­ tion is i n the form of a jet, and so o n ) , but also from a fear of the vagina w h i c h exists i n both sexes. I n the g i r l such fears are re­ lated to her O e d i p a l desire to be penetrated by the father's penis, which becomes fearful because she attributes to it a power of de­ struction. A c c o r d i n g to M e l a n i e K l e i n , the libidinal desire for the penis is a primary one. It is first of a l l an oral desire, the prototype of vaginal desire. T h e fulfillment of this desire is l i n k e d to the fantasy of sadistically taking the paternal penis from the mother, who has i n ­ corporated it. T h i s results i n fear of retaliation from the mother, who might try to w o u n d or destroy the inside of the girl's body. Therefore, penis envy can be related to the following ideas i n the girl's unconscious: By using the external organ she demonstrates her fears are unfounded, testing them against reality. She regards the penis as a weapon to satisfy her sadistic desires toward her mother (cleaving to her so as to tear away the penis which is hidden inside her, to drown her i n a jet of corrosive urine, etc.). T h e guilt result­ i n g from these fantasies may make her wish to return the penis which she has stolen from the mother, and thus restitute her by re­ gressing to an active homosexual position for which the possession of a penis is necessary. 13 14 112 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y Ernest Jones follows M e l a n i e Klein's theory of penis envy i n his article " T h e P h a l l i c Phase" (1932) centering his ideas on the primary characteristic of the "receptive" cathexes of a l l the orifices of a woman's body (her mouth, anus, vagina). A l l these authors attribute a large part i n female psychosex­ uality to the father and to penis envy, whereas F r e u d believed the Oedipus complex to be m a i n l y masculine. R u t h M a c k Brunswick thought female neuroses lack an " O e d i p u s complex" and J . L a m p l de Groot claims that the paternal image really exists for the little g i r l only when once she is six, and maintains, that u n t i l that age, the relation w i t h the father is the same as the child's relation w i t h any other member of the household: sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile, according to her mood. I n his article on "Female Sexuality" (1931) Freud argues against the secondary nature of penis envy, because the woman's envy is so violent that it can only have drawn its energy from pri­ mary instincts. I believe that the fact that there may be primary receptive instincts i n women, be they oral, anal, or v a g i n a l , does not pre­ vent penis envy from being primary, too. However, even if one holds that a female sexual impulse exists right from the start, that the little g i r l has an adequate organ of w h i c h she has some certain knowledge, i n other words, that she has a l l the instinctual equip­ ment, yet we learn from clinical experience that from a narcissistic point of view the girl feels painfully incomplete. I believe the cause of this feeling of incompleteness is to be found i n the primary rela­ tion w i t h the mother and w i l l therefore be found i n children of both sexes. 15 The Omnipotent Mother I n the article she wrote w i t h Freud, " T h e Pre-Oedipal Phase of the L i b i d o Development" (1940), R u t h M a c k Brunswick insists on the powerful character of the p r i m i t i v e maternal imago ("She is not only active, phallic, but omnipotent"). She shows that the first ac­ tivity to xohich the child is submitted is the mother's. T h e transi­ tion passage from passivity to activity is achieved by an identifica­ tion with the mother's activity. Because of his dependence on the omnipotent mother "who is capable of everything and possesses every valuable attribute" the c h i l d obviously sustains "early narcis­ sistic injuries from the mother" which "enormously increases the child's hostility." I believe that a child, whether male or female, even w i t h the best and kindest of mothers, w i l l maintain a terrifying maternal Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 113 image i n his unconscious, the result of projected hostility deriving from his own impotence. T h i s powerful image, symbolic of a l l that is bad, does not exclude an omnipotent, protective imago (witch and fairy), varying according to the mother's real characteristics. However, the child's primary powerlessness, the intrinsic characteristics of his psychophysiological condition, and the inevita­ ble frustrations of training are such that the imago of the good, om­ nipotent mother never covers over that of the terrifying, omnipotent, bad mother. It seems to me that when the little boy becomes conscious that this omnipotent mother has no penis and that he, subdued so far by her omnipotence, has an organ w h i c h she has not, this forms an important factor i n his narcissistic development. Analysts have mainly stressed the horror (the "Abscheu") the little boy feels when he realizes that his mother has no penis, since it means to h i m that she has been castrated, thus confirming his idea that such a terrifying possibility exists. T h i s i n turn may lead to fetishistic perversion and certain kinds of homosexuality. Few people take note of Freud's other statements stressing the nar­ cissistic satisfaction felt by the little boy at the thought that he has an organ which women do not have. T h u s , F r e u d says (in a note on exhibitionism added to the Three Essays i n 1920): " I t is a means of constantly insisting upon the integrity of the subject's own (male) genitals and it reiterates his infantile satisfaction at the ab­ sence of a penis i n those of women." Elsewhere, F r e u d mentions the little boy's triumphant disdain for the other sex. H e believes that this feeling of t r i u m p h (a note i n Group Psychology and the Analy­ sis of the Ego) always arises from a convergence of the ego and the ego ideal. So it is indeed a narcissistic satisfaction, a t r i u m p h at last, over the omnipotent mother. In his 1927 article on " F e t i s h i s m " F r e u d pointed out the am­ bivalent role of the fetish. It is supposed to conceal the horrifying castration while it is at the same time the means of its possible rep­ aration. F r e u d says of the fetishist that "to point out that he re­ verses his fetish is not the whole story; i n many cases he treats it i n a way which is obviously equivalent to a representation of castra­ tion," and at this point F r e u d refers to the people who cut off braids. W h e n considering the Chinese custom of m u t i l a t i n g wom­ en's feet and then venerating them, which he believes to be analo­ gous to fetishism, F r e u d states: " I t seems as though the Chinese male wants to thank the woman for having submitted to being cas­ trated." Countless clinical details relating to both sexes testify to the 16 1 7 18 114 F E M A L E SEXUALITY frequency and wealth of wishes to castrate the mother of her breast and of her phallus. If it were not for this deep satisfaction and its as­ sociated horror, the fantasy of the castrated mother w o u l d probably be less forceful. Is it not at this point that myths begin to prevail over scien­ tific thought? A r e we not a l l tempted to talk as Freud d i d of "the castrated condition of w o m e n / ' or of "the necessity for women to accept their castration," or as R u t h M a c k Brunswick put it, " T h e real quality of the representation of the castrated mother and the fantasy quality of the phallic mother," instead of p u t t i n g these two representations back under the sway of the pleasure principle? Images of woman as deficient, as containing a hole or wound, seem to me to be a denial of the imagoes of the p r i m i t i v e mother; this is true for both sexes, but i n women identification with such an imago leads to deep guilt. T h e protective imago of the good omnipotent mother and the terrifying imago of the bad omnipotent mother are both i n op­ position to this representation of the castrated mother. Generous breast, fruitful womb, softness, warmth, wholeness, abundance, harvest the earth, a l l symbolize the mother. Frustration, invasion, intrusion, evil, illness, death, a l l sym­ bolize the mother. I n comparison w i t h the ideal qualities attributed to the early mother-image, the fall of the "castrated" mother appears to result from a deep desire to free oneself from her domination and evil qualities. T h e little boy's t r i u m p h over the omnipotent mother has many effects o n his future relations with women. Bergler points out that m a n attempts to reverse the infantile situation experienced w i t h the mother and live out actively what he has endured pas­ sively, thus turning her into the dependent c h i l d he had been. T h i s idea seems to be supported by certain aspects of woman's role, often noted by other authors. One also observes i n patients the narcissistic effect of a man's realization that his mother does not possess a penis. If the little boy has not been traumatized by the omnipotent mother, if her attitude has been neither too restraining, nor too i n ­ vasive, he w i l l be sufficiently reassured by the possession of his penis to dispense w i t h constant reiteration of the triumphant feeling he once experienced. T h e need to reverse the situation might be re­ stricted to a protective attitude toward women (this is not neces­ sarily a reaction formation; it might be a way of l i n k i n g his need for mastery to his love). B u t if the c h i l d was a fecal part-object Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 115 serving to satisfy the mother's desire for power and authority, then the child's future object-relations w i t h women w i l l be deeply affected.™ In analysis we rarely encounter male patients who show de­ fused anal-sadistic impulses i n a pure state, nor do we find mothers i n analyses who satisfy perverse desires through their children. B u t many male patients present contained sexual and relational prob­ lems, linked to a need for a specific form of narcissistic gratification which we regard as being the result of regression to the phallic-nar­ cissistic phase. It seems that Jones's description of the deutero-phallic phase i n boys (with narcissistic overestimation of the penis, withdrawal of object-libido and lack of desire to penetrate sexually and certain as­ pects of ejaculatio praecox noted by Abraham) are to be found i n these narcissistic-phallic men who have been disturbed i n their early relation w i t h the mother. T h e y lack confidence i n the narcissistic value of the penis and constantly have to put it to the proof; theirs is the "little penis" complex, they regard a sexual relation as narcis­ sistic reassurance rather than an object relationship of m u t u a l value. 20 Such men constantly doubt their t r i u m p h over women, as they doubt the fact that she has no penis, and are always fearful of finding one concealed i n the vagina. T h i s leads to ejaculation ante portas, i n order to avoid such a dangerous encounter. T h e fantasy represents not only the paternal phallus but also (as Jones pointed out) the destructive anal penis of the omnipotent m o t h e r . B u t , i n general, possessing the penis proves to be the satisfac­ tory narcissistic answer to the little boy's primary relation w i t h his mother. L i k e the boy, the little girl, too, has been narcissistically wounded by the mother's omnipotence—maybe even more than he, for the mother does not cathect her daughter i n the same way that she cathects her son. B u t the g i r l cannot free herself from this om­ nipotence as she has nothing w i t h which to oppose the mother, no narcissistic virtue the mother does not also possess. She w i l l not be able to "show her" her independence (I think this expression relates to phallic exhibitionism). So she w i l l envy the boy his penis and say that he can "do everything." I see penis envy not as "a virility claim" to something one wants for its own sake, but as a revolt against the person who caused the narcissistic wound: the omnipo­ tent mother. C l i n i c a l experience often shows that penis envy is stronger 21 1 16 F E M A L E SEXUALITY and more difficult to resolve when the daughter has been trauma­ tized by a domineering mother. T h e narcissistic wound aroused by the child's helplessness and by penis envy are closely related. Realization that possession of the penis presents the possibil­ ity of healing the narcissistic wound imposed by the omnipotent mother helps to explain some of the unconscious significance of the penis, whether it is that of a treasure of strength, integrity, magic power, or autonomy. I n the idea connected w i t h this organ we find condensed a l l the primitive ideas of power. T h i s power be­ comes then the prerogative of the man, who by attracting the mother destroyed her power. Since women lack this power they come to envy the one who possesses the penis. T h u s , woman's envy has its source i n her conflict with her mother and must seek satisfac­ tion through aggression (that is, what she considers to be aggres­ sion) toward her love object, the father. A n y achievement which provides her w i t h narcissistic pleasure w i l l be felt as an encroach­ ment on the father's power, thereby leading to many inhibitions, as already mentioned. In fact there is often an unfortunate connection between violent penis envy and the i n h i b i t i o n or fear of satisfying this envy. T h e connection arises because penis envy derives from conflict with the mother, giving rise to idealization of the father, which must be maintained thereafter. 2 2 I think that women's fear of castration can be explained by this equation of the narcissistic wound and the lack of a penis. Freud could see no reason for the little girl to fear castration as she had already undergone it. T h i s led h i m to alter his proposition that all anxieties were castration fears to that i n Inhibitions, Symptoms, Anxiety (1936), i n which he claimed that woman's fear of losing love is the equivalent of castration anxiety. Jones pointed out that fears of castration do exist i n women since they have as many fears about the future as men have; he also stressed the importance of fears about the integrity of their internal organs. I n fact, the fears of both sexes are similar (fear of going b l i n d , being paralyzed, becoming mad, having cancer, having an ac­ cident, failing, and so on). I n the unconscious, a l l narcissistic fears at any level are equivalent to castration, because of the narcissistic value given to the phallus by both sexes. T h u s , women as well as men constantly fear castration; even if they already have lost the penis, there are still many other things w i t h a phallic meaning which one might lose. A n d men as well as women experience penis envy because each attempt to compensate a deficiency implies a phallic acquisition. T h e fear of loss or of castration centers i n the Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 117 mother as it is from her the daughter wishes to escape, at the same time that she gives herself a penis and turns to the father. D u r i n g the change of object even though retaining the un­ conscious image of the p h a l l i c mother the daughter fully realizes that the father is the only true possessor of the penis. T h e change of object and the development of the O e d i p a l situation come about only when the imago of the phallic mother has become that of a mother who has dispossessed the father of his penis. I n order to ac­ quire the penis the g i r l now turns to her father just as her mother did; she does this w i t h a l l the guilt we have discussed earlier, grap­ p l i n g w i t h both her parents at the same time, and also attacking the loved object. As Freud said, she turns to the father to acquire the penis, but her fears, owing to the temporary split between her l i b i d i n a l and aggressive cathexes at the time of the change of object, are tied to the mother, the guilt to the father. I believe that it is at this stage that the imago of the phallic mother who holds in herself the paternal penis (Melanie Klein) be­ comes much more important than the imago of the phallic mother who on her own possesses a phallus. Even if this latter imago persist i n the unconscious it is not the prevailing one. B u t the father's penis, the mothers property, loses its genital and positive character­ istics and acquires the same intrusive, destructive, anal properties of the phallic mother's own penis, thereby being cathected i n the same way as its owner. If the imago of the phallic mother as possessor of a penis re­ mains the more important one, then the homosexual situation threatens to establish itself permanently, but if the imago of the mother as holder of the paternal penis dominates, the triangular situation begins i n outline. In Freud's view, then, the girl turns away from her mother in order to acquire a penis; and by turning to the father enters the positive Oedipus phase. If, however, penis envy is caused by the desire to liberate oneself from the mother, as I propose, the sequence of events is be envious of somewhat different: the g i r l w i l l simultaneously the penis and turn to her father, powerfully aided by a basic femi­ nine wish to free herself from the mother. T h u s , penis envy and the erotic desire for a penis are not opposed to each other but comple­ mentary, and if symbolic satisfaction of the former is achieved this becomes a step forward toward integration of the latter. In his article on "Manifestations of the Female Castration 1 18 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y C o m p l e x " (1921), K a r l A b r a h a m states that women who have pro­ fessional ambitions thereby manifest their penis envy. T h i s can be demonstrated c l i n i c a l l y , but I think the desire to fulfill oneself i n any field, professional or otherwise, as well as penis envy, spring from the same narcissistic wound, and is therefore an attempt at rep­ aration. Freud i n his essay on narcissism states that once the p r i ­ mary stage of narcissism is passed, personal achievement provides narcissistic rewards. It is important to take this into account i n ana­ lytic treatment. If one interprets desire for achievement as the man­ ifestation of "masculine demands" (as A b r a h a m d i d w i t h regard to professional activities), if women's professional desires are invariably interpreted as penis envy, there is a risk of awakening profound guilt feelings. I believe that if one accepts that penis envy is caused by a deep narcissistic wound, then one is able to b i n d this wound as well as open the way to a normal Oedipus conflict. Sexuality itself is often seen as men's prerogative and, i n fact, from a symbolic point of view normal female sexuality (a vagina which functions nor­ mally) can be regarded as the possession of a phallus, due to the fact that the penis represents wholeness even i n regard to orgasm. Certain analysts, basing their views on this fantasy go so far as to say that normal women never have an orgasm. T h i s is tantamount to acquiescing to the patients' guilt, leading indeed to castration not only of the penis but also of the vagina and of the whole of femi­ ninity. Basically, penis envy is the symbolic expression of another desire. W o m e n do not wish to become men, but want to detach themselves from the mother and become complete, autonomous women. 23 24 Penis Envy as a Defense and Fears for the Integrity of the Ego I do not wish to ignore the role of penis envy as a feminine defense. I have insisted upon guilt because this aspect of female psychosex­ uality seems to have been more neglected than that of the narcis­ sistic fears for the ego*s integrity. M a n y women want a penis to avoid being penetrated, since penetration is felt as a threat to their integrity; they want to cas­ trate this dangerous penis i n order to prevent it from approaching them. B u t then one wonders, which penis? I n the preceding article, " T h e Change of Object," LuquetParat suggests that, if penetration is desired and imagined as a dan­ ger for body as well as ego integrity, that is, if the penis continues to represent exaggerated phallic power (the immense penis the lit­ tle g i r l desires, too big i n comparison with her, is the heir to the i n ­ vading, destructive, annihilating phallic power of the primitive ma­ 2 5 Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 119 ternal phallus), then sexual penetration is experienced as an intolerable desire w h i c h the ego cannot accept, since it is i n contra­ diction to self-preservation. I agree w i t h D r . Luquet-Parat that this destructive penis is the equivalent of the maternal phallus of the anal phase; this, i n turn, is l i n k e d for the g i r l w i t h persecution and passive homosexual attitudes and provides the basis for paranoia i n women. I n these cases I wonder if one can truly speak of a "change of object" (since emotions concerning the paternal penis are the same as they had been for the mother's phallus). It may be more correct to say that this was already part of the positive O e d i p a l situation. T h e "transfer" to the father of what was invested i n the mother and the fact that these cathexes are equal (as the projec­ tions have simply been displaced) seem to point to the creation of a mechanism of defense aimed at escaping the dangerous relation w i t h the p h a l l i c mother by establishing a relation w i t h the father. B u t this mechanism of defense fails because the projections remain the same while the two objects are insufficiently differentiated. It seems as if i n these cases the father d i d not adequately sup­ port the projection of the good aspects of the object, because the primitive object itself was particularly bad. T h e process of idealiza­ tion could not be established and thus could not allow for the true triangular situation. Castration as a defense and penis envy w h i c h prevents penetration seem to me to be l i n k e d m a i n l y to the p h a l l i c maternal imago even though they appear to take the father as their aim. T h e latter does not yet have the attributes of the paternal role and only plays the role of a substitute for the mother, who possesses the destructive anal p h a l l u s . Fears for ego integrity are best analyzed from the angle of passive homosexuality and identifications and provide a deeper u n ­ derstanding of the meaning of this narcissistic defense against pene­ tration by the penis (unconsciously, the mother's phallus), w h i c h causes so many conjugal difficulties. W o m e n who attack and castrate their husbands have unconsciously married the bad mother, and this is often equally true for the husband. F r e u d noticed that many women marry mother substitutes and act ambivalently toward them. I believe this results both from O e d i p a l guilt (one must not take the father from the mother; not incorporate the father's penis) and the repetition compulsion. T h e issue here is to master the trau­ matic childhood situation, to live out actively what has been pas­ sively experienced, rather than integrated, i n relation to the mother. I n this case the relationship is homosexual. 26 120 F E M A L E SEXUALITY It does happen—and this is a proof that the husband does not represent the father i n this case—that the idealized paternal imago remains untouched and identical with the ideal portrait cre­ ated by the little girl. For example, Adrienne, a young and pretty mother, who has made an important advance i n the social and financial scale, has re­ tained a genuine simplicity. She tells me that she married her hus­ band on the spur of the moment. A t the time she was "going out" w i t h a young man whom she loved, but for some reason which she cannot explain she yielded to her present husband's proposal. H e is a rather sadistic man who beats her and makes perverse demands u p o n her. A t the same time he is very attentive to her, which gives h i m an eminently ambiguous position i n her eyes. She is full of bit­ terness toward h i m and grievances: he deprives her of her freedom; he does not let her gad about, or h u m to herself, or whistle; he de­ mands that she wear a girdle, etc. O n top of this he is unfaithful to her. It soon became obvious that this husband was an equivalent of Adrienne's mother, who used to take her things away, keep her under her control, force her to work, and never stop pestering her. W h e n the mother was angry at mealtimes she would throw forks at the children's heads. F r o m the very beginning this aspect of the mother was pro­ jected onto me, and at the outset the analysis was very difficult, es­ pecially as she had not come of her own accord but only because her husband insisted on it. Yet she found sufficient satisfaction i n the treatment to keep up the analysis despite her pointedly hystero­ phobic character. T h u s , when she leaves at the end of her session, she feels that she has become very small, her handbag has become a satchel, she senses that I follow her everywhere: into the subway, the streets and even her bedroom. T h e smell of my flat follows her every­ where, too. I am always behind her, etc. (In spite of the content of her feelings, their relation and structure are not at a l l paranoiac, there is a true possibility of insight.) She liked her father but it was always the mother "who wore the trousers," who took the father's pay, controlling even the smallest expenditure, shutting h i m out if he came home late, etc. A d r i e n n e made an attempt at suicide the day her grand­ father had his leg amputated. Later, she visited h i m i n the hospital, went to m u c h trouble for h i m , pampered h i m , even wished to be­ come a nurse. T o this day, every month she goes and gives her Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 121 blood at the hospital (the links between the suicide attempt, the grandfather's amputation, and the efforts to put it right only be­ came clear late i n the analysis; they came up as separate facts, be­ cause they were unconscious). T h i s grandfather is the mother's father whom the mother treats w i t h indifference, hardly bothering or worrying about h i m , u n l i k e A d r i e n n e . W h e n he died, after a sec­ o n d amputation, Adrienne described her mother's attitude at the grandfather's deathbed (the mother had stolen his cigarettes and his money) i n the following words: " H o w can she think of profiting from him? . . . I can see an animal i n the forest, something like a huge w i l d boar surrounded by hunters. T h e y are trying to strip h i m of everything he has." H e r husband had then gone h u n t i n g . H e had sent her some game which she could not b r i n g herself to eat. Adrienne's attitude to her husband is quite different from her attitude to her father or grandfather. She openly attacks h i m , forces h i m to give her money, a personal car, etc., without any i n h i b i t i o n whatsoever. She ridicules h i m , thinks he looks like a clown a n d says so i n front of h i m . O n e day, the imago she had projected onto her husband be­ came clear: " I n his dressing-gown he looks amazingly like my mother-in­ law." N o t long before this, she had a dream i n w h i c h her mother was dressed u p as a priest i n a robe. She sometimes projects onto me the good image of the ideal­ ized father, the v i c t i m of the mother's castration, at other times the image of the p h a l l i c mother, w i t h w h o m she wishes and fears an anal relation, experiencing once again the intrusive sphincter-train­ i n g period. " I can still feel you behind me, I a m frightened. . . . I don't want to speak. I can feel you're going to interrogate me and I'm frightened. It's stupid; i n fact, you never do ask questions . . . or, at least, not i n that way. . . . I shall say n o t h i n g . " " T h e image of my husband is haunting me. I keep thinking of h i m , and yet he infuriates me. I don't want to make love to h i m . . . . I dreamed of a rat whose claws were p i n c h i n g my daughter's b o t t o m . . . ." It seems to me obvious that the relationships to the husband and to me i n the transference express a defense against a passive homosexual relation w i t h the p h a l l i c mother, whom she attacks, whom she defies, whom she castrates i n order to prevent her ap­ proach and i n order to prove that there is no collusion between F E M A L E 122 SEXUALITY them; whereas her relation w i t h her father is based on a counter­ identification w i t h the phallic mother a n d so o n an idealization of the paternal image she is trying to restore. T h e relation with the phallic husband-mother is connected w i t h narcissistic fears for the body ego, whereas the relation to the father-grandfather is connected with guilt. ill A Confiictual The Outcome Daughter's of Feminine Identification Problems: with the Father's Penis OEDIPUS. T h i s g i r l is my eyes, stranger, my daughter. ANTIGONE. OEDIPUS. ANTIGONE. Father, we are yours. Where are you? Near you, father. (They go toward him.) OEDIPUS. O h , my torches! i sMENE. O f your light, father. ANTIGONE. I n suffering and i n joy. OEDIPUS. L e t death come, I shall be alone at the time of my extinction, resting o n these columns like a T e m p l e . (Translated from Jean Oedipus at Colonus.) Gillibert's French version of Sophocles' I have tried to show that the idealization of the father, a pro­ cess which underlies the change of object, can result i n a specific conflict for the woman i n the area of sadistic-anal instinctual com­ ponents, thereby rendering difficult the instinctual fusion required for normal sexuality, as well as interfering w i t h any achievement necessary to healthy narcissistic e q u i l i b r i u m . W e have already referred to Freud's idea, i n " O n Narcissism, A n Introduction," according to which "everything a person pos­ sesses, or achieves, every remnant of the primitive feeling of omnip­ otence which his experience has confirmed, helps to increase his self­ regard." B u t i n the same work Freud also suggested another possibil­ ity for narcissistic support: the object's love for us: " I n love relations not being loved lowers the self-regard, while being loved raises i t . " It seems that many women unconsciously choose Freud's second solution to the need for narcissistic gratifications, because they can­ 27 2 8 Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 123 not freely a n d without guilt fulfill themselves through their per­ sonal achievements. I do not think this choice necessarily implies an incapacity for object love. Indeed, according to Freud ("Instincts and T h e i r Vicissitudes"), " I f the object becomes a source of pleasurable feel­ ings, a motor urge is set up w h i c h seeks to b r i n g the object closer to the ego and to incorporate it into the ego. W e then speak of the 'at­ traction' exercised by the pleasure-giving object, and we say that we 'love' that object." T h u s , love is first of a l l a response to satisfaction, that is, an answer to the love w h i c h the object gives us. T h e two states—loving and being loved—are therefore correlative, and loving implies the desire to renew, to perpetuate the agreeable experience and the love one has received, by incorporating the object i n the ego. I n fact one often gives love i n order to be loved by the object. Further discus­ sion of this subject w o u l d lead us to examine the essence of love it­ self, but that w o u l d take us far beyond our present purpose. Here I wished to state above a l l that the conflictual outcome, when partly based on guilt, necessarily implies consideration for the object, and therefore love, even if the a i m is at the same time to find satisfaction for narcissistic needs. 29 I believe this to be a very common female attitude, and one which can be interpreted as an identification w i t h the part-object, the father's penis. I am not referring to woman's identification w i t h an autonomous phallus, but to an identification w i t h the penis as such, that is a complementary and totally dependent part of the ob­ ject. Identification of oneself w i t h an autonomous phallus results i n a pathological form of secondary narcissism. T h e ego is l i b i d i ­ nally overcathected and shielded from external objects without which the l i n k w i t h reality is broken. Favreau (personal communi­ cation) stresses the importance of the narcissistic characteristics pe­ culiar to this situation: the woman who identifies w i t h the phallus desires only to be desired. She establishes herself as a phallus; this implies impenetrability and therefore withdrawal from any relation with an external erotic object. Some of these characteristics can be compared w i t h those found i n masculine narcissistic-phallic regres­ sion. T h i s sort of phallic identification is traceable i n models ("mannequins"), ballerinas (though, of course, many other compo­ nents make up a true artist's character), vamps, etc. T h e phallus woman resembles, more than any other woman, what Freud de­ 124 F E M A L E SEXUALITY scribed as the narcissistic woman whose fascination, similar to that of a c h i l d , is l i n k e d w i t h her "inaccessibility" like "the charm of cer­ tain animals which seem not to concern themselves about us, such as cats and the large beasts of prey" ("On Narcissism, A n Introduc­ t i o n , " 1925). Further on F r e u d mentions the "enigmatic nature" and the "cold and narcissistic" attitude these women have toward men. Rather than seeing i n this the essence of women's object rela­ tions, I see it as an identification w i t h an autonomous phallus. Is it not true that men admire the phallus i n these women more than the women themselves? If I have dwelt at such length on this description of woman's identification w i t h the autonomous phallus, it is because I wish to avoid confusing it w i t h the position I am now going to discuss— that of the paternal-penis woman. Far from being autonomous w i t h regard to the object, she is closely dependent on it and is also its complement. She is the right hand, the assistant, the colleague, the secretary, the auxiliary, the inspiration for an employer, a lover, a husband, a father. She may also be a companion for o l d age, guide, or nurse. One sees the basic conflicts underlying such relationships i n c l i n i c a l practice. T h e autonomous phallus-woman, is similar to the woman de­ scribed i n C o n r a d Stein's article " L a Castration comme negation de la teminit£" (Revue jrangaise de psychanalyse, 1961). Stein re­ lates this problem to bisexuality and to the dialectic of " b e i n g " and " h a v i n g . " I think it is necessary to distinguish i n metapsychology between " b e i n g " as identification w i t h the total object one w o u l d like to "have," and " b e i n g " the other person's " t h i n g , " as an identi­ fication w i t h the part-object. T h i s latter position seems to be l i n k e d w i t h the subject's reparative tendencies and results from a counter­ identification w i t h the mother's castration of the father d u r i n g the p r i m a l scene. I n this case the daughter remains closely dependent o n the object she makes complete. A l i c e is a thirty-eight-year-old woman, small, lively, and full of humor. She is the best friend of a colleague who entrusted her to me, saying that she was "the apple of his eye." I n Alice's case this expression was full of meaning. A l i c e came to analysis after undergoing an operation for the removal of a neoplastic tumor. T h e illness naturally aroused deep narcissistic fears, but even more important was the fact that the seriousness of her illness had allowed her to do something for herself for once. H e r marriage situation suddenly became unbearable. She was an only c h i l d . H e r mother was a severe and demanding school teacher, Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 125 her father a k i n d and sentimental man who grew flowers and vines i n his garden and wrote naive and delicate poems. H e w o u l d say to A l i c e when she was little, " Y o u are the prettiest little g i r l i n the w o r l d . " E v e n today A l i c e sometimes wakes up and asks her husband if she really is "the prettiest little g i r l i n the w o r l d . " B u t A l i c e d i d not recognize her love for her father. She said her father "revolted" her, she d i d not like his kisses, he annoyed her, she felt like pushing h i m down the stairs, especially when he had had a bit too m u c h homemade wine. " A t those times," said A l i c e , " h i s eyes were very very small." H e was clumsy and missed the glass as he poured out the wine. A l i c e d i d not understand why she felt irritated by this father whose love could also b r i n g her to tears. Alice's relation w i t h her mother was based on a mixture of fear and the desire to be held o n her lap again and have body con­ tact w i t h her as she was when very small. A l i c e avoided telling her mother that she had a malignant tumor because her mother de­ spised illness and weakness. W h e n A l i c e was little she never dared c o m p l a i n nor tell her mother for instance that her sweater made of rough wool itched nor that her socks were too tight. Alice's fantasy of the p r i m a l scene was a sadistic one, the mother p l a y i n g the role of a castrating and sadistic person. She studied at the N a t i o n a l Academy of M u s i c and married a gifted composer. Once married she gave u p her career, saying that "one artist i n the family is enough." She suffered from eczema, particularly at her son's b i r t h ; she feels the need for a nonconflictual fusion w i t h the object (the ana­ lyst i n the transference; the "allergic object r e l a t i o n " described by Pierre Marty). A t one point i n the treatment she expressed the need for fusion i n the following fantasy: She is on a lake i n a foam-rubber boat w i t h an opening only big enough to let i n a little air. B u t when she thinks of this open­ i n g she sees flies and insects coming to bother her. It became clear that these were her aggressive instincts which she had to leave outside the w o r l d of fusion. She associated the boat w i t h a cradle and the mother's womb. B u t on the level of the triangular relationship the fusion was between her and the gen­ tle, k i n d father (heir to the mother u p o n whose lap it was so nice to sit), the mother representing her own aggressive instincts which needed to be repressed.'Before and at the beginning of the analysis, A l i c e dreamed of empty flats; she associated them w i t h the parcels she used to receive from her father's house, w h i c h annoyed her and w h i c h she d i d not want to open. Yet one day, opening a parcel 126 F E M A L E SEXUALITY from her father, she cried because she was so touched and thus ex­ pressed the pleasure she could have felt at accepting her father's love and presents. It became obvious that her rejection of her father was only a superficial defense and that her difficulties with incorpo­ ration (empty houses) were not related solely to narcissistic fears of damage. I cannot give a detailed account of Alice's analysis, but she d i d express strong guilt about her anal-sadistic instinctual impulses toward the father and his penis. T h u s , she dreamed she had a shrimp-child which had dried up between the pages of a book. She felt very guilty at having killed h i m . She associated this w i t h her father's body. I n another dream a baby put i n her mother's care was dying of dehydration. After a frantic race she managed to arrive just i n time to save h i m . She noticed her mother was feeding the baby w i t h a bottle full of dirty water. Etc. T h i s guilt became increasingly obvious i n the transference. For example, she thought of offering me a reproduction of a paint­ ing by C h a g a l l w h i c h represented a rooster. She associated this with childhood fantasies i n which a woman wandered the roads w i t h a rooster on a leash. I n the sessions I am about to discuss this appears as a penis which has to be restored to the father. For some time Alice had been feeling guilty toward me, t h i n k i n g she was not paying me enough money. H e r husband, also i n analysis, was paying a much higher fee. A l i c e arrives at her session at 11:30, lies down, and wonders if she is on time. Is her ses­ sion at 11:20 or 11:40? She cannot remember even though she has come at the same time since the beginning of her analysis and is on time today. She continues by listing a series of things " w h i c h are not going w e l l . " T h e windows i n her apartment are broken, and she cannot get the caretaker to send someone r o u n d to repair them (this question of windows has taken up a great deal of the analysis lately); with her husband things are not going well, she cannot stand it any longer. She fails i n what she attempts. She asks me if she has arrived early or late. I say: " I t seems as if one of us must give u p something (ten minutes from you or ten minutes from me) and you are trying to show me that it is you who loses, that you are diminished by everyone i n every way. " A t the next session A l i c e gets muddled about the time of her appointment and arrives half an hour early. After going away and coming back at the usual time she lies down and says: " O n e of my eyes is r u n n i n g , it stings. By the way my eye al­ ways runs when I come here." Silence. " O h ! W e l l what do you know! B u t I never told you that my father had his eye put out, Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 127 right i n front of me when I was little. I don't remember how o l d I was . . . maybe eight. W e used to go together i n the fields and he suddenly put his foot down on some barbed wire which flew i n the air and hit h i m i n the eye. H o w amazing that I never told you about that. M y r u n n i n g eye is on the same side as my father's. N o w I suddenly understand why I was fascinated for so long by the G a l ­ ton portrait game, i n which one glues both left sides and both right sides together. Because of his eye my father has two very different profiles. W h e n I was little I used to imagine the story of a little girl who had one dark and one light eye." H e r dark eye was due to the fact that she went to school by a path sunk between two very dark walls and the light eye was due to the fact that these walls suddenly gave way to a dazzling courtyard f u l l of bits of glass, etc. . . . T h i s session was one of the most important i n Alice's analy­ sis as it allowed her to understand better and experience certain as­ pects of her object relations through the specially symbolized details i n her fantasy (her love of big, transparent, amber pearls, her worry about the windows i n her flat, her hatred of symmetry, etc.). T h i s historical event is important inasmuch as it "crystallized" a series of emotions l i n k e d to the father and his penis; the event was traumatic because Alice's aggressive fantasies had been confirmed i n reality. H e r annoyance w i t h her father, w i t h his "small eyes" when he was drunk, w i t h his clumsiness (Alice never associated the "small eyes" w i t h the event of his eye being put out), were struggles against guilt: "It is not my fault my father had this accident, i n fact there was no accident, he had only d r u n k a little and that is why he had those " s m a l l eyes." H e can see perfectly well, he is only clumsy. I must not approach h i m , accept his love, because any contact be­ tween us is dangerous. I must reject my father, that is the only de­ sire I have toward h i m . " B u t unconsciously a l l Alice's object rela­ tions are dominated by the desire to heal her father, as an atonement for her guilty desires toward h i m . Alice, who never took f u l l advantage of her musical k n o w l ­ edge, is very clever w i t h her hands and can achieve amazing things i n carpentry and handiwork. She is p r o u d of these activities, even though she deprecates herself i n so many others. D u r i n g her analy­ sis, she thinks of taking up some professional activity. A t the begin­ n i n g of his career her husband had written some commercial songs to earn money. She had contributed the m a i n ideas for these, so he now suggested that she write her own songs. B u t she says she is i n ­ capable of doing that—she could never be inspired unless the song could be considered as his creation. D u r i n g one session the unconscious meaning of her h a n d i ­ ia8 F E M A L E SEXUALITY craft becomes clear. First of a l l she mentions her present difficulty over d r i v i n g a car, a difficulty i n total contrast to the facility w i t h w h i c h she drove her father i n a car, since he was incapacitated by the accident to his eye. " D a d d y was very p r o u d of me then." She as­ sociated this w i t h her difficulty i n remembering what I had told her d u r i n g the previous session, yet she had fully understood what I had said. She said that if I were to repeat the beginning of what 1 had said, she w o u l d remember the rest of it. I n other words, if I were beside her she could drive but she could not take the initiative alone: that w o u l d have meant d r i v i n g for oneself, and she could not do that any more than she could write a song if it were not to be­ come her husband's. T h e n she mentioned a disagreeable woman who had an­ noyed her the previous day u n t i l she had suddenly learned that this woman d i d a lot of handicraft. " A l l my irritation w i t h her van­ ished, she d i d not seem aggressive or disagreeable any more, I thought she was very sweet." I n Alice's m i n d handicraft seemed to make the lady as innocent as it made A l i c e herself. One of her fantasies clarified the meaning of her attitudes and activities. She was going to Lourdes to sell miraculous, pious objects, virgins w i t h luminous eyes. She also invented medicines for sick animals. One can see that Alice's activities are aimed at replac­ ing the eye lost by her father. She is entirely involved i n her pro­ thetic function. She can only create, act, live, for someone of whom she becomes the complementary part, the penis. H e r love for her father meant that she could not take on an identification with the mother, castrating the father d u r i n g the p r i ­ m a l scene. A l l activity, a l l means of existing w h i c h could be symbol­ ized i n the unconscious as a penis, were forbidden her. Indeed, act­ i n g for oneself, being autonomous, creating for oneself meant possessing the paternal penis and thus castrating the father. A l i c e has disfused her instinctual impulses, counterca thee ted her aggres­ sion and offered herself as a replacement for the lost paternal penis, thus m a k i n g the loved object complete. T h e position is therefore a reaction formation. Alice's sexuality follows the same pattern. She seems free, but her choice of erotic objects shows that she is not. She is loved by several charming, cultivated gentlemen, much older than herself. T h e y court her i n a slightly discreet melancholic way. A l i c e only shows them kindness and friendship. One of them, who is married, has even decided, w i t h his wife's agreement, to adopt her as his daughter. T h i n k i n g about these "affairs," A l i c e remembers that ten Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 129 years ago, while being courted by one of these men, she went to the cafe where they usually met and encountered some young men, her " l i t t l e brothers/* seeing them for an obvious sexual purpose. These adventures always occurred d u r i n g her father's absence from Paris. T h i s is a classical defense against the Oedipus complex. B u t another fact more precisely locates the level of this defense: these gentlemen, A l i c e realizes, are nearly a l l Jewish. I n fact she only gets on well w i t h Jews. E v e n a badly educated m a n , if he is Jewish, attracts her. Perhaps it is because of their sense of humor, or their sadness, or their persecution. Sometimes, when A l i c e sees beggars, she is very upset. Once, w i t h a l u m p i n her throat, she gave one a lot of money, the notes rolled up into a ball. T h e n she realized he looked like her father. These conflicts were analyzed at great length. A l i c e , whose dream life had been poor, as though paralyzed, suddenly began to have many dreams and started recalling a l l her childhood. One se­ ries of dreams is particularly important. H a v i n g recalled the erotic games of her childhood, especially her favorite one of taking peo­ ple's temperatures, she remembers an adolescent dream: she was looking at the stars w i t h her mother and one constellation looked like an agitated man. She was the only one to see this i n the stars and she was going to go m a d because her head kept flopping onto her shoulder. She associated this w i t h the memory of witnessing a friend's epileptic fit. She feared that she too might have those terri­ ble convulsions. 30 N e x t , a transference dream. A faith healer noticed that she was emitting an excessively dangerous electric vibration. T h e next night the healer died, very probably of this vibration. Thereafter, every night A l i c e dreamed of corpses. T h e first one was that of the kindest of her o l d gentlemen; he was a l l broken up and was about to die when A l i c e called for a doctor. Strangely, the d y i n g man was taken to a sordid barn; the next night she dreamed that her husband was taken to a sinister clinic on the out­ skirts of Paris, w i t h the side of his body a l l black. T h e following night she dreamed that she was crying d u r i n g a session while I was e x p l a i n i n g that the police were coming, and I showed her a man's corpse w h i c h I kept i n a coffin. T h e police arrived and, quite unex­ pectedly—that was the worst punishment of all—they took away her father while she cried, and then she had to see h i m die i n a prison cell, while she stood by powerless, seeing his abject poverty. T h i s dream, i n which the i d disguises itself as the superego i n order to fulfill the desire of anally incorporating the paternal penis, was followed by a number of memories: sex play w i t h a farm­ 130 F E M A L E SEXUALITY hand who had shown her his penis, games w i t h a cousin i n the hayloft, the exciting smell of the granaries and cellars where the hams were hung and the cheese and wines matured. A t the same time A l i c e tells me that, for some incomprehensible reason, she has deliberately omitted telling me one fact: a good-looking rag-and­ bone man, w i t h dark eyes, came to empty their cellar. H e made ad­ vances to her, but although she refused them she was not indifferent to them. A s the price he was asking for emptying her cellar was too steep, she decided to do it herself. Once the cellar was empty, there was a huge carpet rolled up on the ground. W i t h a great effort A l i c e unrolled the carpet and very cleverly managed to hang it ver­ tically from the cellar ceiling and leave it there. Of course I cannot discuss here a l l the material from this se­ ries of sessions nor give details of the transference. I shall merely re­ count the two dreams which followed this last session, as they show i n an abbreviated form the shape of her development. A l i c e is going up the staircase i n my b u i l d i n g . She meets a handsome m a n who flirts w i t h her. H e is my husband. H e asks her when he can see her again, and A l i c e replies: " I come here three times a week." T h e following night A l i c e dreams that her father and mother are sleeping i n her flat. I n the middle of the night Alice's mother throws the father out of her room and he goes and sits on a stool i n the kitchen. Grieved because he cannot spend the whole night there, A l i c e offers to let h i m sleep w i t h her. A s the anal-sadistic incorporative desires toward the father's penis become conscious a true O e d i p a l situation is able to develop. T h e disfused instinct begins to appear under its own disfused aspect only to merge w i t h the cluster which makes u p genital primacy. W h e n the sadistic-anal instincts of incorporating the pater­ nal penis result i n guilt (as discussed at the beginning of this arti­ cle) they increase the possibility of the girl's identifying w i t h the father's penis. As we have shown, there is then an inversion of con­ tent and container, the woman identifying herself w i t h the penis i n the dangerous vagina—dangerous because of the sadistic-anal com­ ponent, the fecal stool i n the rectum. (This inversion is the m a i n symptom of claustrophobia; it also exists i n other structures.) T h e g i r l thus becomes the father's anal penis, she is a part of h i m and offers herself to his handling and mastery. Mastery, possession, or domination of the father, or of his substitutes (generally masculine ones), are forbidden to her. T h u s , A l i c e , asked to compose the music for a ballet, is very pleased and says: " T h e person who asked me to do it is a friend; I know his taste. T h e r e w i l l be no problem Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 131 i n doing it. B u t I would never dare accept a job from a stranger. H e might not like what I d i d . I w o u l d never dare impose my taste o n anybody/' I w o u l d readily see this as the source of one of woman's m a i n conflicts, that of being relative to men, just as nearly a l l of woman's cultural or social achievements are. W o m e n are said to produce few original works; they are often the brilliant disciple of a m a n or of a masculine theory. T h e y are rarely leaders of movements. T h i s is surely the effect of a conflict specific to women. I believe it is important, both from a clinical and from a technical point of view, to discuss this position which can be sco­ tomized because of the countertransference it causes. (I am here t h i n k i n g of my own clinical experience.) Certain patients, and this seems to be peculiar to women—for when this happens i n men the conflictual aspect of it is immediately obvious—are cured of their symptoms only i n order to make publicity for their analyst; they feel they are a successful product, and experience their analysis as though the future and the reputation of the analyst depended on it. (The aggression toward the object becomes self-destructive.) T h u s , one of my patients imagined she was a sandwichman advertising my name and address. T h i s reminded her of a brand of coffee whose advertising had taken the form of men disguised as cof­ fee packets w a l k i n g through Paris. C e r t a i n aspects of female masochism seem to be related to this position. One of the m a i n aspects of the masochistic character is the role of being "the other person's t h i n g . " " I am your thing. D o whatever you want to w i t h me," says the masochist to his partner. I n other words I am your fecal stool and you can deal w i t h me as you wish. One explanation of female masochism is to be found i n its l i n k w i t h the guilt of incorporating the penis i n a sadistic-anal way, as though women, i n order to achieve this incorporation, had to pretend to offer themselves entirely, i n place of the stolen penis, proposing that the partner do to her body, to her ego, to herself, what she had, i n fantasy, done to his penis. Grunberger had based his study of masochism (in both sexes) on the guilt associated w i t h anal introjection of the paternal penis, but the mechanism he discussed is not quite the same as the one I am here describing. T h e woman's superego seems also to be linked to her identi­ fication w i t h the paternal penis. W i t h o u t entering the discussion of whether her superego is stronger than man's (Melanie Klein), or weaker (Freud), or quasi-nonexistent (J. L a m p l de Groot), I wish 1J2 F E M A L E SEXUALITY to discuss one of the aspects of the female superego described by Freud. H e states that woman's superego is more impersonal than man's. T h i s is a common observation. W o m e n have, at least i n ap­ pearance, a superego which constantly changes, taking on new as­ pects, g i v i n g up o l d ones, according to their sexual partners. One frequently says that women are easily influenced, that they have no fixed opinions, that they readily change their principles. One of my patients, the one who gave up her lectures because of a disagreeable criticism, seems to be this type of woman who judges her acts and thoughts according to the object's judgments. She seems to hear only the rules she is told of, while being ignorant of the law. B u t this "malleable" character of her thought is linked only to her con­ scious guilt. Beyond these variations, the internalized prohibitions are very strong. One of them dominates a l l the others, as if it were some sort of Eleventh Commandment: " Y o u may not have your own law—your law is your object's law." It seems as though many women have internalized this commandment, m a k i n g them eternally dependent. Here again, man's conflict w i t h the omnipotent mother and woman's conflict w i t h the cathexis of the loved object both contrib­ ute to this situation i n w h i c h woman plays the role of a part­ object. 31 Conclusion T h e cases w h i c h I have chosen to discuss, despite different noso­ logical data, a l l have one feature i n common: the mother was sadistic and castrating, the father was good and vulnerable. O f course, many families do not have this structure. There are families where the opposite is true, where the mother is the good element and the father the sadistic one. It is interesting that i n these latter cases the paternal figure becomes ambiguous and is identified once again, i n woman's unconscious, w i t h the phallic mother. Therefore, the family structure, i n the cases discussed here, even though it seems exaggerated, is nevertheless an objective one inasmuch as it represents the n o r m a l unconscious structure at the time of the change of object, the bad object being projected onto the mother, the good onto the father. W h e n reality cannot correct this uncon­ scious image, severe problems are bound to arise. T h e n the P r i m a l Scene represents a mixture of the destructive bad object and the good object which must be safeguarded, or, i n other words, a terri­ fying fusion of the aggressive and erotic instincts. T o deny the ne­ Feminine Guilt and the Oedipus Complex 133 cessity of instinctual fusion i n female sexuality corresponds to ignor­ ing men's terrifying fantasies about femininity and women's guilty fantasies about their instinctual impulses, w h i c h is rather like trying to transform black Eros into a cherubic c u p i d . It seems to me that one cannot base a l l female conflicts w i t h the father and his penis on primitive conflicts w i t h the mother and her breast; that w o u l d be shortcircuiting the total transformation w h i c h occurs d u r i n g the change of object inherent i n the path to womanhood. Freud has shown that the little girl's Oedipus complex, caused by penis envy, is a haven for her inasmuch as the girl, whose castration has already been effected, has nothing more to fear from the mother. T h i s results i n a tendency to prolong the Oedipal situa­ tion. It is interesting that the female Oedipus complex is not re­ solved i n the way that the male Oedipus complex is. (Parents read­ ily say that " a son's your son t i l l he gets a wife; a daughter's your daughter a l l her life.") Is this not related to the fact that the girl, i n seeking to free herself from the mother d u r i n g the change of object, and i n her need to safeguard the father, offers herself to h i m as a part-object, protected from the mother, loved by the father, and forever depen­ dent? It seems as if the g i r l who prolongs this situation feels it to be a haven only inasmuch as she is not taking the mother's place beside the father because she is not identifying w i t h her and be­ cause she stays a c h i l d rather than becomes a woman. I believe that she is, at the same time, protecting herself from castration threat­ ened by the mother by refusing to take her place. A n O e d i p a l situa­ tion i n w h i c h the girl truly identifies w i t h the mother i n order to take her place beside the father is never a comfortable one. T h e obstacles w h i c h the girl encounters i n her love for her father and i n the rivalry w i t h her mother are frightening enough for the girl's Oedipus complex to be just what the boy's Oedipus complex was, "the crux of neuroses." M a n and woman are born of woman: before a l l else we are our mother's child. Yet a l l our desires seem designed to deny this fact, so f u l l of conflicts and reminiscent of our primitive dependence. T h e myth of Genesis seems to express this desire to free ourselves from our mother: m a n is born of G o d , an idealized paternal figure, a projection of lost omnipotence. W o m a n is born from man's body. If this myth expresses the victory of man over his mother and over woman, who thereby becomes his own c h i l d , it also provides a certain 1J4 F E M A L E SEXUALITY solution for woman inasmuch as she also is her mother's daughter: she chooses to belong to m a n , to be created for h i m , and not for herself, to be a part of h i m — A d a m ' s r i b — r a t h e r than to prolong her "attachment" to her mother. I have tried to show the conflicts w h i c h oblige so many women to choose between mother and hus­ band as the object of dependent attachment. The Significance of Penis Envy in Women Maria Torok i I n every woman's analysis, there is inevitably a period i n w h i c h ap­ pears a feeling of envy a n d covetousness for both the male sex organ a n d its symbolic equivalents. T h i s penis envy may be simply episodic w i t h some patients, but w i t h others i t can be central. T h e exacerbated desire to possess what women believe themselves de­ prived of by fate, or the mother, is an expression of a fundamental dissatisfaction w h i c h some people believe to be woman's lot. I n ­ deed, the conviction that what they feel themselves deprived of is exactly what other people have is common to patients of both sexes and is found i n a l l analyses. Jealousy a n d demand, spite a n d de­ spair, i n h i b i t i o n a n d anxiety, admiration a n d idealization, inner v o i d and depression: a l l these are among the varied symptoms of this state of deficiency. Yet i t is interesting that only women relate this feeling of deficiency to the very nature of their sex: " I t is be­ cause I am a woman." O n e must understand such a statement to mean: I do not have a penis, that accounts for my weakness, my i n ­ ertia, my lack of intelligence, my dependent state or even m y i l l ­ nesses. " A l l things considered, my predicament is common to a l l women, therefore I can only h o l d them i n contempt, as I do my­ self." " I t is they, the men, who command everything of value, a l l the attributes w h i c h render them worthy of being loved a n d ad­ mired." Is such an extreme devaluation of one's o w n sex conceivable? D o its roots lie i n a real biological inferiority? Freud felt finally compelled to accept the idea after he had vainly tried to remove this obstacle to treatment—the coveting of an object which is, by nature, unattainable. O n e w o u l d do better to go "preaching to the winds"—to quote Freud's o w n expression—than to wear oneself out on such a vain enterprise: m a k i n g patients renounce once a n d for *35 136 F E M A L E SEXUALITY all their infantile desire to acquire a penis. Faced w i t h so many fail­ ures, should one not, after all, resign oneself to allowing some legiti­ macy to penis envy and to ascribe it to the proper nature of things: "the biological inferiority of the feminine sex"? I n considering an­ other point of view, namely, the child's affective development, F r e u d arrived at the same conclusion. W h e n he discovered an inter­ mediate (the phallic) stage between the anal and the genital stages, he imagined it similar for both sexes, that is, entirely devoted to the penis. If it is true that only one sex, the male sex, is k n o w n to the child, one can understand the little girl's jealous spite at being de­ prived of it. A l l her theories concerning her castrated state and the overestimation of the other sex w o u l d find their origins here—due to a psychobiological "phallo-centrism" inherent i n the phallic stage itself; that is why woman's penis envy, as well as the efforts to make her renounce it, can (in Freud's analytic perspective) only end i n deadlock. B u t , if the theory of unisexuality at the p h a l l i c stage is constantly confirmed i n the fantasies relating to this stage, it seems that this state of affairs could be given an accurate psychoanalytical explanation. Therefore, we must not concede our helplessness and rely on a biological explanation. One can understand Freud's exasperation on being told: " W h a t is the good of continuing the analysis if you cannot give me that." B u t one also can understand the patient's despair, when asked to renounce a desire which seems so dear to her. Freud would have been the first to agree that it is not part of an analyst's func­ tion to recommend giving up any desires, whatever. It is none the less true that i n analysis, the woman's desire to have a penis (that is to say, to be a man) reveals itself as a subter­ fuge, because of its envious character. A desire can be satisfied, envy never can. Envy can b r i n g about only more envy and destruction. Pseudo-desire, promulgated by envy, achieves a semblance of satis­ faction, as shown i n the phallic attitudes of some women, who are immersed i n imitation of the other sex, or at least of the image they have of it. T h e fragile structure w h i c h they b u i l d shelters only feelings of inner void, anxiety, and frustration. T h e problem of analysis is precisely to b r i n g back into the open the authentic but repressed desire which, disguised as envy, has remained hidden. Here, as w i t h other fantasies, if one took the patient's protestations literally one w o u l d preclude analysis. A sure way of doing this w o u l d be to legitimatize woman's penis envy through accepting an alleged castration as her lot, for which phylogenesis w o u l d bear the responsibility. Another way just as certain of m a k i n g analysis fail The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 137 w o u l d be to attribute the desire to extra-analytical causes, such as the inferior sociocultural status of women. For the analyst who dares face up to this impasse i n treat­ ment—namely penis envy—the first step is to clarify the nature of the conflict w h i c h produced such a desperate solution. H e should not underestimate the advantages w h i c h it unfailingly provides, and he should utilize i n treatment the painful contradictions i n w h i c h it inevitably locks the patient. A m o n g post-Freudian authors, Jones and M . K l e i n distin­ guish themselves by no longer h o l d i n g penis envy to be an irreduci­ ble problem. Indeed, both believe that the nature of the first rela­ tionship w i t h the maternal breast is the determining factor. As soon as the analyst has improved this first relationship (by allaying the conflict caused by introjection of the part-object) envy i n general and penis envy i n particular lose their reason for existence. I n the light of what these authors say it is worthwhile em­ phasizing this: for the analyst the part-objects could simply be indi­ cations of conscious or unconscious fears or desires, i n other words, reminders of those early circumstances which led the i n d i v i d u a l to establish them. F o r Freud the object as such a n d the h u m a n object as a whole are i n the individual's economy mediators on the way to the goal of his instinctual drive: satisfaction. Part-objects, of course, have their real names and can be said to exist objectively i n space. T h e fact that everyone can recognize them makes them ideal sign­ posts for communicating and also for concealing desires. It is the analyst's job to probe beyond the objective appearance and unearth the desire i t denies as it appears to fulfill it. Therefore, analysis of envied things like the penis or the breast (even i f they be the ana­ lyst's) w i l l exacerbate the contradictions w h i c h affect the part and whole objects instead of removing them. T h i s results i n the appear­ ance (and at the same time concealment) of internal conflicts which are i m p l i e d by the satisfaction of a vital desire. Fulfillment of the desire is independent of objective anatomical circumstance. It depends on the patient's capacity for satisfaction and on his convic­ tion of the right to satisfaction; that is, on the freedom he has to es­ tablish relations to others through his body. T h e objective circum­ stances (generally not subject to modification) brought forth as objects of deficiency or as reasons for covetousness are i n fact snares set u p for treatment, i n order to hide (and thereby maintain) the inhibitions accompanying these relationships, snares which often keep the desire covered u p for life. T h a t is why the penis itself—considered as a thing, an objec­ 138 F E M A L E SEXUALITY tive, biological, or even sociocultural reality—must be left aside i n this essay on penis envy. F o r the penis itself is not involved i n penis envy, even if this at first seems paradoxical. T h i s part-object turns out to be an ad hoc invention to camouflage a desire, like an obstacle blocking the path to a reunified self as it would emerge if the p r o h i b i t i o n of i n h i b i t e d acts were lifted. W h a t is the purpose of this subterfuge and what does it protect the patient from? One must understand it before denouncing it. However disguised, however hidden, the desire underlying penis envy cannot fail to show through. For this reason, this symp­ tom, like a l l others, deserves our respect and attention. If our ana­ lytic work has reached the origins of penis envy and rendered it su­ perfluous, it has done so only by exchanging a desire for a renunciation. Penis envy w i l l disappear by itself the day the pa­ tient no longer has that painful feeling of deficiency which caused it. I I If one agrees to abandon an object-oriented view of the envied pe­ n i s — a n d to defer a l l questions concerning the sociocultural legiti­ macy of the envy—then one can undertake a truly psychoanalytical approach. Penis envy is the symptom, not of an illness, but of a cer­ tain state of unfulfilled desire—unfulfilled because of conflicting needs. O n l y an inquiry which disregards the object nature of the penis reveals the general significance of penis envy, the conflict which the symptom is trying to solve and the way it attempts to do this. Freud believes that the little girl's visual discovery of the boy's sex organ was sufficient reason for her to envy it and, concom­ itantly, sufficient for her to hate her mother who (in the little girl's hypothesis) is responsible for her castrated state. Penis envy comes from experience, even when it is a pretext. B u t one problem still re­ mains. A t what ripe moment must this experience have taken place for the envy to last an entire lifetime? People only find what they are w i l l i n g to find. ' T h e polar bear and the whale . . . each one confined to his own surroundings . . . cannot meet," says Freud. If the moment was decisive it was not because of the difference be­ tween the boy and the girl but because of the similarity: i n other words, because they both have a sex. One may suppose that the little girl's discovery of the boy's sex is part of the process of discover­ ing her own little girl's sex. T h e discovery of the penis must have occurred at an important moment for it to have been more than a mere incident of early childhood. W h e n the little girl thinks: " M y The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 139 mother didn't give me that, so I hate her," she is using a convenient pretext for expressing a hatred without explaining it. T h e association of penis envy w i t h conscious or unconscious hatred toward the mother is frequently observed. B u t there is an­ other clinical fact, just as noticeable which, if examined, w i l l enable one to detect the deeper motives of this hatred. T h i s fact, so con­ stant i n clinical experience and also so significant, could be called penis idealization. M a n y women have the fanciful idea that the male sex organ possesses supreme qualities: infinite power for good or evil, a guarantee of its possessor's security, absolute freedom, i m ­ munity against anxiety or guilt, and a promise of pleasure, love, and the fulfillment of a l l his wishes. Penis envy is alzvays envy of an idealized penis. " W h e n one has it (the penis)," says Ida, "one has everything, one feels protected, nothing can touch you . . . one is what one is, and the others can only follow you and admire you . . . it is absolute power. T h e y (men) can never find them­ selves feeling need, or lacking love. Woman? She is incom­ plete, perpetually dependent, her role is of a Vestal V i r g i n guarding the torch. N o matter how m u c h they told me about the V i r g i n M a r y . . . G o d the Father, he is a real man, ' P u ­ rity' makes me t h i n k of 'puke' . . . I have always had a cer­ tain contempt for women." " I don't know why I have this feeling," says Agnes, "as i t cor­ responds to nothing i n reality but it has always been like this for me. As though, only man was fit to fulfill himself, to have opinions, to mature, to go always further. A n d everything to h i m is so naturally easy . . . nothing, nothing can stop h i m . . . he is a force that can stop anything if he wants to. M e , I am getting nowhere, hesitating, there's a k i n d of w a l l i n front of me. . . . I always had the feeling I wasn't finished. L i k e a statue waiting for the sculptor to decide at last to model its arms. . . ." A little g i r l , Yvonne, always thought that boys " c o u l d at once succeed i n doing anything . . . they instantly speak a l l lan­ guages . . . they could go into a church and take a l l the can­ dles and nobody w o u l d stop them. If ever they find some­ thing i n the way, they would naturally j u m p over i t . " These are eloquent descriptions of an idealized penis. It is ob­ vious that this always means: "the thing whatever it is that one doesn't have oneself." Yet such a vital defect could not be a natural one, but could only be the effect of a deprivation or a renunciation. I4O F E M A L E SEXUALITY A n d then the question arises: W h y is she deprived of such a pre­ cious part of herself, for the benefit of an external object, supposedly inaccessible, and, on the patient's own admission, definitely nonexis­ tent? F o r the moment let us merely examine the fact. It has a name: repression. For a l l idealization there is a corresponding re­ pression as a counterpart. B u t whom does the repression benefit? T h e Mother, of course, as is shown by the hatred addressed to her. Indeed, though the idealized penis has no actual existence, its coun­ terparts, depression, self-devaluation, rage, have a very real exis­ tence. N o one w o u l d believe that these affective states of such inten­ sity could be due to an idea one has about an object one has once encountered. W h e n the little g i r l says to the M o t h e r w i t h i n her: "1 hate you because of this thing you haven't given me," she is also saying, "this is a legitimate hatred as is evident from my lack of this thing. B u t don't worry, I consider the real l i v i n g hatred w i t h i n me illegitimate because of the repression you imposed upon my desire." W h a t is this repression? It is not by chance that the penis, absent from the girl's anatomy, was chosen for the investment of those qualities which the patient must have deprived herself of: the sex organ one does not have represents perfectly that which is inac­ cessible, i n that the sex organ can naturally not represent needs ex­ perienced i n one's own body. I n short, the choice of an inaccessible object for her envy shows that the patient's desire blocked by an i m ­ passable barrier. T h e overinvestment of the envied thing testifies to the p r i m o r d i a l value belonging to the abandoned desire. W o m e n want to ignore the occasion responsible for repression: for them it is a persecutor w i t h an anonymous face; and i n order to identify it one would have to confront those obscure areas where hate and ag­ gression are smoldering against the object one could not but love. A complex, unconscious speech is concentrated i n "penis envy," and this speech is addressed to the maternal imago. One could expound it by the following propositions: /) " Y o u see, it is i n a thing and not i n myself that I am looking for what I am deprived of." 2) " I am searching i n vain, because this t h i n g can never be mine. T h e obvious vanity of my search must be a guarantee of the definitive renunciation of those desires you disapproved i n me." 3) " I shall insist on the value of this inaccessible thing so that you may realize the greatness of my sacrifice i n letting myself be deprived of my desire." 4) " I should accuse you and, i n turn, deprive you, but that is precisely what I want to avoid, deny, and ignore, because I need your love." The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 141 " I n short, idealizing the penis, i n order to envy it more, is re­ assuring you by showing you that this w i l l never come between us, and that consequently I shall never be reunified, I shall never fulfill myself. I tell you, it w o u l d be just as impossible as changing bod­ ies." "Penis envy" marks this oath of fidelity. W h e n the little g i r l , i n the speech to her imago, refers to the forbidden part of herself, which is the counterpart of the "penis," this can only be her own sex, condemned to repression. A n amazing statement! It seems to mean that the little girl's sex—as she experiences i t — c a n be symbolized by the boy's penis­ thing; i n other words, by the penis regarded as an anal object. T h e r e is, i n fact, some genetic l i n k missing i n the explanation of the symbolization and that is the anal relation to the Mother. T h e no­ tion of " t h i n g " — w h e t h e r it be accessible or inaccessible, permitted or forbidden—clearly refers to this. It is to the M o t h e r that the lit­ tle g i r l is addressing her request: " T h a t thing, I want i t . " Further­ more, the vanity of this request, i n its formulation and i n its mean­ ing, implies a reassurance for the M o t h e r ; her privileges w i l l be maintained. It is interesting that the authority, the mother's high­ handedness, does not concern the "things" w h i c h belong to her as m u c h as the very acts of mastering the sphincter; acts which she claims to command according to her whims. Because of this the c h i l d (and later, of course, the adult) has difficulty i n assuming the responsibility for these acts without recourse to the imago. Such is the context for penis envy. O n e can now see that it is not the " t h i n g " itself that the patient is coveting, but the acts w h i c h allow one to master " t h i n g s " i n general. Coveting a thing is precisely the same as demonstrating to the imago the renunciation of an act. D u r i n g the anal relationship w i t h his mother, the c h i l d surrendered his capac­ ity for sphincter control to please his mother. T h i s results i n over­ whelming aggression directed toward her. L e t us assume that the following process takes place: the Mother's control of the sphincter can only be interpreted by the c h i l d as a manifestation of her inter­ est i n possessing the feces, even while they are still i n the body. Consequently, at the same time, the body's interior also comes under maternal control. H o w can one free oneself from such sover­ eignty, other than by reversing the relation? T h i s is when murder­ ous fantasies—about disemboweling, evacuation of the Mother's i n ­ sides, destruction of the seat and means of her control—take place. T h i s is why the M o t h e r must be reassured. W e now clearly understand that the covetousness attached to the inaccessible penis­ thing plays this role to perfection. 142 F E M A L E SEXUALITY B u t one must answer the ultimate question: W h a t motivated this specific choice? W h y was it precisely the "penis" that was cho­ sen? T o press the question further we shall use a complementary way of examining the symptom; as well as trying to reconstruct its retrospective genesis, as we have done up t i l l now, we shall consider another equally important dimension—its prospective one. T h i s new explanation might i n turn enlighten us further about the ori­ gins of the symptom. B y prospective dimension of a symptom or of the conflict which underlies it we mean the negative aspect of the symptom. T h i s is not a solution to a problem, since it is determined by some­ thing still nonexistent or unachieved, that is, the step forward is prevented. Yet it is this prospective moment that gives repression its dynamic character. T h e obstructed stages of affective maturation are c l a i m i n g their fulfillment. T h e y are certainly present despite the repression that blocked them, but the prospective aspect of the symptom is not explicit i n the speech to the imago. Indeed, the lit­ tle g i r l could not, even unconsciously, address the following sen­ tences to her imago: " I can tell you that I am coveting the penis­ thing to appropriate it myself and become a boy, but I can not even feel my aborted desire to have pleasure with the penis as women do, and which was intended i n my sexual destiny." B u t it is precisely the fact of genital failure that gives us the clue to identifying the prohibitions responsible for the repression. T h e very experience which should have prepared the way for the genital stage and its accompanying identifications is only too clearly involved, and this experience is evidently connected w i t h that "precious p a r t " of one­ self which has been repressed. W e have already shown that this "precious part" was the complex range of acts which had become the anal Mother's p r i v i ­ lege. Yet the little g i r l possessed a means by which she could have indirectly recovered what she had been deprived of, namely identifi­ cation w i t h the Mother, sovereign of her powers. B u t one notices that penis envy testifies to a total lack of identification. T o con­ clude, we are led to consider that not only the repression of anal­ pregenital conflicts underlies penis envy, but also a specific, total or partial, i n h i b i t i o n of masturbation, of orgasm, and of their concom­ itant fantasy activities. Penis envy appears now to be a disguised claim—not for the organ and the attributes of the other sex—but for one's own desires for maturation and development by means of the encounter with oneself in conjunction with orgastic experience and sexual identification. These seem to be the first conclusions one The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 143 can draw about the general significance of "penis envy" considered as a symptom i n the Freudian sense of this term. 111 M . K l e i n , E . Jones, K . Horney, and J . M i i l l e r long ago pointed out the early discovery of vaginal sensations and their repression. I my­ self have noticed that the encounter w i t h the other sex was always a reminder, or occasioned the awakening, of one's own sex. C l i n i c a l l y , penis envy and discovery of the boy's sex are often associated w i t h the repressed memory of orgastic experiences. D u r i n g several sessions M a r t h a has violent bursts of crying or laughing. Slowly, her emotions regain a meaning; when a little g i r l , she met some boys i n the swimming pool. Since then she often repeats the same phrase: " I cannot live like this." It was this phrase w h i c h came up, d u r i n g her analysis, i n moments of deep depression. Consciously, " t h i s " means "being deprived of a penis." B u t we must also understand that, on that occasion, she "squeezed her thighs together," " r o l l e d u p a little bit of swimsuit inside" and felt a k i n d of "sensitive shiver." T h e laughter m i x e d w i t h tears (mingled joy and guilt) reflected her idea: if I am made " t h i s " way (feeling this shiver) then, "at home, w i l l they want me?" A t puberty, this same patient had such a feeling of guilt toward her mother that she kept her periods—the sign of her genital m a t u r i t y — a secret from her mother for a whole year. H e r own sexuality, far from being ignored, was a constant, but latent, preoccupation; i n those days, the need to please her mother was greater than orgastic pleasure. D u r i n g the sessions she expressed the desire for an orgasm, through the fits of laughter, but repressed it through penis envy itself. First of a l l there had been " a n indescribable joy," " a n immense hope." T h e n , she does not know why, she was convinced that "something infinitely desirable exists, not i n me but over there, not i n my body but i n an object, an absolutely inaccessible object." One can see the contradiction: the "sensitive shiver of infinite goodness" makes the little g i r l lose her feeling of being good for the sake of her family. T h e penis is then felt, as we shall see, to be the "good" sex which gives the possessor pleasure without guilt; this pleasure is not tied u p with masturba­ tory or internalized guilt. It has a l l the conditions of a perfect har­ mony: pleasure for oneself and harmony with others. Feeling the "shiver" is aggressive, wicked to others. So a l l that is "good" is 144 F E M A L E SEXUALITY abandoned and an external object substituted—the idealized penis. T h e v o i d thus created i n the patient is filled by sadness, bitterness, jealousy. B u t this smoldering aggression can never be a substitute for what she has missed, the growing and voluptuous awakenings of maturity. O n l y analysis can arouse those feelings by loosening up machinery, as it were. T h i s joy of awakening maturity goes beyond immediate satis­ faction. T o the patient it means a sudden opening up of the future. T h a t is when the time of great discoveries comes, the " A h ! I under­ stand!" "So this is how I become myself, adult; I find my worth through the joy I experience i n becoming myself/' (J. M u l l e r points out that freedom of infantile sexuality guarantees self-es­ teem.) Indeed, the orgastic joys of infancy are the true means by w h i c h genital sexuality, and through it the unfolding personality, are prepared and molded. W h a t does the patient discover while de­ veloping the ability to have an orgasm? T h e possibility of identify­ i n g w i t h the parents i n fantasy and of i m a g i n i n g herself i n a l l the different positions of the primal scene according to the moment at which it is considered. The orgasm, once achieved, has the value of confirmation: the fantasy is valid because it has brought about sen­ sual pleasure. One realizes that any i n h i b i t i o n regarding such an en­ counter w i t h herself leaves the patient with a blank i n place of an identification, however vital it is for her. T h e result is an unful­ filled body-self (some w o u l d say body-image) and, correspondingly, a w o r l d of fragmented reality. Certain dreams r e m i n d us of the importance of those open­ ings u p of the future which give orgastic experiences their meaning: 1 Agnes remembers her early orgastic experiences together w i t h emotions accompanying them. First there is a dream of "inexpressible joy," turning into depression. Beside the sea. She is waiting. A n excited crowd gathers around her (this re­ fers to the waiting for an orgasm). B e h i n d her there is a toi­ let (a reminder of a masturbation scene). She is seated. Sud­ denly a marvelous animal, soft and silky to stroke, settles on her taut skirt. She inhales deeply, stretches out her arms and strokes it. I n admiration, the whole crowd vibrates w i t h her. Everything was "so f u l l , " "so wonderful." T h i s moment, she says, was a concentration of everything, all I have been, everything I shall be. L i k e saying to oneself: I want to be i n a lovely country, I have an immense desire for i t , and I've no sooner said it than I'm there. The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 145 So, the repressed fantasy, as the dream shows, involves the i n ­ corporation of the penis i n its function as the agent of instinctual drive and as the generator of orgasm. T h i s same patient thought her body was unfinished and wished a sculptor w o u l d come and "make her arms." She could only make very l i m i t e d use of her hands, tied u p i n masturbation's fundamental fantasy function of being a penis for the vagina. Ferenczi has shown that masturbation goes w i t h a duality i n the i n d i v i d u a l : he identifies simultaneously w i t h both partners and achieves copulation i n an autistic manner. One must add that this duality, the "touching oneself," the experience of "I-myself," au­ thenticated by the orgasm, also suggests: " A s I can do it to myself, alone, I am emancipated from those who have hitherto permitted or forbidden me this pleasure according to their w h i m . " Masturba­ tion, literally touching oneself, and reflective fantasy free the c h i l d from maternal dependence and at the same time establish an auton­ omous maternal imago, that is to say, one which can find its plea­ sure somewhere other than w i t h the child, a possiblity missing when the mother forbids masturbation. Such an imago is rooted i n exces­ sive or premature anal training, and w o u l d influence a l l similar activities. A mother who is too exacting w i l l cause a jealous, empty, unsatisfied maternal imago. H o w could she manage by herself if only mastery of the c h i l d can give her satisfaction? H o w could she not be jealous or suspicious if the c h i l d frees herself from her while growing to maturity? T h e ban on masturbation has the effect of tying the c h i l d to his mother's body and interfering w i t h his essen­ tial growth. Patients often express this situation by saying, "some part of my body (hand, penis, feces) is still i n my mother, but how can I get it back? She needs it so much! It is her only pleasure." T h e hand "belonging to the M o t h e r " can only symbolize for the patient what the mother herself forbids; this hand w i l l never represent the penis. T h e path leading to the father is thus blocked, and the dependent relation w i t h the M o t h e r perpetuates itself. T h e little g i r l w i l l experience this insoluble d i l e m m a : identifying w i t h a dangerously aggressive mother who needs to be completed by hav­ i n g or being the useless appendage of an incomplete body (namely, that of the child). T h e patient might repeat the two possibilities i n relation to her husband. B u t analysis is there precisely to help her break the magic circle of " b e i n g " and " h a v i n g . " It w i l l certainly not provide an appendage-penis; the " a r m s " Agnes has just re­ covered are equivalent to a complementary penis, which represents something beyond being and having, the right to act and to be­ 2 146 F E M A L E SEXUALITY come. W h e n the envy of an appendage-penis is not any longer h i d ­ i n g the desire for a complementary one, then the father's approach need no longer be blocked by the feeling that she has a body which is dangerous for the penis. T h i s also means that masturbation, and identifications, are no longer felt destructive to the Mother. T h e removal of orgastic i n h i b i t i o n d u r i n g analysis is always accompanied by a feeling of power. A woman's analysis could not possibly bring her to genital maturity without solving penis envy, which conceals the masturbatory and the anal conflicts underlying it. F o r example, it is impossible that penis envy could be resolved as a desire to have a child by the father. Indeed, if the c h i l d has to play the part of a converted penis-object and supply the completion lacking up t i l l then, how can her maturity be accepted, the fulfill­ ment of her ambitions wished for and encouraged by a mother who, without her, would lapse into bitterness and envy! Such a mother has i n the girl's fantasy only one wish: to keep the child-penis (an illusory guarantee of her own completeness) eternally i n the role of an appendage. Inasmuch as penis envy represses pregenital anxieties, it com­ pletely blocks genital fulfillment. T h e path from penis envy to geni­ tal fulfillment necessarily passes through an intermediary stage: the fantasy of having pleasure with the father's penis. Once this fantasy is allowed, the "desire to have a c h i l d " by the father w i l l no longer mean what one actually has or receives, but w i l l mean what is a natural part of growing up. I V Arrested i n the process of her genital fulfillment, the woman who suffers from penis envy lives with a feeling of frustration, the nature of which she cannot guess. She has only a vague idea of what geni­ tal orgastic completion is. A t any rate she cannot achieve it while the repression continues. W e have seen that the symptom consists of idealizing the penis, investing it with a l l she has lost hope of for herself: her aim i n life, genital maturity. T h i s is what the c h i l d has to achieve be­ cause she does not have it yet. Indeed, the desire is eternal; it never goes away, but it is either without content or fixed on stereotyped images. T h e greatest desire of a woman who suffers from penis envy is to meet the male i n full orgastic u n i o n , and to realize herself i n an authentic act, but this is what she has to avoid most. Clinicians often see women trying to obtain the complementary penis, the i n ­ strument of their fulfillment, at the cost of having to struggle with a threatening jealous imago. T h e n envy for the idealized penis and The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 147 hatred toward its possessor arise. F r o m then on deception w i l l pre­ vail over love, frustration over ample gratification. D u r i n g analysis the shift to what is usually called the genital stage is always like this: I am no longer "castrated" because " I can." T h i s means, first of a l l , the d i s i n h i b i t i o n of masturbatory gestures and fantasies, otherwise the analysis w i l l not progress. If repression means that something is missing i n the ego which limits one's capac­ ities, then freeing the repression w i l l bring a sense of power, self-es­ teem and, especially, faith i n one's own possibilities and future de­ velopment. " I don't know how I can tell you," says O l g a , "what impression your words had on me. I can't get over it. . . . It is as though you had transferred a power to me. Yet, I was very depressed the other day. B u t after going out of here, I repeated to myself everything you said. A n d a l l that anxiety melted away! I have rarely cried as m u c h as I have this week. . . . It is like a sudden light. . . . A n d last night I . . . no, I've never mentioned those things to anybody. Briefly, it was like waking up. I had some pleasure. . . . N o w I want to try myself out and I keep smiling at a l l the men, and you know, they answer me very k i n d l y . A n d , I can't get over it, people have p a i d me compliments!" D u r i n g the last session, we had realized how, by means of idealization, she was forbidding herself a gratification w i t h i n her reach and how, i n fact, this prohibition referred to the maternal i n ­ terdiction against having anything to do with her father's virility. T h e dismissal of the p r o h i b i t i n g imago revealed the knot of the problem—masturbation. A t a later session O l g a arrives w i t h "one very cold h a n d , " as if it d i d not belong to her. She mentions a l l the objects her mother forbade her to touch, particularly her own geni­ tals. T h i s "very c o l d " hand was nothing but a manifestation of her obedience to the forbidding maternal imago. Recognizing that the idealization of the penis comes from the repression of masturbation is equal to liberating energy and, as we can see, easily confers new possibilities to one's own sex. These are the ones of which the c h i l d was deprived and which are now re­ covered, the possibility of identifying w i t h the protagonists of the p r i m a l scene, at each of its stages, and of verifying the validity of such identifications by the orgastic pleasure obtained through them. T o give the reader a more concrete idea of these theories it w i l l be helpful to read a brief sequence from analytical treatment 3 4 148 F E M A L E SEXUALITY (about twenty sessions). Ida, a young woman of H u n g a r i a n origin, had sought analytical help because of numerous professional diffi­ culties and emotional problems: It gave me a shock to see Jacques doing the dishes. I was ashamed as though somebody had exposed a hidden part of my body. I am incapable of doing needlework, repairing, sewing . . . I'm ashamed to have a woman's body. I am ashamed to see Jacques becoming . . . how can I put it? . . . a woman. O f course, this doesn't mean that he is . . . but why was it so worrying? Maybe because, for you, "-woman" doesn't have the usual meaning. To be a "woman," for you, means to be "without a sex." I don't know. I am very mud­ dled. W h y d i d I think that with a torch (name given to the penis) one had everything, that everything was lovely? W h y have I given this great power to men? A r e they really like that? N o , of course, they aren't like that! At least, if they are as you describe them to be for you, I can understand your envy of the torch. Jacques isn't like that, neither is my father, grandfather, or anybody. It was my own idea. F o r my mother, women were enemies. O l i v e r wasn't. O l i v e r , my brother, could be a friend. H e could say to men: this is my mother, she is wonderful. She herself, she was abandoned by her own mother. She thought children were born through the navel. It is exactly as we said last year: the c h i l d didn't give her a "lower body." For me a c h i l d is a l l the life of "down there," it is a l l one has down there, a l l that can grow from down there. T h e n she had jaundice, my mother. Deep down, I must have been like her. (This is a reminder of a dream i n which she gives birth to a yellowy-orange child.) I n fact, I must have been like an enemy for her. B u t I was also a friend. . . . W h y d i d she say to me, " Y o u w i l l never be as beautiful, nor as delicate, nor as sensitive as Susan?" She never protected me, she has never been a support for me. I have never had anything for myself. I have never kept anything. I have always given a l l my things away. It is obvious that for Ida " w o m a n " means "castrated." T r y i n g to castrate men is justified by the desire to acquire the unique sex, the male sex, w i t h a l l its advantages. I n such an inter­ pretation one tries to acknowledge two things: (1) the idealized character of the desired penis; (2) the subjective character of this idealization. The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 149 H a v i n g recognized that she herself was the source of the meaning " w o m a n " and "penis" had for her, and having realized that these were not absolute, unshakable meanings, Ida can now go beyond them toward their o r i g i n — " m y mother." " I t is because my mother lives like that i n me that 'woman* must mean for me 'cas­ trated,' without a lower body, 'monstrous,' and I must envy and idealize the penis." Uncompleted, empty, frustrated, the M o t h e r has devalued her and castrated her i n the sense of d e p r i v i n g her of her future fulfillment. T h a t is why, she realizes, she can keep nothing for herself: Poor m u m m y , she feels very let down. She believes that now I shall only look after my baby. I dreamed of a snake. H e came out of my breasts and could have bitten other people. T h e midwife told me the baby was ready to come out. Poor mummy. She telephoned today, but it was to speak to Jacques. She must be very lonely. I n the children's home there were only girls. T h e n this k i n d doctor, that nice o l d man. I l i k e d h i m a lot. H e gave me injections. A t school there were always boys, too. M y mother never sent me to school on time. I always had to wait around before leaving and stay longer with her. She always wanted to prolong the holidays too. She d i d n ' t like school. Yet school is strength, authority, regularity, security. I like school. (Ida has serious inhibitions about c o n t i n u i n g her university studies.) Ida continues to understand further the significance of her relation to her mother. She can now see that if she has her baby, m u m m y w i l l become "impoverished." Daughter and mother are i n ­ dissolubly tied together; one complements the other's emptiness. T h e equivalence between the snake-baby which bites and that nice o l d doctor who injects is that they are pleasure-objects for Ida, which means that they are dangerous for the Mother. T h a n k s to these pleasure-objects she w i l l be able, as she knows, to free her­ self. T h i s is why she thinks her mother stops her from coming into contact w i t h that "strength," "that authority," w h i c h school repre­ sents. Ida arrives late at her sessions for the same reason. T h e " e m p t y " M o t h e r , " w i t h no lower body," needs to keep Ida near her i n order to fill u p her emptiness, w i t h Ida as a pleasure-object for herself. I n short, whether to be autonomous and have pleasure with the penis or to be the appendage of the M o t h e r — t h a t is the d i ­ lemma. If I have pleasure, my mother becomes empty; that is u n ­ bearable for me. 150 F E M A L E SEXUALITY I dreamed that we were asking my mother for a little dog. Not me, my husband. W h e n I was little, I liked to keep back my pee. T h e o l d i r o n i n g lady would send me off to the bath­ room when she saw me h o p p i n g from one leg to the other. That's odd, after having made love I also go straight to the bathroom. . . . People always made me believe that woman had nothing. N o t h i n g but a hole out of which things come. T h e y must retain nothing. T h a t little bear makes me laugh. I bought it for the baby, but for the time being I am keeping it for myself. I am as tight as a virgin, I can't put the dutch cap o n right. It bleeds, it falls into the John. I ' l l pay you today. T h e r e is something to claim from the M o t h e r : the liberty to retain the "pee" i n one's body, to play and have pleasure w i t h it. T a l k i n g about a l l this is a start for the dissolution of that depress­ i n g tie with the Mother. Ida must reassure her mother—she is not trying to empty her; on the contrary, she is paying her; anyway i t is so tight i n there that she could not retain anything even if she wanted to. " T h e r e is no question of my satisfying myself alone, there is no danger for you, you can keep me as an appendage." I n this case, to be able to retain means that one can have pleasure by oneself and, thereby, become independent. W e also notice that Ida's own "lower body" begins to come u p i n her talks. N o w , i n giving birth, I had great difficulty i n getting the child out. T h e n suddenly I thought of a l l the things we have said here, I called you very loudly, very loudly, and then it was over, the anxiety had dissipated. I came late because of my cooking. A n d you know, I've left my work. I said to my­ self, suddenly, " I ' m a real woman." A real woman? What is that, for you? O h , a few dresses, a hairdo, five minutes rest from time to time, a well-made boeuf bourguignon. B u t you are right, there is something odd. I saw Jacques at his desk, he was writing. I wanted to do the same. I was k i n d of . . . jealous. M y studies . . . they are still part of my anxiety. I still have mountains to climb. (This is a reminder of a dream i n which she was c l i m b i n g a mountain w i t h her mother. D o w n below there is an abyss, "it's terrible," it is a box filled by a crab, a huge red crab.) M y mother i n that kitchen . . . terrible. T h a t day I had two mothers, that was my impression—one like the everyday one, smiling, talking, doing hundreds of things; the other, that u n k n o w n woman, that intangible woman who's absurd. (This refers to a scene The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 151 i n the kitchen. H e r mother had one day wounded her father d u r i n g an argument i n the kitchen.) I remember, I dreamed there was a shop, a haberdasher's, and they sold buttons there. I wanted a sewing box. Ida is reassuring me that I am good for her; thanks to me she was able to get her c h i l d out. N o danger of her asserting herself i n independence. B u t w i l l I allow her another pleasure, the real one, the one precisely w h i c h the M o t h e r forbids—study? T h e r e can be no question of it. She asserts that now she feels a "real w o m a n " — i n other words, a real, castrated person. B u t that is safer than freeing herself from Mother. H u r t , incomplete, the M o t h e r w o u l d become dangerous, as i n that scene i n the kitchen. Besides, to re­ nounce one's own completeness (as when Ida pretends to be a "real woman") carries the same danger: the aggression of dissatisfaction. T h e only way out is total i n h i b i t i o n . T o study, to retain, like "keeping i n pee" or having pleasure i n intercourse, are a l l forbid­ den. T h e empty M o t h e r holds on to Ida, she stops her from going away, from going toward that "strength." It is impossible to arrive on time. I'm always arriving late. Like at school. I felt you were angry the other day. N o w I can handle the baby well. W h e n my mother d i d n ' t send me to school, I wasn't pleased, I wanted to get angry, but then i n the end I acquiesced. I'm worried by the idea of starting my studies again. Y o u mentioned that m o u n t a i n dream. I was w i t h my mother. I was behind her, very frightened. It was horrible down below. Like everything that happens "down below" T h e n I was also very frightened of falling. O h , last night, I had a dream. I am i n the sand, or some­ thing clayey. It's growing hollow, I'm sinking into it more and more. I had this impression that i n order to save myself I was supposed to make certain gestures, certain movements. I was supposed to let myself go and not resist . . . do some, I don't know what . . . particular gestures. O n the edge of a hole—an indeterminate man, I couldn't see his face, I didn't know who he was. A n indifferent person, neutral (the ana­ lyst). I had the impression he w o u l d try to save me, also that he was incapable, and that he could do nothing for me. A n d I sank i n more and more, still trying to recall those gestures — I absolutely had to remember them! B u t , really, i n the end, it wasn't as bad as a l l that. I believed it w o u l d save me, i n spite of everything. I don't know any more, I don't know any more. It was like when I gave b i r t h . 152 F E M A L E SEXUALITY T h e memory of the " m o u n t a i n dream" (she is on the sum­ mit w i t h her mother; there is an abyss and a crab down below) re­ minds her now of another, more recent, dream. T h i s time she is " d o w n below" w i t h a man, i n the abyss itself: she now dares ex­ plore it. She goes into it (like a baby i n her body). She is able now to identify herself with the penis that penetrates her. She is reas­ sured—it was not i n danger—and even experienced orgastic plea­ sure. T o penetrate oneself, to allow oneself to be attracted "inside," as i n a masturbatory duality, means already to envisage intercourse w i t h a man, and thereby to emancipate oneself from the "summit of the m o u n t a i n , " from the relationship to the Mother which made the " d o w n below" like an "abyss of crabs." T h e orgastic aspect of the dream w i l l be more explicit i n a following session. "It was like g i v i n g b i r t h , " when the child separates itself from the Mother. T h i s separation occurs by means of an orgasm by intromission. A t this stage Ida can give up being the d o l l she was for her mother and can deal w i t h a new problem, the genital relationship: I have a terrific panic when Jacques holds me! I thought about your interior corridor. I have been to see the gynecol­ ogist. T h i s time I wasn't afraid at a l l . I was quite at ease. W h e n Jacques holds me I can't free myself, I stamp my feet. I can't bear it that someone wants to tie me down. Yet, when he caresses me, I like it, but I have a terrific panic. T h e n , I think of something else (his home town, where his mother is still living). I was ugly i n my childhood. It was because I wanted to be so. I w o u l d say to myself: I shall start by w i l l , through really hard work. I became fat w i t h eating so much bread a l l the time. T h a t pleasure was allowed. Instead of an­ other one, forbidden? (Ida laughs.) Yes, I understand what you mean. In fact, you mean that I am just as afraid of you as I am of Jacques. Perhaps that is why I always arrive late. T h e mother is now endowed with an "interior c o r r i d o r " — her body is no longer empty. I n turn, Ida can now speak of her own inside. T h e woman " w i t h no lower body" no longer threatens to tie her to herself. Ida is now attempting to formulate i n the transfer­ ence her panic i n the face of sexual intercourse: For my mother I was like a d o l l she could dress. I am ashamed at the idea of having wandered naked i n my fath­ er's country. Jacques, like you, tells me that I am r u n n i n g away from h i m . T h o u g h he is very k i n d , I do go into fits w i t h h i m . . . . I left h i m and went to sleep on the carpet. H e The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 153 rejoined me and we both slept on the carpet i n the end. I am looking at the things that are here. W h e n I was little I couldn't stay still i n my bed. I thought it was boring. I would look at the things i n the room for a long, long time. . . . F o r my mother, yes it is very odd. . . . I was her d o l l . Sometimes she wanted me to be her mother. W h e n I am w i t h her I disappear, I cannot exist as me. She insists that I look after her, only her. She phoned me, I said that I was i l l , tired, that I had metritis. W h e n I come to think of it, my baby is a very curious thing. H e could nearly fit into a bas­ ket. Babies are funny things. N o w I can handle the dutch cap very well, but I am a bit frightened. I told Jacques that it was bleeding . . . and that it was no good inside. I had a dream last night. O h . . . I am not going to tell you this dream. I am going to keep you i n suspense, I am going to make you wait for nothing. It was at the Galeries Lafayette. W e were there w i t h Jacques to buy some curtains. W e were on the fifth floor. T h e n suddenly, something was b u r n i n g , there was fire, smoke. Jacques climbed up to the sixth floor. It was safer to go up than down. One day he really played the role of a fireman i n a house on fire. A friend said to me: I am embarrassed when I make love. I made several hy­ potheses about why he had gone up. I had stayed on the floor below. A n d I fainted. It was exactly the same impres­ sion as when I was sinking into the sand i n that other dream. W h y d i d I have this dream? Sometimes Jacques puts his tongue out at me and it is horrible. (We analyze a problem related to fellatio.) It feels good to have talked about that. You are not afraid of fire. "It was the same impression." B u t no longer the same sym­ bol. If i n the dream about the "abyss" Ida enters into her own i n ­ side, i n the dream about the "fire," she sees the possibility of put­ ting the man's tongue (as a penis) inside her, and she is not afraid of fire (torch: name given to the penis i n her childhood), just as the analyst, representing here the paternal imago, is not afraid of Ida's "internal fire." I am not going to stay with you, I am going to leave! By the way I have found out how to get a reduction i n my r a i l fare. A reduction of me. So that nothing can go from me into you. People have always told you to take nothing from daddy I I had a dream. T h e r e was Brigitte Bardot and me; I got angry like a child, I stamped my feet on the ground: I want it, I 154 F E M A L E SEXUALITY want it! It was about a dress. I am thinking of my father on the beach. There was something i n his pants, and it was be­ cause of that I wasn't allowed to play with h i m . Not allowed to have a BB in your pants either? O h , something hap­ pened to me. . . . I bought a b i r d and I brought it home. Soon after it was dead. It was terrible. Yes, at the beach I thought: i n order to play w i t h h i m he would have not to have that i n his pants. I was told, when there was a question of my parents divorcing, that he might take me away and therefore I had to be hidden at my grandparent's home: they w o u l d protect me. T h a t b i r d , that poor little bird, and I wanted to make a nice warm nest for it. You wanted so much to nest the "bird" warmly in you. But you feel that in you it would not be comfortable. So it is better to go away rather than to come near it. Haven't you been told to keep away from Daddy? Perhaps meeting him represented some danger for you and for him? 5 B u t the maternal interdiction manifests itself when the de­ sire becomes explicit: " T h e r e is no question of your having a B B . " So Ida "reduces" the father's penis i n order to render it ineffectual. T h u s , she shelters herself from the desire to take h o l d of it and put it into herself. T h e idea of danger and the idea of the forbidding M o t h e r appear simultaneously. T h e interpretation turns on this de­ velopment. I went home to my mother's. I was i l l . I vomited. M y mother has never wanted to teach me the secrets of cooking. She hardly allowed me to chop up the onion and the parsley. C h o p and cut, nothing else. Never real cooking, I mean cook­ i n g as an art. Just as she didn't teach you the art of ap­ proaching your father. I had a dream last night. It was like a film. A n d also like going to the office. T i r i n g yet at the same time agreeable. There was something like an arena. . . . T h e lion was supposed to be inside, but, i n fact, he was outside. H e was r u n n i n g a l l around the arena. . . . I was with a friend and I asked h i m to protect me. I was beside h i m and we were r u n n i n g too. T h e lion was r u n n i n g i n the same direction as us. H e was like a man. H o w odd. I turned round and saw that he was doing leaps like a dancer, he was doing the splits i n the air. . . . I went and presented myself for my nomination. It is annoying to speak i n front of fifty people. I d i d it. H o w much do I owe you for this month? I was i n a The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 155 funk when I was there, I didn't dare speak. I would like to tell you something . . . you know I have always thought that it was a l l dead i n me, quite dead. A n d then, now, I felt some­ thing . . , that my vagina was sensitive. It's staggering, I felt that I could have some pleasure! Before, I was very fright­ ened. N o w " i t " is coming. I can no longer be afraid. Yes. I can feel that it is going to come. T h a t it's already there. I don't know. I never speak about it w i t h Jacques. I have the feeling he's frightened. If we can't resolve this, he w i l l have to go into analysis. T h a t ' s odd, I am speaking to you as though you weren't there. It's a bit as though I had nothing to say. Perhaps you think that your pleasure frightens met I don't know why, but I suddenly thought of daddy and mummy, and the Germans. M u m m y wasn't pleased when he came to see me. She was jealous. A n d it was as though some­ thing could happen when daddy held me by the hand. Peo­ ple were hostile. Yet he was handsome. B u t everyone knew they were divorcing. I also thought that I could have been born from a mother and a father who were apart. . . . T h e n I was afraid that something would happen to mummy. T h a t she would be unhappy. I feel happy. . . . I was terribly wor­ ried she would have some sort of attitude towards me. I imagine her angry, screaming, saying unbearable things, like she d i d w i t h daddy. I w o u l d have done anything to avoid that. She had never been as happy as when I was at board­ i n g school. B u t nowadays I don't know, I don't bear her a grudge anymore. Sometimes, lately, I have been f u l l of hatred. It's d i m i n i s h i n g now. I think I am not responsible for them. I am t h i n k i n g of something silly: I have a lovely baby and you, you haven't got one. Maybe it's not true, after all I don't know. B u t that's how I feel and . . . I feel sorry for you. It's silly. I want to know how much I owe you? For the baby? (Ida laughs.) N o , I didn't mean it that way. That's odd, it is as though I had pleasure i n depriving you. These things are silly. . . . H a v i n g named the obstacle, the desire for incorporation can now be formulated. T h e complex symbol of the " l i o n " (man-eating man) condenses the image of the penis (pleasure-object) and the gestures of m a n and woman i n intercourse (the "leaps" and the "splits"). T h e desire to have an orgasm by introducing the penis shows that she is seeking integration (the l i o n is r u n n i n g after her), but that she cannot yet accept it entirely; the l i o n stayed 156 F E M A L E SEXUALITY "outside." T h e desire to have pleasure with the penis becomes more precise, but Ida is frightened at the idea of feeling the orgastic sen­ sations mentioned i n the previous session. T h e y imply a break of the tie to the mother. Frustrated, hurt, would the Mother i n turn hurt the daughter, as she hurt the Father? Nevertheless, the mere fact of foreseeing the possibility of orgastic pleasure allows Ida to envisage resuming her previously inhibited professional activity. I am becoming insomniac. I haven't slept a l l night. As though I had something better to do than sleep. Yet I dreamed. Beside a swimming pool there was something like a brothel. A woman was there, a prostitute, quite sympathetic, not mean at a l l . It was very hot. I wanted very much to have a swim. She didn't want to. Finally, she agreed. T h e n there were four men, it was horrible, they wanted me to be . . . like a call girl. I was terrified, we left. T h e n I was i n the train. I said: you must help me, there are some people who want to do terrible things to me. I n such circumstances I am very efficient: I spoke to a soldier, to tell h i m that it was his civic duty to help me. H e gave me a telephone number. I seem to remember that I failed i n the end. O h ! I am so tired, I can hardly distinguish things around me. H o w much do I owe you? M y husband told me that I was intelligent. It was nice, because it was as though someone had reassured me from outside. I don't know why I think women are worth nothing. A n d it is always men who are i n command of every­ thing, who do everything. O h ! M y finger is cut. It bled a l l day yesterday. I can't imagine how I came to cut i t ! W i t h a knife? It bled so much! Why? H o w d i d I do this to myself? O h , I'm tired! A n d also I didn't feel at a l l like getting ready, like dressing myself. B u t how much do I owe you for this month, I never know, oh what a bore! For the moment, you think you owe me a finger for the pleasure you took in your inside. O n the beach, i n my country, I was always alone. T h e other children had their parents, I was alone, always. Are you sure? A h , not that time, you are right. . . . O h , but i n the dream, it was the same beach as the one where I saw daddy. Because of her guilt, Ida is trying to cancel the previous prog­ ress. " Y o u see," she says to me, " I have put nothing inside, I have done nothing, anyway women have nothing, they have no 'lower body,' you have nothing to worry about, I w i l l still be your d o l l . " T h e equivalence is between the finger and the penis. H e r finger, The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 157 how d i d she cut it? She is sure the M o t h e r is responsible for this. Isn't it she who stopped Ida from p u t t i n g her finger-penis into her­ self and thus stopped her from becoming independent? B u t as this "finger" (her pleasure-object) is kept by the Mother, inasmuch as she cuts it off, Ida already expresses, even though i n a self-punish­ i n g way, her desire to break the tie of belonging to her mother. Last night I dreamed that daddy was dead. W e were at C. . . . R e a l l y I haven't had any letters from my parents for some time. Daddy's death w o u l d e x p l a i n their silence. H e was i n a car. M u m m y was with h i m . A s they drew up i n front of the memorial to the dead, he wasn't feeling well. H e had dif­ ficulty i n driving. M u m m y had to ask for a light from an­ other man. T h a t was a sign that things weren't going well. I thought to myself: he should be careful. T h e n he was dead. It was his heart. T h e r e was nothing sad. A n emotion just similar to the one I had when my grandmother died. A strong but irrelevant emotion. I n any case w i t h no l i n k to anything I could understand. It was more like a feeling of shame. T h e n , i n the dream, I h a d to leave town. I was w i t h my mother. I wanted to leave but she wouldn't let me. A l ­ ways the same blackmailing, the same fits of hysteria . . . I thought of m u m m y and I said to myself: he must have suf­ fered a lot but now no more problems. N o more worries about the person who is dead. I am less and less afraid of death. I've started work again, and reading and t h i n k i n g . . . that is important. T h e n I went to this meeting. I felt like talking at it but I didn't do it. I am still waiting for my nomination. T h a t w o u l d give me time for my studies. M y father, poor thing, he was always threatened by my mother, always i n danger of being abandoned. I also dreamed that there were fires everywhere: left, right, below, above, i n front, behind. Very strange. She is m a k i n g the father " d i e " and i n doing so separating the "Mother's fire" from the Mother. B u t this father is also Ida who herself suffered, like h i m , from pressures and threats of abandon­ ment. Ida's desire is becoming more precise: to withdraw from the Mother, but gaining autonomous erotic pleasure of the O e d i p a l re­ lationship. Yet g u i l t regains its importance, and i n the second half of the dream Ida has become once again complementary to the Mother. Nevertheless, her fear of breaking away is diminishing. She can envisage taking u p her activities again and invests a l l the space around, that is to say, a l l her body, w i t h "fire" ("fire is life"). 158 F E M A L E SEXUALITY I am late again. Yesterday we h a d our wedding anniversary. I gave Jacques a pipe. Last year I hardly told you about my wedding, I had to hide it from you, to steal it from you i n some sense. I am very pleased. It is no longer as before, but there is still a lot to do. A n d I was always w a i t i n g for you to make my decisions for me. N o w I decide by myself. I h a d a funny dream last night. A t home there was a sort of p o l i t i c a l meeting. Something suspect. M y husband was i n the house op­ posite. I wanted to comb my hair and I looked for a m i r r o r . I arrived i n the bathroom and horror! I noticed . . . I saw my s k u l l ! O n it there were still a few hairs . . . like a brush . . . a few bristles. T h e hairs on the neck had been saved, they were falling, as if burned. It was horrible, hideous. . . . I called for help: D o something fast! "Yes, they told me, it's a serious illness, you must treat i t . " T h e n I went to see my husband. . . . I told h i m there was great danger, a terrible catastrophe, but he wouldn't understand. . . . W h e n I was ten I used to imagine what w o u l d happen if they were to die and I were to become an orphan. I still want to have parents. . . . I saw an o l d friend i n my dream, and I kissed her very warmly. T h e r e are a lot of hidden things i n my relations w i t h women. I'm glad to think that fire doesn't frighten you, that means I w i l l be able to live. I have made this discovery —people don't really live. T h e y are extinct. M y husband is a smoldering fire. I have great confidence i n h i m . I w o u l d like to say that I am happy but I immediately become afraid of a catastrophe. " T o comb oneself," "to touch oneself," that is to say to mas­ turbate, means to be i n danger. T h e meaning of the dream becomes clearer later o n : Ida is trying to remember a scene. Masturbation implies the desire of freeing herself through the death of her par­ ents. T h e " r e u n i o n " means that by touching herself she can achieve a reunion of the self w i t h the self, like the parents who unite i n the sexual act. I have a friend who said to me one day: Y o u know, you're slow to start, but once you've started, you charge. I dreamed of a locomotive a n d a c h i l d threatened by kidnappers. T h e train was between the beach and the swimmers. O n e had to cross the rails. I'm t h i n k i n g of a l i o n who bit the arm of the person who was stroking h i m . . . . I ' m afraid of Jacques. I have always been very clumsy w i t h my hands. W h e n I sew, I prick myself; I cut my fingers. B y the way how m u c h do I The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 159 owe you? By the way of what? I don't know, I can never cal­ culate a debt. I w o u l d prefer you to tell me. I don't like han­ d l i n g money. It was my mother's privilege. She was i n charge of the cash. Money, to open the drawer, touch it . . . for me would be like touching fire! The torch? (Ida laughs). T h a t ' s odd. It pleases me to think that last time, when I d i d n ' t come, you waited for me. Perhaps you waited for me from one minute to the next; since the whole hour is mine it's my session. Nobody can come i n my place. A n d that you . . . that you thought of me. B u t when I w i l l be cured . . . I mean when everything w i l l be going well, when I have started my work and my studies again, what w i l l become of you? My cash-box will be empty? My room will be empty? By the way, my husband gave your address to someone. Because he thinks you are good and that's rare. I don't know what I think about it. That it will fill the gap? Comfort me? I don't know. It's the first time i n my life that I have something which is really my own. If autonomy, the definition and elaboration of oneself, occurs i n the self-experience of masturbation then this contact may fall w i t h i n that store of deep guilt associated with anal characteristics. It is the Mother's privilege to handle the "cash-box," to fill it up, empty it. Ida is trying to restore to the M o t h e r the power she once usurped w i t h her own fingers. By this act she gives herself u p to the Mother, and becomes once again the manipulated object. Monstrous. W h a t do you think of someone who kisses her baby on the mouth? I thought, I must tell you immediately. It's like when one is condemned, I mean i n my dream. T h e r e was a dried up water course with big worms i n it. Y o u were supposed to eat them or was it that when you ate them you died? It was at my grandparents. Impression of horror. B i g , big worms. It reminded me of that mashed meat I left i n a plastic pot; then it rotted and there were worms i n i t . I was i n the classical position of a woman who doesn't want to show her fear. M y husband, just as disgusted as I was, was pretending to be courageous. A t last I regained composure. I put the little box i n a big one and went and put it i n the rubbish b i n . I nearly fainted. I was determined to show that I was courageous. A n d then, it's silly, just think, I inter­ preted this dream. I don't know anything about psychoanal­ ysis a n d I didn't think, it came spontaneously. W e l l , I inter­ preted. I thought that I must be frightened that d u r i n g l6o F E M A L E SEXUALITY sexual intercourse people could die. Y o u know it does hap­ pen, the newspapers . . . , well, I don't know who, a presi­ dent or someone died that way. It's silly to want to interpret one's own dreams. Why should it be silly? Because I don't know anything about psychoanalysis and it's your job . . . Deep down it's like w i t h mummy. She always said to me: you're stupid, there's sawdust i n your head. She was always wanting me to depend on her, to need her absolutely. That's odd, that dream w i t h my grandparents. I feel that the kitchen is something very important. I remember my grand­ father i n the kitchen, when I was l i v i n g w i t h them. . . . I had been just at the height of his . . . i n such a way that my face . . . these things are terrible . . . that you could do with his penis what you had done with your baby? O h , it reminds me, I also dreamed I had a tiny little baby, hardly any bigger than my pen. H e was i n a transparent case and I was putting h i m into everything] I n the pocket, i n the drawer, up, down, by the front, by the back. It was very amusing. Ida's guilt no longer expresses itself i n the form of a simple i n h i b i t i o n . She is now trying to give a demonstration for the mother imago. I n spite of the apparently depressing side of the dream, she can now allow herself to handle herself—and to speak about it — " t o comb herself," "to give interpretations," "to put the baby into her," "to eat the w o r m . " A t the same time this is an introjec­ tion of the analyst's function, indicating an important modification of the maternal imago. ( T h i s is about a young girl's " k i d n a p p i n g " i n the street.) It gives me a strange uneasiness. It makes me think of some­ thing i n the kitchen. T h i s kitchen is haunting me. I had a dream: people were dancing, I agree to dance, then the room becomes an amphitheatre, and I'm sitting down. T h e n the amphitheatre becomes a kitchen. A woman offers me a crab, something gelatinous, slightly disgusting for me to eat. I hesi­ tate, then I accept. I cut a little bit off and give her back the rest. After a l l I prostituted myself when I lived w i t h the nuns. I had a fit of anger last night. I said that people should have the right to be stupid after a l l , if they wanted to. W h y d i d I say it? Everybody belittled my father, I was the only one to love h i m . In fact my mother must have been under her parent's influence . . . T h a t woman. . . . W h a t d i d she leave unsaid about my husband! . . . I dreamed that I had twins and then that my baby had a little detachable penis, one could take it off, put it back on, and handle it. T h i n g s The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 161 have never been as good as they are now w i t h my husband; and even so, I'm jealous, I'm afraid that some woman w i l l take h i m away from me. Perhaps, precisely because you are happy? A n d I'm also frightened of fire i n the house. I'm frightened of h u r t i n g my husband. Yes, I am frightened of h u r t i n g h i m . Of being like mummy who hurt daddy in the kitchen? Y o u should take my husband into analysis. A new difficulty appears here. A l t h o u g h she can achieve an emancipation from the M o t h e r i n fantasy by introjecting her anal power into masturbatory acts, she has difficulty i n assuming this power which is then felt to be dangerous for the partner. T h e r e is a contradiction i n the imago. T h a t is why Ida undertakes only a par­ tial introjection by sharing the crab. Yet it requires total introjec­ tion of the " c r a b " to remove inhibitions concerning "the dance" and "the studies" (shared orgasm and intellectual activities). T h e con­ tradiction lies precisely i n the fact that at the same time she also must be the violent but frustrated Mother, who although she "cuts," does not "eat" (may not give herself any pleasure). Does not the violence manifested toward the Mother show the castration of her own genital? I have the impression that there are hidden vibrations be­ tween people. I am l o o k i n g for other people's secret. H o w are they? W h a t are they doing? O h , they w i l l see that my shoes are badly polished, my skirt not well put on. W h e n I was a young g i r l I wanted everybody to look at me, to fall i n love w i t h me. T o be seen, to be looked at. T h a t is how one becomes an actress. I read something about the Russian revo­ l u t i o n while coming here on the bus. Yesterday, Jacques left home; he has gone o n a voyage and I cut my finger with the scissors. M u m m y d i d n ' t like having to treat me. Y o u shouldn't be sick, she w o u l d say. I am thinking that I would like a cup of tea. W h e n they went to bed at night, mummy and daddy, I often had tummy pains. I was delighted w i t h daddy on Sundays. Jacques's mummy is i l l . Perhaps she has something very serious i n her uterus. Jacques's departure on a voyage is compared w i t h the scene i n the kitchen. T h i s time she used the scissors to " c u t " Jacques from his mother, causing guilt, self-mutilation and fear of illness. Never­ theless, the O e d i p a l structure becomes clearer. I cannot swallow anything. I'm on a diet. Maybe I've got an ulcer, or something i n my stomach. I must have some X rays taken. I never used to complain when I was little. Never! l62 F E M A L E SEXUALITY Not even when you were in your little bed? Yes, after a l l it is true, I often cried. I had a dream last night. A mountain, i n it things of great value, ancient precious stones, it was a very hard mountain, very hard. Jacques went inside it. Ida does not want to "swallow" the nocturnal intimacy of her parents. T h e dream mountain (the Mother) has things of great value inside it. T h e r e is no question of Ida—this is i m p l i e d but not expressed—entering it and taking them. O n the contrary she seems to give Jacques back to the " m o u n t a i n . " W e might surmise that she has secretly made her husband into an ally who w i l l be able to take the "riches" and give them to her. I've been to see the doctor about my stomach. That's why I didn't come here. I have a little bit of money this month. T h e analysis is boring me. It bores you to have to think once and for all that you have to take away from here some "riches" for yourself. That's why you think you must be ill, weak, impoverished. And in the long run, if you are poor, I am impoverished, I am not paid. That's true, after a l l I don't know what is happening to me. I'm excited and aggressive and I don't know why. Yet you know, my husband—I love h i m very much and a l l the same I am very angry with h i m . I don't know what I would do to h i m if I could. When you are angry with yourself this is what you do: you prick your­ self, you cut and hurt yourself, and you deprive yourself of intellectual nourishment and love. Maybe this is what you want to do to someone else when you are angry. A t the nuns . . . there were no mirrors at a l l . I was never able to see my­ self i n a mirror. But you did in a dream. A h yes, when my hair was a l l burnt. Yes and you had the impression that there was something "suspect" there. Yes, I remember well. A t the nuns, I wasn't able to wash myself entirely. I mean you had to do it bit by bit. It was ridiculous. I never looked at the bottom half of myself. That's odd. W h e n my arm hangs from the bed between the wall and the mattress and it touches the carpet, even though it's silky and soft down there, I have the impression that somebody might cut it off or bite it. Often I even take my arm back quickly. It's such a strange feeling. What is down below is dangerous? I remem­ ber at the nuns, that soldier, he came one day. . . . I remem­ ber h i m well, that German. I was doing . . . anyway I was sleeping. . . . I suppose I might have been . . . and he said to me: If you are not good, baby. . . and if you put your The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 163 hand down there . . . N o , only, if you are not good, I w i l l cut your arm off. T h e n it was Christmas and I could ask for something. I asked for a little brother. I was three years old. I was sure one could ask for that. I n fact I got a teddy bear but that wasn't good enough. . . . I wasn't pleased at a l l . A little brother is alive, one can play with h i m . A n d especially, a little brother, this could have been a proof! Of what? T h a t . . . that my parents exist somewhere, that they made h i m , so therefore they exist. / / that was the proof you wanted a lit­ tle sister would have done, but you, you wanted a little brother. A little brother is like an extension. Yes, it has a penis and after a l l , I d i d n ' t know my father very well, there were hardly any men i n the convent, apart from the priest, the good o l d doctor . . . really that teddy bear . . . a little brother w o u l d have been like an extension toward my father. After a l l (that's odd, why am I t h i n k i n g of that?), it's shame­ less that I shouldn't know it, i t . . . the hymen, whereabouts is it? It can't be immediately at the entrance; it's more likely to be a little higher. A little g i r l can put her finger to it. O h , I always swept the staircase going from the top to the bottom. A t first, I d i d n ' t t h i n k of sweeping, only of h o l d i n g the broomstick i n my hand. One could handle i t ; I t h i n k of the way c h i l d r e n c l i m b stairs: they put one leg o n the step first of a l l , then the other leg rejoins the first one. I l i k e d to han­ dle the broom when going u p the stairs. O n e could put it be­ tween one's legs . . . it extends the finger, the arm, it went toward your father. Y o u see? I could have played w i t h a little brother, and a little boy is something k i n d , well behaved, good! It is not like "an enemy for mummy" as you explained to me one day. Ida draws away from the aggression contained i n the desire to "empty" the M o t h e r of her "riches." She is r u n n i n g away from me i n order to protect me. She refuses to see what is pushing her to " d e p r i v e " me, to " c u t " me, to " p r i c k " me, to "take back" her auton­ omy that I am " k e e p i n g " for myself. T h i s session shows us in statu nascendi, the progression which led to penis envy. W e see the exac­ erbation of the conflict w i t h the anal M o t h e r . T h i s k i n d of conflict usually resolves itself due to masturbatory acts and fantasies. A n d . indeed, i n t h i n k i n g of this Ida finally mentioned the memories about masturbation which led to remembering the traumatic mo­ ment that made her give it up. It was at that moment of despera­ tion that she invented (in the Utopian solution of getting a little 164 F E M A L E SEXUALITY brother) her penis envy. T o have a penis like the boy meant i n the little girl's m i n d a great number of advantages, but they a l l come down to one: the ability to keep a harmonious relation with the Mother. W h a t is the magical power of the penis due to? T h e an­ swer to this question has to be looked for on three different levels, which cannot always be distinguished easily. O n an anal level it seems as though the penis, seen as a fecal stick, undetachable from the body, is a sign that its owner has not been dispossessed of his sphincter autonomy. H e therefore has no reason either to be aggres­ sive with the M o t h e r (boys are "well-behaved, k i n d , good") or to be guilty. O n the level of personality formation, the presence of the penis is important i n that it frees one from masturbatory conflict (no need to put one's finger to it, as it is a permanent "finger") and, consequently, from conflict with the family: the little boy can have his pleasure, without becoming wicked. T h e path to the future is open. Lastly, on a prospective level (genital future) the penis is an extension toward the father and, as Ida puts i t , permits her to come nearer the little girl's genital object. These are the i n ­ fantile reasons underlying Ida's penis envy, an envy w h i c h has very little to do w i t h the male genital organ itself. It expresses the re­ pressed identificatory autoerotic fantasies directed toward the anal Mother. I had a strange dream last night, but I've forgotten it. Yet I remember a little. . . . T h a t job, I wouldn't find it disagree­ able at a l l . A n d after a l l , it w o u l d be a good discipline . . . it w o u l d force me to be neat. T o do my hair, to make myself pretty. . . . I don't know. . . . I sing and then I want to grumble, like daddy. I do contradictory things. I am going to work. I'm t h i n k i n g that Jacques's mother is well. O n that side things are going better . . . T h a t is odd, I think that I'm ashamed to work, to study. As though I wasn't allowed to. W h e n I was little I couldn't work i n peace. It was like a scandalous privilege. M y mother often said to me, "Leave i t , you'll be able to think of yourself later." A n d then the more I worked the more pleasure I had and the more m u m m y be­ came sad, very sad. It's like a n a i l still stuck i n me. She needed me so much, and then suddenly one day, she was happy on her own! She didn't need me! . . . Before, I was completely enslaved and she absolutely needed me, and then I thought to myself, " Y o u w i l l not be alone." W h e n I was lit­ tle, she left me. . . . T h i s dependence also had a nice side to it. It was like depending on G o d . I could avoid having to The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 165 live a l l alone. Sometimes we were as good friends as two schoolgirls. B u t it was only on the surface . . . T h e n daddy, poor thing, he was totally excluded from this strange para­ dise. It was more like hell. Yet he was a bit frightened of us. W h e n two women get together they become wicked. She wanted to make an ally out of me. Sometimes he was tender to us, and it makes me feel so sad. After a l l , I am ashamed of h i m , ashamed of daddy. Ashamed of daddy, ashamed of stud­ ies . . . daddy thinks that from now on I shall write to h i m and not to mummy. It upsets me. I wonder why? Remembering the scene w i t h the soldier allows Ida to foresee the possibility of an identification with the father. A n d we notice a new difficulty. T h e identification must fail because of the father's weakness, like the daughter he is dominated by the M o t h e r . I'm worn out. I went yesterday for that job . . . I'm de­ lighted. So, because of that I bought some hairpins, lipstick, etc. It amuses me. I ' m going to be late i n paying you . . . at the beginning, when I couldn't pay you, i t was u n ­ bearable. N o w I say to myself—"After a l l , you can wait a b i t . " See? Y o u just shouldn't have chosen that profession. Y o u earn your money at other people's expense. It's scandal­ ous to have a career like that! The other day you told me that working, studying, were like a privilege, a "scandalous" pleasure. One could say that you are now doing to me what your mother did to you—you are reproaching me for my pleasures, my work, my career, the fact that I earn money. . . . (Ida laughs.) Yes, it's as though I bear you a grudge like with. . . . T h e n that dream . . . that nightmare. . . . I was at home with Jacques. I had to hide h i m . T h e r e was something illegal. W e were pursued by the authorities, a dra­ matic story. Some soldiers were supposed to come and fetch h i m . A t first he was i n the room next door. T h e chief com­ missioner came personally. H e explained to me that I had to hide h i m under the blanket i n the bed; that way no one w o u l d find h i m . T h a t ' s funny, the superior authority of those same soldiers was e x p l a i n i n g to me how to escape his own authority. B u t Jacques was taking the whole thing too lightly. H e kept moving, going out. I thought: they are going to knock, they are going to come i n , but he wouldn't stay still, he was moving a l l the time. A s though there had been a baby there. . . . I was on the lookout. T h e y could come back a second time. Somebody knocks on the door. I tell Jacques 1 66 F E M A L E SEXUALITY to stay still, but it's no use, he gets up and goes to open the door. T h e n it is an o l d lady who comes i n . " O h ! You're there!" she says, " H e l l o ! " A n d then she left and I saw her speak w i t h some soldiers. I thought, we have been betrayed. . . . I was afraid they would take h i m from me and k i l l h i m . Last n i g h t . . . W e made love . . . me, as usual, . . . B u t this time I wanted to go on. I was feeling very sensual. (But an external event interrupted.) I felt k i n d of amputated. It's odd, w i t h daddy, as though mysterious, curious things could happen. . . . I was not supposed to be w i t h h i m . After a l l , everyday life is f u l l of mysteries. T h a t G e r m a n soldier . . . loaded w i t h rifles and tommyguns. H e said to me, " H e l l o baby!" and I said, " H e l l o A n d r e w ! " Hello! Like the old lady in the dream, the soldier's associate? Yes, exactly. A n d then, i n the dream I thought, " M y G o d , she saw what she wasn't meant to see. It is treacherous. . . . Those Germans, perhaps they were looking for the M a q u i s , or something else that w o u l d have been hidden well w i t h i n me. I mean i n the bed. T h e r e were my arms and perhaps hands at the end. (Ida laughs.) It is funny to say that. After a l l , hands are always at the end. Perhaps zuhen they feel threatened they feel some­ how detached from the end. I n the boarding school you know that's exactly the style of the nuns. O n e doesn't sleep w i t h one's hands under the sheets. It's odd, sometimes I don't dare look at people i n the street, observe them or see exactly how they are. Before, even when I spoke to them, I didn't dare look at them. . . . I was t h i n k i n g about the mother su­ perior. She was a witch. Everybody knew that she stole fruit. A n d then, I wonder why she slept i n a big bed? W e had our little beds, our little blankets. . . . Ida continues, using the same words as her mother, to negate her ambitions and achievements. Yet the dream shows the modifica­ tion of the imago's demands: this time it is a superior authority who shows her how to escape its hold, allowing her to relive the "scene w i t h the soldier" and to keep the pleasure-object under her blanket (hand, penis, husband). T h e external event which inter­ rupted coitus is interpreted by Ida according to her guilt: " I felt k i n d of amputated." One might add that this castration does not concern the orgasm but the acts and the pleasure involved i n it. T h e pleasure-objects under her blanket appear "stolen" or at least related to an aggressive act (she is persecuted). As the persecution lessens ("the hands are still at the end"), Ida acquires the right to The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 167 dispose of the pleasure-object. Concomitantly, penis envy, having lost its purpose, w i l l disappear. Ida's analysis continues but from now on several problems are on the way to solution. She has a growing feeling of confidence i n herself and is beginning to feel equal to a professional field. v T o conclude our study, we might formulate a question avoided u n t i l now i n this essay: W h y is the feeling of castration and its cor­ ollary, penis envy, the universal lot of womanhood? W h y do women so often renounce creative activity, their means of m a k i n g the world? W h y do they agree to shut themselves up i n "women's quar­ ters," to "be quiet i n c h u r c h , " i n short, to prefer a dependent state? T h e question is far from simple and w o u l d require research into various sectors and a documentation I do not yet have. Yet, we can study the problem from a psychoanalytical point of view, and try to formulate hypothesis from the material we have. F r o m a psychoanalytical viewpoint an institution is not es­ tablished and does not survive unless it resolves some particular i n ­ terpersonal problem. In p r i n c i p l e , an institutional solution must have advantages for both men a n d women over the situation that preceded it. W e should make explicit what advantages each has i n the institutional inequality of the sexes, at least i n the d o m a i n ac­ cessible to psychoanalysis—that is to say i n affective life. W e are right when we suppose that this age-old inequality requires woman's complicity, i n spite of her apparent protest shown by penis envy. M e n and women must be exposed to specific, com­ plementary affective conflicts to have established a modus vivendi which could last through many civilizations. As for the woman, consider the following: at the end of the anal stage the little g i r l should be able to achieve i n masturbatory fantasy simultaneously both parents envisaged i n terms of their gen­ ital functioning. B u t there are two obstacles: first, the one originat­ ing i n the anal period; namely, that autonomy i n masturbatory sat­ isfaction necessarily means a sadistic dispossession of the M o t h e r and her prerogatives; second, the O e d i p a l obstacle, according to which the fantasy-achievement of the p r i m a l scene, by identifica­ tion w i t h both parents, also implies supplanting the Mother. As long as these obstacles are not overcome—and usually they are not —something w i l l be missing i n the identification w i t h : (1) the father, who can give pleasure w i t h his penis; (2) w i t h the M o t h e r , who can receive pleasure from the father. T h i s fundamental defi­ ciency is i n conjunction w i t h a particular maternal imago: that of l68 F E M A L E SEXUALITY an exacting, jealous, and castrated Mother, and an envied, depre­ ciated, and at the same time overvalued Father. T h e only way out of this impasse to identification is the establishment of an inaccessi­ ble phallic ideal (mythical image of an idealized Father), which is a reassurance to the M o t h e r that she can keep her prerogatives, and also the nostalgic wish to make up for the deficiency fatal to genital fulfillment: the identification w i t h the Father. W h e n women hold­ ing such imagoes have to deal with married life, they suddenly find themselves confronted with their latent genital desires, even though their affective life is immature for want of heterosexual identifica­ tion, as they are still dominated by problems of the anal stage. T h u s , the fleeting Oedipal hopes w i l l soon give way to a repetition, this time w i t h the husbands, of the anal relationship to the Mother, a relation which is then confirmed by penis envy. T h e advantage of this situation consists i n avoiding a frontal attack on the maternal imago and also i n avoiding the feeling of deep anxiety at the idea of detaching oneself from her domination and superiority. T h e little girl's drama, particularly i n relationship to the Mother, is made concrete i n the following situation: when, i n order to disengage herself from the anal Mother, she tried to use the Father as a prop, she found herself confronted w i t h the heterosex­ u a l object which belongs to the M o t h e r and, consequently, i n oppo­ sition to her over matters of interest. Simultaneously attacked from both sides, the M o t h e r continuously appears as very dangerous: threatened w i t h total destruction, she might, i n turn, threaten to destroy totally. T h e superimposition i n the same object of both mastery and rivalry blocks the way out of the anal stage and forces the g i r l to renounce her desires. She w i l l then make herself into an anal appendage (the "cork," the " d o l l " ) of the Mother, and later into the " p h a l l u s " of her husband. It certainly seems that this is a universal difficulty i n woman's development, a difficulty which more or less explains why such a condition of dependence toward man, the heir of the anal M o t h e r imago, is accepted. T h a t is the price for some of the disguised genital achievements which, i n some instances, women allow themselves. A t first one sees easily the advantages which man acquires for himself from this disposition to dependence created by feminine guilt. Yet, on examining the question more closely, it is not obvious a p r i o r i that men should naturally want such a relationship of mas­ tery. T h e falsity, the ambivalence, and the refusal of identifications it conceals should appear to h i m as so many snags on which his own f u l l and authentic achievement comes to grief. A n d yet . . . who could doubt that i n order to achieve his own interests i n superiority The Significance of Penis Envy in Women 169 man is almost universally the accomplice of woman's state of de­ pendence and that he thrives i n elevating a l l this into religious, met­ aphysical, or anthropological principles. W h a t interest has he i n giving i n to his need to dominate the being through whom he could understand himself a n d who could understand him? T o discover oneself through the other sex w o u l d be a genuine fulfillment j f one's humanity, yet this is exactly what escapes most of us. H a v i n g seen the woman's problems, let us now try to see w h i c h specific problems are i n the way of man's fulfillment. W h e n the little boy is about to free himself from the anal Mother, he can identify w i t h the Father, possessor of the " p h a l l u s . " I n this way he frees himself from maternal domination; the phallic Father is his ally and the Mother is not yet his genital object. T h u s , he w i l l have to cope w i t h two periods of anxiety i n his development: (1) the l i q u i d a t i o n of his anal relationship to the Mother by a particularly dangerous identificatory incorporation (dangerous because of the rejection of her domination as well as the inverse O e d i p a l exclusion of the Mother) and (2) the O e d i p a l moment itself, which implies an identification w i t h the genital r i v a l as well as his elimination. T h i s double failure i n the boy's identification is, as we see, quite symmetrical to the failure we noticed i n the little girl. I n the case of the boy, too, an impossible desire is crystallized into an envy, paralleling that of the g i r l , of the same illusory object, the "penis." It is obvious that these envies are beyond any real genital differen­ tiation and refer to the nonintegrated anal relationship. If at this stage a difference appears between the two sexes it is about the pos­ session or nonpossession (one is just as illusory as the other) of the penis-thing and its varied symbolic significance. F r o m then on, phal­ lic deception leads the way for the institutionalized relation be­ tween the sexes. T h e whole problem of the failure i n identification w i l l by fetishistic means be concealed behind active or passive fasci­ nation. T h e possession of the "fetish" is intended to arouse envy, and envy i n turn is intended to confirm the value of the fetish for the man. W e can now understand the meaning of the fact that men encourage "penis envy" i n the other sex and try to make it part of their social institutions. Once it is conceded that the exclusive pos­ sessor of the fetish is man, is not this so-called privilege, sustained by covetousness alone, nothing but a variant of envy, projected on to woman? T h e penis-emblem allows the man to be enviable and thus, logically, avoid l i v i n g a life of envy. M a n cannot be other than envious as long as he needs to objectify as well as hide i n a fe­ tish what is missing i n his genital fulfillment. T h a n k s to this subter­ fuge he w i l l continue to ignore his dangerous desire to take the 170 F E M A L E SEXUALITY Mother's part i n the anally conceived P r i m a l Scene. T h e woman, envious and guilty, is the ideal support for the projection of this de­ sire. She can thus become man's unacknowledged "feminine part," w h i c h he must then master and control. T h a t is why man w i l l be driven to prefer a mutilated, dependent, and envious woman to a partner, successful i n her creative fullness. T h e biblical myth of the first couple gives us an eloquent ar­ ticulation of these problems. Eve, split off from Adam's self, repre­ sents what he refuses to allow himself. T o her is also attributed the original sin for which he thus completely avoids responsibility. Eve shall transgress the divine interdiction, she shall "castrate" the heav­ enly Father. T h u s , she must bow beneath the weight of this double g u i l t : her own and that which man has projected on her. She is doomed to double servitude: toward G o d (the castrated Father) and toward her husband (the M o t h e r who must not be castrated). She w i l l live i n enmity with the Serpent. Such is the divine decree which lays the basis for "penis envy." Part of Adam's body, Eve is at the same time his chattel (his servant) and his attribute. Object of his projections, controlled and enslaved, she is compelled to live i n submissiveness—not w i t h a real partner of the opposite sex—but with a tyrannical representative of the anal mother image. T h i s , briefly, is our psychoanalytical hypothesis concerning the affective aspects of the institution which postulates female de­ pendence and passivity and imposes on woman the envy of an em­ blem w h i c h serves to conceal her desires. T h i s hypothesis has at least one advantage over various cultural and philosophical con­ cepts: it is drawn from clinical experience and is of therapeutic value. Indeed, we believe that on an i n d i v i d u a l level, the solution to penis envy is the job of the analyst—on condition that he h i m ­ self be free from this phallo-centric prejudice, o l d as humanity it­ self. Homosexuality in Women Joyce McDougall Bisexuality! I a m sure you are right about it. I am accustoming myself to regarding every sexual act as an event between four individuals. F r e u d to Fliess, 1889 C l i n i c a l studies of overt homosexuality are rendered difficult by the fact that only when the delicate balance achieved by manifest homo­ sexuality is threatened or lost w i l l homosexuals of either sex turn to a psychiatrist or analyst for help. I have been fortunate enough to have had i n analysis four homosexual women and three others who, while not exclusively homosexual, were dominated by conscious homosexual wishes. M y thanks are due to these cases for the clinical material which furnished the basis for this paper. These patients enabled me to recognize a specific form of O e d i p a l constel­ lation and to appreciate the significance of overt homosexuality i n m a i n t a i n i n g psychic e q u i l i b r i u m and ego identity i n spite of the ev­ ident disturbance i n sexual identity. Before studying the clinical findings for the light they may shed on the psychic structure and its instinctual economy, it is i m ­ portant to d e l i m i t our area of research from a theoretical and a clinical point of view. First, psychoanalytic theory considers the homosexual component of the l i b i d o to be an integral part of every h u m a n being's psychic structure, so it is well to define what we mean by "homosexual l i b i d o " and to ask i n what manner this com­ ponent is cathected and integrated into the adult personality i n people who are not homosexual. Second, since clinical categories no­ toriously overlap (particularly w i t h regard to homosexual elements where there is constant reference to conscious, unconscious, and l a ­ tent homosexual aspects i n the classical neurotic and psychotic structures), i t is necessary to differentiate between commonly dis­ guised expressions of homosexuality and its overt expression i n sex­ ual relations. Where do "normal-neurotic" and "psychotic" leave off and where does "perverse" begin? Does the term "latent homosex­ 171 172 F E M A L E SEXUALITY u a l " really mean anything? W h a t place do we accord homosexual and perverse fantasy i n daydreams and masturbation? W h a t rela­ tionship might be found to exist between the overt homosexual woman and the "masculine w o m a n " who feels at home among men and abhors the company of other women? It seems evident that the homosexual component of the l i ­ bido implies two distinct aims, depending on the object; i n the lit­ tle g i r l one of these instinctual aims corresponds to a desire for total possession of the mother i n a world without men; while the other represents a desire to be the father and, therefore, masculine. E x p a n d i n g this we might say that i n every small girl's relation to her mother (both the real mother and her internal representation) her homosexual attachment w i l l express itself i n positive feelings to­ ward the mother as a sexual object and i n defenses against these wishes. I n relation to the real and internalized father, homosexual l i b i d o is expressed i n a desire to be like, or be, the father—which may or may not include identification with h i m i n his sexual role. However, to say that the little girl must make either an object­ choice or an identification oversimplifies the problem. It goes with­ out saying that she must achieve various identifications with her mother if she is to function harmoniously as an adult woman; but her equally essential identifications with her father raise a number of important questions for the understanding of female sexuality and ego identity. F o r example, is she trying to become her father i n order to be an object of desire and love for the mother? O r , on the contrary, is she trying to camouflage her O e d i p a l wishes by saying i n effect: "See, I don't want to take daddy from my mother. I don't even want to be a g i r l ! " T o say that the little girl wants a penis still leaves open the question of why she wants one. W h a t significance has she given to her father's possession of the penis? Does it repre­ sent a purely narcissistic enhancement to be desired as such? O r does it stand for the object of the mother's desire? O r a symbol of power? O r protection? T h e two latter meanings arise frequently from the period of pregenital conflicts before the O e d i p a l signifi­ cance of sexual differences is acknowledged; that is, the father (or his penis) comes to represent a protection from the all-controlling " a n a l " mother or from being engulfed by a devouring " o r a l " mother, protection therefore against the primitive anxieties asso­ ciated with these images. A n y or a l l of these fantasies may play a dynamic role i n the structure of the unconscious. T h e n again, frag­ mented "penis identifications" are also common, for example, the wish to fulfill the role of a penis for the mother. T h i s may be con­ Homosexuality in Women 173 ceived of as a way of r e p a i r i n g her, of tying oneself u p to her, of re­ m a i n i n g the constant object of her desire and preoccupation, etc. W e clearly cannot advance too far o n the basis of fantasy a­ lone. C e r t a i n reality experiences leave their i m p r i n t . C h i l d r e n , caught i n the nets of their parents' unconscious desires, weave their fantasies out of an amalgam of primitive instinctual drives organized around what they have decoded of their parents' wishes and around what they believe they represent to their parents. O f such stuff is ego identity made. Before trying to understand why certain women create a homosexual identity, we might first of a l l attempt to see how homo­ sexual l i b i d o (in its double aspect) is integrated i n women who do not become overtly homosexual. T o my m i n d , this complex instinctual component finds three m a i n expressions i n the adult woman. First, it enriches and makes possible sublimated object relations w i t h friends of her own sex. Sec­ ond, although it is only i n her relation to a man that a woman feels herself to be sexually a woman and complementary to her mate, nevertheless her ability to identify w i t h h i m i n the sex act enriches her love life i n a l l its aspects. (The same is, of course, true for the man.) Freud's statement, quoted at the beginning of this paper, a l ­ ready suggests this double identification. T h u s , her ability to iden­ tify sexually w i t h the father eventually contributes an important el­ ement to her feeling of feminine identity. F i n a l l y , m u c h homosexual l i b i d o is expressed i n her various ego activities, particularly i n creative and professional work a n d i n the activity of motherhood. H e r n o r m a l homosexual demands on both parents find m a n i f o l d sublimated satisfactions when she herself becomes a parent; as re­ gards work capacity, unconscious identification w i t h the opposite sex allows both sexes to b r i n g forth—parthenogenetically, so to speak— their self-created b r a i n children. Failure to accept the important homosexual element contributes to tenacious work problems i n both sexes. If, as suggested here, homosexual l i b i d o i n women is nor­ mally absorbed i n object relations of a sublimated k i n d , i n the nar­ cissistic self-image, and i n sublimated activities, what then is the sit­ uation w i t h regard to the overt homosexual? W e might surmise that she on the contrary has met w i t h severe impediments to the harmonious integration of her homosexual drives. I n this paper an attempt w i l l be made, through the m e d i u m of clinical examples, to examine the nature of these impediments and the extent to which they are reflected i n her inner object world, thus affecting ego iden­ 174 F E M A L E SEXUALITY tity and ego functions. W e may then be able to appreciate the dy­ namic and economic significance of the homosexual structure and object-relations i n m a i n t a i n i n g an e q u i l i b r i u m i n the face of severe internal conflict for which it is an attempted solution. T h e question of the limits to what is called "homosexuality" still remains to be defined. T o begin w i t h , even i n a l l cases of overt homosexuality we are not necessarily dealing w i t h the same clinical picture. T h a t many homosexual women do not feel disturbed i n such a way as to lead them to seek psychoanalytic help is i n itself indicative. A l t h o u g h the capacity for heterosexual love is obviously impaired i n the homosexual, there may be relatively unhampered capacity for social relations and for creativity, and such people are less likely to seek therapeutic aid. Others, however, find that a l l as­ pects of their lives are unfulfilling or arouse anxiety. F o r these women the self-image and feeling of identity are sometimes so dam­ aged that they give rise to severe depression w i t h suicidal ideas, or to outbursts of overwhelming anxiety, or again to episodic break­ downs i n reality-testing w i t h consequent difficulty i n m a i n t a i n i n g social relations. Sometimes homosexual wishes themselves become the focus for conflict and anxiety and as such may motivate a decision to seek analytic help i n order to understand and combat the homosexual fantasies. T h e question of "perverse" masturbation fantasy can be raised here. It seems to me that this is a typical expression of the neurotic structure, whereas i n overtly perverse people sexual fantasy tends to be r i g i d and impoverished. One is tempted to posit i n the latter an internal p r o h i b i t i o n against fantasy which adds to the need to enact it i n reality. W h e n patients come to analysis because they are troubled by homosexual thoughts we are dealing more often than not w i t h a neurotic structure i n which these wishes, though warded off and repressed i n the past, have surged back into consciousness, bringing guilt and panic i n their wake. T h e woman who is overtly and exclusively homosexual on the contrary rarely feels strong guilt about her sex life. A l t h o u g h often sensitive to so­ cial censure of her proclivities, she usually believes that homosexual relations are an essential part of her life, w h i c h she tends to idealize rather than condemn. If she seeks the help of an analyst it is more often because of neurotic difficulties and suffering, which, indeed, are frequently mobilized by a breakdown i n her homosexual rela­ tionship. Otherwise, she often defers seeking help for fear that her homosexual relations may be endangered. T h i s paper is not concerned w i t h that large group of women who have created elaborate defenses against homosexual wishes as Homosexuality in Women 175 part of a neurotic picture, nor w i t h that smaller group i n which ex­ cessive g u i l t and anxiety over homosexual desires i n a fragile struc­ ture leads to psychotic projection and paranoia. W h i l e the homo­ sexual element is an essential p i l l a r of these patients' psychic structure, it seems misleading to describe them as "latent homosex­ uals"; the term might i n a greater or lesser degree apply to any­ body. T h e r e are, however, two broad clinical patterns w h i c h are re­ lated, though i n different ways, to that of the overt homosexual. T h e first is that of the strikingly " m a n n i s h " woman who takes pains to display little femininity i n manner and dress a n d shows a marked preference for the company of men. Such women are fre­ quently referred to as homosexual i n spite of the fact that they have no sexual desires toward women. Indeed, they distrust women, de­ precate femininity, and often c l a i m that i n character they are more like men than women. M e n are felt to possess superior intelligence, superior ethical values, superior courage, and so on. I n being "mas­ c u l i n e " they feel that they, too, share these interests and ideals. W i t h few exceptions the patients of this type whom I have i n m i n d were married and had children. Sexual relations, however, were i n ­ variably associated w i t h disagreeable sensations ranging from suffo­ cation to vaginismus, a n d with feelings of panic or disgust—such symptoms frequently being a leading motive for seeking therapeutic help. T h e i r " v i r i l e " personality on the other h a n d was felt to be ego-syntonic and not regarded as a symptom. N o n e of these patients had any conscious homosexual fantasy, and apart from banal c h i l d ­ hood games, reported no history of homosexual experiences. W h e n submitted to analytic scrutiny, the differences between the women of "masculine" character and the overtly homosexual women are more striking than their similarities. It does not seem justified to i n ­ clude them under one single clinical heading as some analytic writ­ ers have done, even though we might expect them to have certain features i n common. T h e second group to which I referred has more i n common w i t h the homosexual from the point of view of psychic and eco­ nomic structure. T h i s is due to the fact that the troubled identifica­ tions and inner t u r m o i l which seek expression through homosexual­ ity might equally well express themselves in other forms of behavior. I have found certain cases of kleptomania and of alcohol­ ism to reveal a psychic structure and parental imagoes almost iden­ tical w i t h those of the homosexual women. M y interest was first drawn to the unconscious meaning of homosexual desire when I had i n analysis, w i t h i n a relatively short period of time, three klep­ 176 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y tomaniac patients. A l l were strikingly preoccupied w i t h homosexual wishes, though none h a d h a d any actual homosexual experiences. T h e i r relations with other women were highly eroticized a n d aroused a mixture of excitement a n d anxiety. A l t h o u g h klepto­ m a n i a is not invariably a psychic equivalent to sexual deviation, i n the cases I have i n m i n d the erotic element underlying the stealing was evident i n various ways. O n e young woman, for example, de­ scribed her "bouts" of shoplifting i n terms more appropriate to sex­ uality than to compulsion. She explained: " I try to fight the urge to steal. Days go by a n d then little by little I find I a m t h i n k i n g of n o t h i n g else. It's like an unbearable tension. Finally, I give i n a n d the feeling is just like deep relief. It's so exciting a n d then it's over with, a n d I can sleep calmly u n t i l the next time." H e r pleasure was intensified i f she could induce a g i r l friend to j o i n her i n the shop­ l i f t i n g expeditions. T h e whole cycle of events carried a scarcely dis­ guised orgastic meaning for this patient. (It is interesting to note that similar descriptions are often applied to creative work also. Here sublimation rather than perversion has been achieved as a so­ l u t i o n to conflictual desire through the m e d i u m of fantasy elabora­ tion. T h e work has been successfully desexualized and the aggres­ sive elements integrated i n the creation itself and i n the i m p l i e d competitiveness. I n sexual deviation a n d other symptomatic behav­ ior, such as kleptomania, the aggressive as well as the erotic ele­ ments are poorly integrated.) T h e unconscious links between the compulsion to steal and homosexual desire w i l l be discussed more fully i n the secfion on overt homosexuality. and Homosexuality Masculinity As already indicated, a manifest desire to be a man a n d an overt sexual desire for women do not necessarily stem from a common unconscious structure. W h i l e both desires clearly i m p l y a distur­ bance i n the feeling of sexual identity, there is a considerable differ­ ence between the "masculine" woman, who regards her ego ideals and her identity as basically male (accompanied by a disparaging attitude to women), a n d the homosexual one, who has made a mas­ culine type of object-choice i n seeking love relations w i t h a woman (accompanied by a disparaging attitude to men). W h a t factors have hindered the harmonious integration of the ambivalent Oedi­ pal attachments a n d the potential conflicts of the pre-Oedipal phases to such an extent as to distort the feeling of sexual identity? A n d what are the common features a n d the differences between the two groups? T o begin w i t h it becomes clinically evident that both groups Homosexuality in Women 177 repudiate any identification with the genital mother, particularly i n her role as sexual partner to the man and to a lesser extent i n her capacity to bear children. T h e homosexual woman does not seek to attract men sexually a n d usually does not believe she could even should she desire it. A t the same time she is afraid of men and con­ stantly fears sexual attack. T h e masculine woman, although not afraid of men, is usually distressed and angry at the idea that she might be an object of sexual desire for them, and she frequently acts as though insulted if sexual approaches are made to her. H e r sexual relations w i t h lover or husband are not infrequently accompa­ nied by mental and physical p a i n — a fact w h i c h she usually endeav­ ors to hide. A p a r t from the question of sexual relations, bitterness to­ ward men (conscious i n one group and unconscious i n the other) affects work capacities i n both and can affect the maintenance of satisfactory social relations w i t h men. Homosexual women often seek to exclude men altogether from their lives, thus imposing r i g i d limits on their activity. Masculine women, although socially at ease and consciously identified w i t h men, are frequently frightened by intense rivalry feelings w h i c h they attempt to stifle, and they become i n h i b i t e d to a pathological degree from creating or w o r k i n g at any­ thing successfully. T h u s , women of both categories complain of feelings of inad­ equacy, of insecurity, and of confusion about what they want from life. A l l are liable to periods of depression or anxiety. A l t h o u g h their difficulties are determined i n part by a common failure to identify w i t h the genital mother, to understand their divergence i t is necessary to discuss the sharp differences i n the parental imagoes i n the two groups of women. T h e virile woman has to some extent eliminated the mother image, and with her a l l other women, as ob­ jects of l i b i d i n a l value. B y contrast the homosexual constantly seeks other women for tender and eroticized relations, which have i n ad­ d i t i o n the quality of a mother-child relationship. W i t h regard to the paternal image we find the situation re­ versed. T h e homosexual g i r l appears to have eliminated the father and a l l other men as possible objects of l i b i d i n a l investment. T h e masculine g i r l constantly seeks relations with men, but o n a non­ genital basis. She accepts the sexual relationship w i t h conflict and misgiving. T h e following quotations, from a woman of each group, epitomize their respective positions when they seek to justify them consciously. One of my "masculine*' patients, a physicist, married, with children, says: "It's just too bad being a woman. W o m e n don't 1^8 F E M A L E SEXUALITY like other women and men can't stand them either! T o be born a woman is to be condemned i n advance." H e r position closely resem­ bles that of a Paris journalist well known for his misogynist views, who i n a radio interview, to the question: " I t appears, Monsieur, that you do not like women at all?" replied, " W h o does?" I n contrast, a patient whose relationships were exclusively homosexual often proclaimed: " W h a t could one possibly hope for from a man? O n l y women are capable of disinterested love or of un­ derstanding the p a i n of another h u m a n being." Clearly, the two patients quoted here are both endeavoring to m a i n t a i n a precarious sense of integrity and identity, but the complex series of identifications by w h i c h they have attempted to solve their conflicts are different. Each runs the risk of failure, w i t h consequent p a i n and disillusionment, i n the field of sexual as well as of sublimatory activities. A secure feeling of sexual and personal identity can be achieved only through adequate identification w i t h both parents. T h i s allows the integration of primitive omnipotence and p r i m i t i v e instinctual drives toward both parents and is a neces­ sary prerequisite to the renunciation of incestuous wishes and to the establishment of secondary identification—in other words to the res­ olution of the O e d i p a l conflict. L a c k i n g such basic identifications the possibility of m a i n t a i n i n g ego identity through adequate social and sexual relations is constantly threatened and likely to lead to neurotic illness or to perverse "solutions" of the O e d i p a l situation. It is w i t h i n the scope of psychoanalysis to provide conditions i n which such integration, blocked since early childhood, may once again become possible. Woman The Masculine Since this paper is p r i m a r i l y concerned w i t h overt homosexuality this section dealing w i t h character-patterns of v i r i l i t y w i l l be some­ what schematic i n the interest of brevity. M r s . E., nuclear physicist by profession, married, w i t h two children, remarked i n her first interview: " M y husband and I are practically identical. Students at the same university, the same degrees, same interests. I n many ways we are an ideal couple. I enjoy men's company and always feel at home w i t h them. Get o n better w i t h our male friends than my husband doesl B u t I don't like women much. C a n ' t get on w i t h them. . . . M y only worry is that I don't enjoy sexual relations. Every time we have sex I'm afraid my husband w i l l find me out. . . . Neither of us wanted children for years. . . . Since Homosexuality in Women 179 the birth of my first c h i l d sexual relations have become intol­ erable to me. T h e other day my little boy accidentally touched my genitals. I was so overwhelmed w i t h fury that I struck h i m . T h a t ' s exactly how I feel when my husband touches me." Another woman w i t h a similar psychic pattern also came to analysis after the birth of her second c h i l d . She had suffered from intermittent vaginismus for years. She was now afraid that her ever-increasing dislike of sexual relations w o u l d cause a serious rift i n the marriage. U n l i k e M r s . E . she had always wanted children, but from early adolescence had daydreamed of having them without having sexual relations w i t h a m a n . Nevertheless, she daydreamed also of having " r e a l " relations with men, which meant to her, working, camping, or fighting, and being their nonsexual companion. " T h e idea of being a simple 'femmelette' fills me w i t h hor­ ror. W o m e n bore me to tears. I prefer masculine conversa­ tion. If I am forced to be i n the company of women I start to get anxious and fed up. Somehow I feel that men, too, prefer women like me." B o t h women idealized their fathers and modeled themselves closely u p o n them. T h e i r attitude to their mothers revealed thinly veiled hatred w h i c h r a p i d l y reached conscious expression i n the analysis. T h e i n t r i g u i n g question was why the idealized father could not be accepted as a valued love object i n such a way as to lead to the young woman's enhancement of herself as a woman. It was clear that the father had played an important role i n superego formation and that there was considerable identification also w i t h his social, ethical, and intellectual ideals, although the ethical val­ ues showed a certain rigidity, along the lines of "sphincter moral­ i t y . " T h e firm alliance of the superego w i t h the ego structure played an important part i n the repression of instinctual wishes, while at the same time p e r m i t t i n g close relations w i t h the mascu­ line world. T h e l i b i d i n a l drives seemed to find expression only i n sublimations. A t the same time, however, these were frequently v i ­ tiated since they represented a wish to castrate and thus were for­ bidden. It was only after many months of slow progress i n analysis that these patients could reveal the image underlying the belief that they were different from a l l other women. I n their deeper fantasy they were castrated men. T o be a woman meant to be nothing, to have nothing, to create nothing. A c t i v i t y was the privilege of the l8o F E M A L E SEXUALITY male, and he alone merited admiration and love. T h e fact that men displayed sexual interest i n women was simply disavowed. ( A l ­ though a similar denigration of women may be expressed by many neurotic women, their feeling is not usually countered by their claiming that they are really men themselves i n these respects.) As we have seen, although the internalized father played an important role i n the psychic structure he had never been accepted as an object of sexual desire. M u c h later it was possible to recon­ struct fantasies and memories which revealed the father as so dan­ gerously seductive that he had to be excluded as a love object and i n one sense perpetually kept outside the self. Therefore, a sem­ blance of his presence was forever necessary. A l l men became the ideal nonsexual father, with whom the g i r l could have close and even affectionate contact. B u t this was achieved only to the detri­ ment of her erotic life and feeling of identity. Further insight into the castrated image these women had unconsciously formed of themselves came through the emerging portrait of the pre-Oedipal mother image. I n relation to her the idealized phallic picture of the father began to change into an i m ­ potent and castratable one. Anamnestic details were used i n support of the idea that the mother had somehow forced the father into a passive and emascu­ lated role. (In one case the mother had died when the patient was only six, following which she was replaced by a hated stepmother. I n another, the mother was reported to have been continually un­ faithful to the father, which he appeared to have condoned compla­ cently.) Consciously despised because of her castrating ways, the mother was i n addition condemned because of her interest i n sexual relations. T h e r e was a deep belief that she was m u c h more powerful (more phallic, i n the unconscious) than the father. Thus, the cas­ trated self-image was not an identification with a penis-less mother (which w o u l d have given rise to a much more common feminine character pattern) but with a father felt to have many ideal quali­ ties yet nevertheless seen as castrated. T h e dominating maternal imago d i d not lead to any desire for identification. Instead, there was considerable fear of identifying with such a "castrating" mother. T h e patient who suffered from vaginismus made an impor­ tant self-discovery of her vagina as a potentially castrating organ. D u r i n g a medical consultation she was asked by the doctor to re­ move a contraceptive r i n g for which she was being fitted. W i t h some trepidation she inserted her finger into her vagina, for the first time i n her conscious memory, and reported that she nearly Homosexuality in Women 181 "fainted w i t h fright because 'something' bit her finger." Another patient had a dream i n which she inserted her h a n d into her vagina and a finger was bitten off. Once the oral and anal cathexes of the vagina could be understood it became easier to see why this "pre­ genital" vagina h a d been projected entirely onto the mother along w i t h a l l sexual desire, and why the young woman from then on re­ fused to acknowledge any vaginal sensation or desire i n herself for fear of castrating her partner. T h e mother, object of early venera­ tion, was demoted i n consequence. W h e n the genital desires of the O e d i p a l period began to come to light they were felt to entail abandonment by the powerful and once loved mother. N o w the devalued and abandoning mother was projected onto a l l women who therefore were disparaged and abandoned i n advance by the patient. These patients found it rela­ tively acceptable to understand their denigration of women i n terms of penis envy and the female castration complex. T h i s under­ standing served as an a l i b i against the m u c h deeper fear of women. T h e terror of ever being i n rivalry with a woman was more vigor­ ously blocked from consciousness than the desire to r i v a l men. T h e meaning of the intense disdain of these women for other women who are seductive i n manner and dress now becomes ob­ vious, as it does for the conviction that men do not like " f e m i n i n e " women. H o w could they when " f e m i n i n i t y " can only be an invita­ tion to be castrated! Instead, these women felt they offered some­ thing of greater value, something safe and nonfeminine. T h e y were quite unaware that their own behavior was castrating, since they re­ fused men any sexual role toward them. T h e i r love for their men had to be nongenital. T h e fact that these women tend to choose partners who u n ­ consciously need women w i t h such problems further complicates the picture i n most cases and confirms the woman at the same time i n her particular idea of female sexuality. T h u s , my patients had chosen partners who also thought of women as castrated men, who were frightened of " f e m i n i n e " women, a n d who wanted their wives to be pals rather than people different from and complementary to themselves. I n any case the total picture for these women resulted i n continual frustration and inability to understand why relations with both sexes were so drastically unsatisfactory. A d d e d to the frus­ trations of the sexual situation was a risk attached to a l l sublimated activity, since it was considered not truly their own. C o m p u l s i o n to fail at whatever they undertook or to accomplish it at the price of feeling depressed and guilty was common. T h i s contained a mea­ sure of reparative guilt to ward off castration wishes toward the 182 F E M A L E SEXUALITY father, but i n sexual and other spheres the feeling of having some­ thing valuable to offer and exchange was unconsciously vitiated by the fractured sense of feminine identity. It was equally difficult for these patients to identify w i th the needs of others, no matter what sex, though more with those of their love objects, since a genital relationship of mutuality was excluded i n advance. T h e idealized picture of the " p a l " marriage usually revealed itself to be empty and strained. The Homosexual Woman F o r the sake of clarity I shall discuss the relationship of the homo­ sexual women to each parent separately. T h e artificiality of such a procedure is obvious, however, since the importance of these rela­ tionships and the series of identifications to which they gave rise draw their dynamic significance from the relation between the par­ ents. Whether that relationship is perceived as loving or rejecting, as mutually enhancing or mutually destructive, the c h i l d is faced with the fact that his parents share a privileged relation from w h i c h he is excluded. T h e homosexual i n particular (and the same is true for a l l people whose sexuality is predominantly perverse) deals w i t h p r i m a l scene disavowal fantasies by rendering them n u l l and void, through disavowal or negation. H e is then free to reconstruct the sexual relation using aims and objects other than genital ones. T h e Father-Image A s we shall see the father is neither idealized nor desired. If he is not totally absent from the analytic discourse he is thoroughly de­ tested. H e is described i n terms of disgust, noisiness, brutality, and lack of refinement which give an anal-sadistic quality to the por­ trait. Furthermore, his phallic capacities seem to be contested, for he is presented as ineffectual and impotent i n most respects. T h e once-phallic father has regressed to being an anal-sadistic one. One striking feature of the clinical material is the fate of this image w h i c h was once introjected into the daughter's world of i n ­ ternal objects. W e shall see that it has formed the basis of a patho­ logical identification i n the ego. In her self-appraisal the daughter shows how closely identified she is, unconsciously, w i t h this anal­ erotic and sadistic imago. T h i s powerfully cathected and destructive introject leads to important modifications i n the ego (on the de­ pressive mode as described by F r e u d i n Mourning and Melancholia, where object-loss is compensated by introjection). T h i s is now a narcissistically important part of the homosexual patient's ego, still bearing the stamp of its original ambivalent quality. T h e superego Homosexuality in Women 183 becomes at the same time sadistic to the subject (again following the depressive model), but some of this persecutory g u i l t is repro­ jected onto the father and subsequently onto a l l other men, who be­ come i n consequence potential persecutors, giving rise i n some i n ­ stances to delusional fears. Other important factors contributing to this pathological outcome of the father-daughter relationship w i l l be discussed when we consider the daughter's relationship to her mother. O l i v i a , a pretty young woman i n her twenties, of French-Ital­ ian parentage, who i n the first years of her analysis lived w i t h an older woman to whom she described herself as "mar­ r i e d , " came to her session one day l o o k i n g physically i l l and brandishing a letter from her father. " I have to go back to Florence for the holidays! It makes me sick. I couldn't sleep all night. T h o u g h t I was going to vomit. . . . I can't bear the sound of my father w i t h his horrible throat noises and coughing. H e only does i t to drive me mad. I can't stand l o o k i n g at h i m . H e makes little twitching movements with his face. Disgusting." I n earlier sessions she had recalled that his beard used to scratch her when she was little. A s far as she knew she h a d always hated h i m and believed he hated her, too. She continued: " I ' m so afraid I shall have an 'at­ tack' when I get back to Florence. M y father hates me more than ever when I ' m i l l and can't go out." O l i v i a here re­ ferred to a severe v o m i t i n g phobia w h i c h had crippled most of her social relations and was one of her p r i n c i p a l reasons for coming to analysis. ( A n intense preoccupation w i t h vom­ i t i n g existed i n three of my patients.) Olivia's unconscious fantasy about v o m i t i n g apparently continued to press for ex­ pression. She went on to say: " I ' m sure my father is responsi­ ble for my attacks. H e tries to make me i l l . Y o u probably don't believe it, but I know he w o u l d like to k i l l me." She had referred on many occasions to her belief that her father desired her death, and for a certain time she had even con­ vinced herself that he was actively plotting to eradicate her. In her third year of analysis she was able to amend this be­ lief to: " M y father is not aware of i t , but unconsciously he w o u l d like to k i l l me." A n o t h e r patient, K a r e n , a talented French actress, came to analysis because of severe anxiety attacks w h i c h stultify her work when she is i n front of an audience. (At a later stage she was able to give a phobic content to these panic attacks 1&4 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y saying that it was as though she might suddenly defecate or vomit on stage.) " W h e n I think of my father I hear h i m clearing his throat of mucus, b l o w i n g his nose, m a k i n g hor­ rible noises which seemed to spread over the dinner table and envelope us a l l (herself and her sisters). I used to think I w o u l d faint when he spoke to me, as though he were going to spit at me. I ' d like to tear his guts out, filthy p i g ! Makes you want to vomit. H e couldn't even eat without m a k i n g a noise." O n another occasion she said: " A s a c h i l d I was a l ­ ways afraid of losing control of myself. I used to faint a lot. . . . Every m o r n i n g before going to school I w o u l d pray 'Please G o d don't let me vomit today.' " A t other times she described a frightening fantasy which had persisted for some twenty years i n which she imagined her father creeping u p behind her to cut off her head. " I think he must have threatened to k i l l me when I was little. I w o u l d j u m p when­ ever he came u p behind me. Always kept my distance. W o u l d never sit beside h i m i n the car and so o n . " O r again E v a , young A m e r i c a n student: " I can't describe the terrible look o n my father's face. Even though I've done nothing I'm always afraid he w i l l shout at me. M y heart races as though he's going to k i l l me. . . . I have lost a pearl out of a brooch my parents gave me. I'm sick at the thought of what w i l l happen if my father finds out. . . . H e is brutal and disgusting. A n d so rude at the table. W h e n he's there I'm paralyzed w i t h fright and can't eat or talk." These three examples, typical i n a l l respects, w i l l suffice. (At the risk of emphasizing the obvious, I shall nevertheless remark at this point that these caricatures of the fathers d i d not correspond to anything that w o u l d be recognized by anybody other than the daughters themselves.) W e see that the paternal imago is strong and dangerous. Physical closeness to the father gives rise to feelings of disgust. T h i s enables the daughter to keep the father at a dis­ tance, and there follows a fantasy struggle against being invaded by his tics, mucus, angry outbursts, and other intrusive activity. T h e anal quality of the descriptions is evident and is clearly allied with the idea of a sadistic murderous attack. T h e very concentration on the father, his movements, sounds, and words, gives some indication of the uneasy excitement attached to his image. One has the impres­ sion of a little girl i n terror of being attacked or "penetrated" by her father. T h e very intensity of her repudiation of h i m and her emphasis o n his dirty and noisy qualities give us an i n k l i n g of the Homosexuality in Women 185 way she has used regression and repression to deal w i t h any phallic­ sexual interest attached to h i m . T h i s supposition is further corroborated by the observation that i n the early stages of analysis there is rarely any reference to the father's sexuality or to his masculine activity. H e is held to be ineffectual as a man. H i s sexual relation to the mother is denied and his achievements i n the outside w o r l d are denigrated. T h e defensive value of this " i m p o t e n t " father is clear: if he is castrated, there is less fear of desiring h i m as a love object. B e h i n d this "castrated" image is an even more deeply dis­ turbing one of the father who had failed in his parental role. H i s paternal authority was often represented as having been under­ m i n e d by the mother, though not because the mother was thought dominating or masculine. O n the contrary, as we shall see, she is pictured as the essence of femininity, but is also reported to have secretly destroyed the father's importance as an authority figure. One mother, for example, was remembered as having plotted w i t h her children to outwit the father i n money matters. Another had helped her c h i l d alter her school marks before showing them to the father. A t h i r d was reported to have forbidden the father any access to the c h i l d d u r i n g her early years o n the grounds that she was delicate and nervous. T h e extreme threat evoked by this destruction of the paternal image was first revealed only i n dreams, although it was detectable i n certain symptoms of depersonalization. K a r e n dreams: " T h e r e was a little boy r u n n i n g i n front of a car. A woman driver rides right over h i m and leaves h i m par­ alyzed. M y father just stands there saying he doesn't know where to go for help, I scream 'You're a doctor, aren't you? Y o u could be hanged for refusing to help someone i n danger of death.' T h e n I take the baby to a woman doctor myself. She sprays it w i t h ether but I keep on calling to my father to come and help me." Karen's associations lead to angry vituperation against the father and to details which identify the damaged baby boy as a rep­ resentation of herself. Further association and dream details lead her to recognize the woman doctor as standing for the analyst. Let us reconstruct the latent meaning of the dream insofar as it pertains to the present discussion. T h e accident to the little boy represents a castration o n a rather wide scale (paralysis) w h i c h is caused by a woman driver. (Says K a r e n : " M y mother's a terrible driver. Never looks where she's going!") B u t it is also a woman (analyst-mother) who is supposed to repair the damage of castration the father re­ l86 F E M A L E S.EXUALITY fused to worry about. (Homosexual relationships w i l l b r i n g the longed for completion.) However, the dangers of this latter solution are detected i n Karen's associations with the word "ether." " O h it either lulls you into insensibility so you feel no more p a i n — o r else it kills you outright." T h e analyst-mother can offer only two solu­ tions to this damaged baby: She w i l l l u l l it back into the fantasied bliss of the earliest mother-nursling relation, or again the same treatment might b r i n g about its death. She is, i n the long r u n , more dangerous w i t h her dubious gifts than the rejecting father. O n the other h a n d he is felt to have abandoned her to this overpowering, seductive mother, offering psychic death if he does not help to dis­ entangle his daughter from her clutches. B u t the father does not heed the daughter's appeal. H e r once p h a l l i c demand has regressed to a cry for help. 1 A dream of Olivia's reveals a similar unconscious image. I n her dream she watches a mother cat delivering kittens. T h e kittens are born w i t h their eyes open, and she realizes that this means they are to die. She makes desperate endeavors to save the baby kittens, first p u t t i n g them into a box too small for them, where they suffocate. She then puts them out w i t h the mother cat i n the snow, where they continue to fare badly. H e r father is there, too, and she begs h i m for help. H e replies that he is too busy, he has a business meeting. She runs back to her kittens and finds they are a l l dead. I n re­ counting these details O l i v i a burst into tears and said the dream was like real life i n that her father w o u l d not care if she died. T h e sequence of the kittens, doomed to die because their eyes are open, was actually a reference i n primary-pro­ cess t h i n k i n g to an early p r i m a l scene memory. O l i v i a had watched her parents, when they thought she was asleep, and described her mother as "the cat who got the cream." W h a t had died i n the tiny's child's m i n d was hope that she might one day identify w i t h the mother cat and have access to the genital father and the right to live kittens of her own. H e r other associations a l l led to a feeling of being destroyed i n ­ side. (At this time she had been suffering for many months from amenorrhea, a symptom signifying the desire for a c h i l d ; but Olivia's fantasy was that she was empty and fin­ ished. T h e dead kittens represented not only herself but her o w n u n b o r n children doomed to die.) It is to her father that she turns i n the dream to save the situation i n which her Homosexuality in Women 187 femininity is at stake. H e does n o t h i n g and the end result is death. T h i s aspect of the father's having failed them, which a l l my homosexual patients displayed, was coupled with an image of the mother's forbidding any access to the father and frequently encour­ aging the daughter's avowed dislike for h i m , as though this hatred were a gift made to herself. T h u s , any desire for the father, his love, or his penis was felt to be dangerous and forbidden by both par­ ents—a desire which w o u l d entail the loss of mother's love and bring castration to father. T h i s i n turn gave rise to many conscious fantasies of a revengeful and persecuting father. Important at this point is some idea of the unconscious identification with the father, not as an object of l i b i d i n a l investment but as a mutilated image possessed of disagreeable and dangerous (anal) qualities. Self-image a n d Father-Image O l i v i a , always dressed i n stained bluejeans topped by over­ large thick sweaters at the beginning of her analysis, com­ plained about women i n her environment who criticized her appearance and urged her to wear more feminine clothing. " I feel so miserable. Everyone looks down o n me for being so scruffy. I am scruffy. A n d I don't look my age. A n d I look like a grubby boy. I'm convinced you're not interested i n me. I don't suppose you even want to go on w i t h my anal­ ysis." She then asked angrily whether there were lots of at­ tractively dressed women who came to consult me. She started crying, saying that she was "dirty, clumsy, and disgusting," but that i n any case it was impossible for her to be differ­ ent. " I w o u l d feel so ridiculous dressed up like other women. Besides I can't bear to hear them cackling about fashions and make-up. A l l my life my mother made me get dressed u p to go to receptions. I always felt angry and i l l . " Here O l i v i a is communicating a number of important fea­ tures about herself. T o begin w i t h , she now applies to herself many terms identical to those used to describe her father. Some of the fea­ tures she described unconsciously represent her only way of ap­ proaching him. Largely lost to her as an object, her father is now, i n a certain sense, embodied w i t h i n herself. Yet this close identifica­ tion w i t h a regressed image of the father is felt, nevertheless, to be forbidden by the mother and to be despised by other women. B u t just as clearly she is determined not to be robbed of it, nor of its l88 F E M A L E SEXUALITY unconscious, all-important significance. Narcissistic identification w i t h a father conceived of i n anal terms is highly conflictual. T h i s identification is displeasing to the mother, but guarantees the daughter an escape from a form of psychotic merging with her. I n this session we see that O l i v i a also fears that the analyst w i l l cast her out for those traits i n which she unconsciously identifies with her father. These " a n a l " traits clearly represent a vital part of her identity, a part which she feels she must struggle to preserve. She further identified w i t h sadistic traits attributed to the father. O l i v i a wore a thick leather wristband, believing it gave her " a n appearance of strength and cruelty." She also carried a large knife concealed i n her handbag whenever she went out, ostensibly to protect herself from dangerous men (for example, taxi drivers) w i t h whom she might come i n contact. B u t the fact that it was she who wielded the knife and therefore might be considered dangerous was never conscious. T h u s , O l i v i a identified w i t h father's suppos­ edly menacing strength and readiness to k i l l , as w e l l as his dirtiness and his disgustingness. W h i l e the unconscious identification w i t h the "dirty, disgust­ i n g " paternal phallus was strongly disapproved by the mother, her manifest desire to keep a l l men at arm's length was not. O l i v i a had a store of horror tales, attributed to her mother, of brutal encoun­ ters w i t h men. Consequently, she regarded her precautions not only as a necessary defense but as precautions her mother w o u l d ap­ prove. I n this way the mother was felt to be against the heterosex­ u a l w o r l d both w i t h i n (unconscious identification) and without (protection against desire on the grounds that men are dangerous). H e r e is Karen's self-portrait, painted i n the same colors so to speak, but i n her own inimitable style. " I ' m just a piece of shit, and that's exactly how everyone treats me. B u t my friend P a u l a saw me quite differently. A n d that's how I knew she really loved me. She liked my craziness and she d i d n ' t treat me like s h i t ! " She then added defensively (apparently wondering if the analyst w i l l really love her too): " I haven't taken a bath for weeks and I don't give a damn. I smell like a skunk and I love i t ! C a n you smell it?" T o this clinging to her body products and odors, so highly invested narcissisti­ cally, Karen added a style of dress which carried out the same idea. H e r appearance was that of a beatnik. W h e n she was obliged by external circumstances to wear feminine clothing she felt anxious and uncomfortable. T o my remark one day that she seemed to be telling me that it was neither Homosexuality in Women 189 thinkable nor permissible for her to dress like a woman she shouted: " A r e you crazy? M e — a woman? T h a t ' s a good joke!" H e r burst of l o u d laughter was immediately followed by uncontrollable sobbing. A g a i n we find a young woman describing herself exactly as she does her father, and i n just those respects w h i c h , according to her, make it impossible that she love, trust, or respect h i m . She d i d not carry a knife a r o u n d like O l i v i a , but i n the same circumstances wove innumerable fantasies of k i l l i n g men. " I ' d like to k i l l some m a n , any m a n , and drive a knife right through his belly. Sometimes I ' d like to strangle men w i t h my bare hands." She made an expres­ sive gesture i n the air. " T h e other night I dreamed about R (a m a n who had exposed himself to her when she was five), a n d I was hack­ i n g h i m to pieces w i t h an axe. T h e r e was a mess of blood, guts, and pus. I kept on chopping w i t h my axe. A n d yet he wouldn't die." T h i s dream, i n w h i c h she chopped to pieces a m a n who subse­ quently came to life again, was a recurrent theme i n Karen's dream life. A t other moments K a r e n projected these murderous impulses onto the men around her a n d was terrified to go out o n the street, convinced that some m a n was plotting her destruction. These fears even spread to the inanimate world, and at such times K a r e n w o u l d keep her distance from tall buildings i n panic lest they f a l l o n her. She constantly anticipated that she w o u l d be the v i c t i m of plane crashes, earthquakes, or other uncontrollable disasters. T h e y re­ called v i v i d l y the fantasy that her father w o u l d sneak up behind her a n d cut off her head. It is not difficult to reconstruct the tortur­ i n g fears meted out by her superego as punishment for any sexual wishes, no matter how disguised, toward the father. T h e originally p h a l l i c father through identification was now an anal-erotic posses­ sion—his whole being dominated by sadism. W e might note here that pregenital anal-eroticism has be­ come detached from its aggressive component. W h i l e the uncon­ scious anal-erotic l i n k w i t h the father has been retained as a narcissistic aspect of the ego of considerable intensity, it can i n no way be l i n k e d w i t h an active desire to absorb or receive anything from the father as a love object. W h a t might have been fantasied as a desire to retain the father as an object of love coupled w i t h a de­ sire actively to incorporate his penis is replaced by the need to fend off anal-sadistic attacks from the father (projection of her own sex­ ual desire). T h i s served as a solid defense against any reawakening of heterosexual needs. igo F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y A s might be anticipated, w i t h the progress of analysis these patients were able to reveal i n their dreams and fantasies a variety of anal-receptive wishes, the analysis of which permitted some inte­ gration of the infantile drives, leading i n turn to the rediscovery of sexual desire and an intense wish i n most cases to have a baby. O f course these wishes brought m u c h anxiety and a resurgence of hypo­ chondriacal fears i n their wake and had to be analyzed i n terms of the O e d i p a l danger (castration of one's sexual being) and the preO e d i p a l dimension (abandonment and death) if the tie to the ma­ ternal imago were to be dissolved. A dream of Olivia's is evocative at this point, through its primitive O e d i p a l imagery as well as its anal-erotic symbols. " I dreamed I was r u n n i n g along the beach at X where I spent a l l my childhood holidays. I see that I have a penis at­ tached to my body. A group of men come r u n n i n g after me and shoot bullets at me. T h e bullets a l l fly into my anus. N o w I am very i l l and I find my way to a place where a group of doctors examines me. M y penis has disappeared. T h e y study an X ray of my insides. I n my rectum, and ex­ tending even into my abdomen, there is a huge black rat. It is very dark and still. A n d i n a way it is beautiful. L i k e some­ thing graven i n stone, like those stone carvings around the Ch&teau de Blois. I want to scream, nevertheless, when I see the rat, and try to hide it. T h e doctors tell me I must vomit it u p or else it w i l l poison me and I shall die. B u t at that moment I realize that I must not vomit it u p . If I move I shall lose the r a t — a n d then I shall die. I woke u p paralyzed w i t h fright and afraid to move." Here the rat, likened to emblems (around the Chateau de Blois) and symbol of the father's p h a l l i c power, is now lodged i n her anus. T h e dream provides one clue to her v o m i t i n g phobia (that she w o u l d vomit up this internalized phallus) and some i n ­ sight i n t o the conflict by which she felt torn inside. T h e doctors i n the dream represented both the mother who had nursed her through interminable " i n t e s t i n a l " maladies i n childhood and the analyst who at that time was believed, like the mother, to p r o h i b i t her keeping anything valuable inside her. Father and his penis were forbidden. Yet she cannot live if she loses the rat. W i t h o u t her father she is nothing. She w i l l die. W h a t light do these brief clinical excerpts shed on the rela­ tion of the homosexual to her father? I n the first place we find no trace of what is regarded as normal or usual i n the relation of the Homosexuality in Women 191 g i r l to her father. N o n e of the usual neurotic solutions to the con­ flict over id-wishes directed to the father is found. Even i n dreams the erotic aspects of the drives attached to h i m remain relatively camouflaged. If we take Karen's dream of the baby boy, who is r u n over while the father stands by helplessly, we see that the desire for the p h a l l i c father has regressed to the need for a father who w i l l protect his c h i l d from the demands of the pre-Oedipal mother. I n the dreams the dangerous aspects of the latter are obvious. (It should be recalled i n this connection that consciously the desire is to e l i m i ­ nate the father, represented as an intruder i n the mother-daughter relationship. A n x i e t y about the father's exclusion is totally uncon­ scious.) W h a t has happened to the father as a love-object i n the i n ­ ternal object-world of the little g i r l h i d d e n i n the patients under discussion? N o t only has she been unable to deal with her p r i m i t i v e wishes, but i n her attempt to deal with her parents and their u n ­ conscious demands upon her, her ego has undergone profound mod­ ifications. Whatever the father's unconscious problems may have been (frequently compounded by external events, such as his sud­ den return from the armed forces, the b i r t h of a baby brother, the death of a beloved nurse), the daughter appears to have abandoned h i m as an object of l i b i d i n a l wishes at the height of the classical O e d i p a l period. T h i s discarded paternal object was then incorpo­ rated into the little girl's ego-structure never to be given u p . N o other man ever takes father's place i n the homosexual girl's u n i ­ verse. T h e g i v i n g u p of the father as an object of l i b i d i n a l invest­ ment corresponds i n no way to the r e l i n q u i s h i n g of the original ob­ ject which we find i n n o r m a l women, nor to the producing of symptoms dealing with frustrated O e d i p a l wishes and castration anxiety which we find i n neurotic developments. N o r has the father divested of his sexual attraction been retained as the only possible object, as i n the case of women with a "masculine" charac­ ter. F o r the homosexual the father is lost as an object, and the rela­ tionship with h i m is replaced by a specific form of identification. T h e ambivalence inherent i n any identification is here immeasurea­ bly heightened; the ego w i l l subsequently suffer merciless superego attack for those identifications which form an essential part of its identity. T h e depressive reproaches, which the homosexual heaps upon herself, have the quality of the classic reproaches of the mel­ ancholic. T h e y represent an attack u p o n the internalized father, yet the narcissistically important and zealously guarded object is a bulwark against psychotic dissolution. T h i s "pregenitalized super­ ego" results i n ego fragility and i n impoverishment and paralysis of 1Q2 F E M A L E SEXUALITY m u c h of the ego's functioning. (Space does not permit a description of these impoverished lives.) W e are still faced with the question as to why the little girl, i n her attempt to internalize something as vitally important to her growth and development as the phallic representation of her father, is able to do so only at the expense of object loss, ego impairment, and immense suffering. I n describing the internalized image i n its various aspects we have furnished only a partial explanation of the obstructions to harmonious integration. A fuller understanding re­ quires us to investigate more closely the relation to the maternal imago (the more so since our division of the parental couple is an artificial one). The Mother-Image T h e mother is described i n a highly idealized fashion—beautiful, gifted, charming, and so on. She is felt to be a l l that the daughter is not, but this unequal situation is apparently taken for granted. T h e r e is no conscious envy of the mother. Furthermore, she emerges as a figure of total security against the dangers of l i v i n g which might face the patient. Yet at the same time the mother is felt to be i n constant danger herself, and fears for her imminent death are common. I n fantasy she is the victim of fatal accidents, the prey of brutal attackers, or she is threatened with imminent abandonment or excessive domination by the father. H e is believed to make u n ­ fair demands upon her, both sexually and otherwise. Identification with such an imago is difficult for two m a i n reasons. First, any aspirations toward narcissistic identification w i t h the mother are doomed to failure, because the mother is believed to possess gifts of beauty, intelligence, and talent which the daughter simply "was not born w i t h . " Unconsciously, idealization of the mother figure is necessary to repress a fund of hostile and destruc­ tive feelings toward her. It is therefore important that she be kept an unattainable ideal. Second, this attitude is reinforced by the be­ lief that on the heterosexual plane the mother had an unhappy, if not dangerous, role. I n no instance was there any conscious feeling that the mother was enhanced or made complete by her possession of the father as a love object. T h e wishful fantasy of each of these patients i n the beginning of analysis could have been summed up as a desire for the total elimination of the father and the creation of a tender and enduring mother-daughter relationship. T h i s latter de­ sire was i n most cases displaced onto women as sexual partners des­ tined at the same time to be mother substitutes. Elaborations of the same wish were constantly reiterated i n the early transference situa­ Homosexuality in Women 193 tion. Its aggressive elements, though transparent, were unconscious. L e t us now listen to these women talking of their mothers. O l i v i a : " M o t h e r was talented and beautiful. She was a star i n the eyes of the p u b l i c and everyone around her adored her too. . . . I always wanted to be near her. Whenever she went out I was haunted by the idea that she w o u l d get r u n over. . . . She is very pure and innocent, and can't imagine that anyone can have evil thoughts . . . the only trouble is that she can't understand what i t is to be i l l . She was never sick. . . . Somehow she was never there when I needed her. I won­ der if a l l my stomach troubles weren't just a way of keeping her near m e . . . . " E v a w o u l d say: " I loved her so much I used to save u p a l l my pennies to buy her flowers." (Later she stole money from her father to give flowers to her girl-friends.) " W h e n she was caring for my little sister I was almost i l l w i t h longing for her. Sometimes I would try to be i l l so that she w o u l d keep me at home w i t h her." Later, she reported: " B u t somehow it was as though you couldn't get close to her. She wasn't mean, but she gave things instead of love." These two examples taken at random could be m u l t i p l i e d many times. A l l i n a l l the mother has an even more stereotyped rep­ resentation than the father. She is an ideal to be adored but never attained. She remains outside the daughter's ego identity i n her idealized aspects. A d d e d to her highly esteemed qualities are sugges­ tions of coldness and aloofness and the feeling that one could not be secure i n her love—except perhaps through illness. T h e v i v i d i m ­ pression of a l l these patients that the mother secretly denigrated the father has already been stated. T h i s contributed no doubt to the daughter's belief that the father was undesirable, i f not dangerous, and should be distrusted and outwitted. T h e r e was a recurring fan­ tasy, therefore, that without mother's collusion and protection daughter might be exposed to a specific danger from the father. I n the early phases of analysis this danger was rarely made explicit; the accent was placed on mother's indispensability. T h e majority of these patients maintained, on the basis of circumstantial evidence, that there was no sexual relation between the parents, supposedly because the mother refused to "submit to humiliations," "was tired of being brutally attacked," etc. One pa­ tient had been told by her mother that she had sexual relations with the father but that these took place while the mother was asleep. (This patient suffered from severe insomnia for many years 194 F E M A L E S E X U A L I T Y and could not sleep i n her Paris apartment alone. She had to have a woman friend nearby i n order to sleep without fear. T h u s , she re­ created the situation of childhood i n which the mother stood be­ tween the daughter and her unconscious desire for the father.) Sto­ ries of rape and other sexual violence were common i n these analysands' sessions and were sometimes attributed to the mother. T h e overall impression was that the mother repudiated heterosex­ ual feelings i n herself and forbade them to her daughter. Let us briefly recapitulate the parental images as they were revealed i n the early analytic sessions. Father is the repository of a l l that is bad, dirty, and dangerous, while mother is maintained as a nonconflictual object. She is the fountainhead of a l l security—a se­ curity later sought i n other women who become sexualized love ob­ jects. She is thought to possess many valuable feminine attributes, but these evoke no conscious jealousy. T h e daughter later o n w i l l hope to have access to some of these qualities by loving another woman. T h e one sour note i n the lovely mother theme is the i m ­ pression that she is cold, distant, lacking i n understanding. H o w ­ ever, this is i n no way consciously resented by her daughter i n her attempt to keep the idealized image intact. Instead, these women re­ garded themselves as unlovable children, disappointing to their mothers. H o w could such a mother accept such a daughter—untidy and unfeminine, frequently i n i l l health and almost invariably a failing student i n spite of more than average intelligence? F r o m behind this discourse two very different themes grad­ ually emerged: constant concern for the mother's health and safety, obsessive images of her falling fatally i l l or of finding her dead or cut to pieces. Often these were displaced onto female sexual part­ ners, and only as the analysis proceeded were they found to have ex­ isted for many years i n childhood, attached to the mother. T h e y re­ q u i r e d one's staying very close to the mother (or her later substitute) and covering her w i t h solicitude, w h i c h often thinly veiled their underlying aggressive content. A l t h o u g h the fantasies of the loved one's falling v i c t i m to a fatal catastrophe were consciously considered as a total threat to the analysand and to her object­ w o r l d she could not avoid coming to see that these were magical means of preventing dangerous impulses i n herself from destroying the maternal object. T h e second theme which turned u p with surprising regular­ ity was that of a rigidly controlling mother, meticulously preoccu­ pied w i t h order, health, and cleanliness. A remark from K a r e n typi­ fies this image: " M y mother hated everything to do w i t h my body. W h e n I defecated she treated it like poison. F o r years I believed my Homosexuality in Women 195 mother d i d not defecate. I n fact I still find it hard to believe! A n ­ other patient was forbidden ever to mention her toilet needs. F r o m an early age she was trained to cough politely i n order to draw at­ tention to such phenomena. She always felt dirty a n d ashamed be­ cause of her excremental/excretory functions. Another mother a l ­ ways referred to constipation as "back trouble" a n d forbade her daughter to look at her feces. These aspects of the mother's control­ l i n g anality a n d rejecting anal-eroticism and their effect on the non­ integration of the anal components of the l i b i d o w i l l be discussed later. T h e i r displacement on the phallic image of the father has a l ­ ready been shown. M a t e r i a l relating to the maternal imago as rigidly control­ l i n g a n d physically rejecting, whether it arose i n the transference or i n childhood memories, stirred u p considerable resistance, since i t was felt to be a n aggressive attack o n the maternal object and i n ­ volved the risk of separating oneself from an object on whom there was a symbiotic dependence. T h e deep sense of rejection these women felt for their o w n bodies was p a i n f u l l y brought to light. It often expressed itself, to begin with, through fantasies of l o v i n g an­ other woman's body. T h e homosexual patient frequently described i n detail a l l the caresses, tenderness, a n d minute explorations she wishes to lavish o n a female partner or to enact w i t h the analyst. One learns that this intense sensuous appreciation of the body of another woman contains a l l the loving that these patients uncon­ sciously demand for their own bodies, but feel they do not merit, since they sensed that their mothers d i d not love either the body or its functions. T w o patients were convinced that their mothers' insis­ tence o n their wearing pretty clothes had been a desperate attempt to hide their bodies, believed to be ugly, deformed, and dirty (thus identifying w i t h what they thought was the mothers' view of their own condition). T h i s is perhaps the moment to examine the role of penis envy a n d castration anxiety i n the female homosexual structure, since such anxiety is obviously intense and, indeed, might be de­ scribed as a feeling of being physically demolished or at best of being beset by fears of disintegration. W e find none of the common expressions of castration anxiety or penis envy which enliven the material of most woman analysands. ( A n d indeed of patients of both sexes.) I n general, neurotic anxiety about female "castration" tends to be expressed, i f not mutely evinced i n symptoms, i n a feel­ ing that one is unlucky a n d damaged by the very fact of being a woman; the homosexual patient on the other hand shows clearly that for her certain women are endowed richly a n d magically and 196 F E M A L E SEXUALITY these become the ideal love objects. T h e unusual feature of penis envy is that the desire to have a penis of one's own is perfectly con­ scious. T h e homosexual patient frequently dreams that she has a penis, weaves sexual fantasies or masturbates around the idea of a penis of her own, and sometimes fabricates a penis which she at­ taches to her own body. O f course, there is no man attached to that penis; i t is valued or desired as a thing i n itself, divested of its mas­ culine meaning, at least i n consciousness. As far as its symbolic sig­ nificance is concerned for which one might reserve the term " p h a l ­ lus"—the erect penis endowed from time immemorial w i t h rich symbolic meaning, applying equally to both sexes as a symbol of power, of fertility, of desire—it has none of these meanings for her. Its particular importance as the psychical representative of the i n ­ ternalized father (on which we do not need to expand here) is equally missing, as we have seen. T h e father's penis has been d i ­ vested of its phallic significance, the internalized paternal phallus having regressed to the status of an anal object. One patient gave a vivid illustration of this transfer of power from the penis to a fecal representation. O n opening the door to the bathroom one day when she was six, she found her father there i n the act of defecating. She was startled and incredulous since she had believed t i l l then that men d i d not defecate. " Y o u see he already had a penis, I couldn't u n ­ derstand that he would defecate as w e l l , " was her reflection. She left her father so to speak i n possession of his penis, but castrated h i m anally instead. O n l y she and her mother possessed the valuable phallic power through the unique privilege of being able to defe­ cate. These brief examples of the attitude to the penis, and the unusual expressions of penis envy it gives rise to, show us that this can be achieved only through mechanisms of manic denial, disa­ vowal, and as a consequence of a certain disturbance i n reality-test­ ing. T h u s , the role of the penis is devalued and denied, not only i n the p r i m a l scene but also i n its symbolic meaning i n the uncon­ scious. M u c h of the homosexual girl's sexual activity is designed to prove that mother never desired father's penis and that it was not necessary for the sex act i n any case. I n this respect her fantasy is strongly reminiscent of what we find i n fetishistic character forma­ tions. T h e r e are other similarities as we shall see; for example, a certain terror of the female genital is hidden i n the homosexual woman's fantasies as it is i n the structures of male perversion. E v i ­ dently, for a woman to have a deeply horrifying and terrifying idea of the vagina leads to a particular k i n d of disturbed body image Homosexuality in Women 197 which does not find its counterpart i n the fetishist. A l s o the fabri­ cated "play penis" of the homosexual g i r l has few of the qualities of the fetishistic object, the primary function of which is to enable sex­ ual desire and sexual fulfillment. One of my patients d u r i n g her ad­ olescence wore a fabricated penis whenever she went out. A t a certain point i n the analysis, when she was exploring her feelings of guilt about this youthful behavior, she suddenly desired once again to make such a penis. It no longer seemed such a hideous crime, and she apparently was able to let her desire for the play penis come to the fore once more. " L a s t night I made myself a penis out of some bits of material; I caressed it on my body and felt flushed and excited. T h e n suddenly I had a strange urge to push it inside my body. It nearly frightened me to death." T h e vaginal sensations and the feeling of desire which she described filled her w i t h anxiety, and the thought came to m i n d that if she were to give i n to such crazy feelings she w o u l d explode or die. A dream which followed gave further insight into the interdiction of a l l sexual desire—she dreamed that her mother was about to die. I n effect the p r o h i b i t i n g and cruel part of the mother-image w o u l d die if she allowed herself to become sexually alive. U p t i l l this moment the make-believe penis had blocked both clitoral and vaginal sensation, thus contrib­ uting to the repression of genital desire. W h e n the homosexual claims that she is playing a masculine role to a woman, it is not to give her something like a penis, but it is to mask a deeper desire, to take from the partner something magic or p h a l l i c i n the symbolic sense. T h e masculine role thus hides the wish to complete oneself at the expense of the other woman: a narcissistic recuperation. T h i s "completion fantasy" takes many forms: one may become complete by being both mother and c h i l d , or by absorbing from the mother substitute her attributed feminine magic and secrets, or some representation of an internal­ ized paternal phallus, and so on. A t the same time the partner changes from an idealized, perfect object i n which nothing is lack­ ing, to an object suddenly seen as destroyed and incapacitated as the woman feels herself to be. A t these moments the homosexual lives out the fantasy of repairing the other (basically this is a repa­ ration of the mother). A t those times she feels she has "something precious to offer a woman which no man could supply." T h i s gift of herself, originally offered to the mother, was never thought of as being acceptable to the latter. W h a t the mother rejected is gladly taken and indeed demanded by the partner. T h u s , the relationship to her is felt to be an integral part of the patient's identity and a I98 F E M A L E SEXUALITY confirmation of her existence. H e r fear of being abandoned by her friend readily gives rise to suicidal ideas, or may also be expressed i n reverse: " I f I leave her she w i l l d i e / ' T h i s brings us back to another important aspect of the rela­ tion to the original object which comes to light i n analysis. F r o m being remembered as the one stable and integrating object i n the daughter's life, the mother comes to be apprehended (in dreams, i n fantasies, i n the transference) as a dynamic force opposing a l l movement and a l l desire. Profoundly aggressive and hateful feelings accompany the changing imago. F r o m being a sheltering w a l l the mother becomes a prison. B u t the desire to escape from her is swiftly followed by fear of total loss, of something resembling death. T h e loosening of ties to her also leads to a reawakening of interest i n the father and stirrings of heterosexual desire. These changes i n turn precipitate crises of anxiety for the same reasons. T w o pa­ tients, at a period of analysis d u r i n g which they were reliving early O e d i p a l wishes and were preoccupied w i t h heterosexual fantasies and increased narcissistic interest i n themselves as women, both fell i l l for a period of weeks, one t6 inexplicable febrile attacks and the other to vomiting and malaise. B o t h complained of overwhelming fatigue and went through some weeks of acute mental and physical anguish, requiring delicate and persistent analysis i n order to eluci­ date the conflict-laden fantasies which sought expression i n such dis­ tressing body experiences. T h i s abbreviated description of the anxieties released w i t h the first steps toward the recognition of sexual desire involves the body ego and sheds further light on the tenacious tie to the moth­ er-image. Let us try to clarify the nature of this infantile tie. T h e homosexual patient unconsciously experiences her relationship to the mother as though she were an indispensable part or function of her. W h i l e i t is tenable at one level to say that she regards herself as her mother's " p h a l l u s , " we see that on another level she feels con­ trolled by the mother like a fecal object. She functions to gratify and enhance the maternal ego. Early infantile memories reveal pre­ cociously established ego control and sphincter control w h i c h , far from liberating the tiny child, rendered it more dependent than ever o n the mother. W e might also say that such patients feel them­ selves to be the very arms or legs of the mother. I have borrowed this last piece of imagery from one patient who dreamed that she was her mother's legs. H o w can a leg separate from its body? A n d what sort of independent existence could it hope to enjoy? A n d again, how w o u l d the mother-body function if the legs decide to leave it? Such is the dilemma facing the homosexual patient when Homosexuality in Women 199 she begins to desire a loosening of this close body tie to the inter­ nalized mother. T w o unacceptable solutions loom before her. H e r fear of becoming n o t h i n g more than an amputated body part re­ cedes, only to be replaced by nightmarish fears that the mother w i l l seek revenge or w i l l die. R e l i n q u i s h i n g the mother as an object of symbiotic comple­ tion and identifying w i t h her instead places the patient i n a new situation of danger: as an i n d i v i d u a l woman i n her own right she is once more faced w i t h her fears of the heterosexual w o r l d . A perti­ nent example regarding her own father was recounted by O l i v i a . She was to meet her father after a lengthy separation. She always had awaited his rare visits to Paris w i t h distaste, but on this occa­ sion she was excited i n anticipation of seeing h i m and talking to h i m about herself. She took pains to dress elegantly for the dinner they were to have together. T h e father told her he had always con­ sidered her to be "psychologically retarded" and then went on to criticize her dress and her jewelry, saying these things d i d not suit her. She was seized w i t h sudden vertigo and rushed to the cloak­ room, where she c l u n g to the m i r r o r trying to capture her own image. I n her own words: " T h e face I saw was the face of an utter stranger. I thought I w o u l d scream. I kept repeating my name over and over trying to get back into my own body." I n analyzing the importance of this brief episode of depersonalization she asked w i t h remarkable insight: " C a n one say there is such a thing as the castra­ tion of a woman? I mean something that w o u l d be as terrible for a woman as for a m a n to lose his penis?" T o feel barred forever from being an object of desire i n the eyes of the father was a castration i n that she felt her sexuality was rendered nugatory. T h e episode precipitated a period of severe depression i n this young woman. Nevertheless, she was able to say some months later: " I can forgive my father for his hatred and rejection of me. I n a way I think he was afraid of l o v i n g me too much. H e has always made remarks like those of a jealous lover." H e r reflection was i n a l l probability pro­ foundly true. I n any case she succeeded i n correcting the reality impression which h a d been so destructive, thereby creating a pater­ nal image from which she could draw support for her feminine identity. 2 T w o remarks from patients express v i v i d l y the complex and primitive tie to the mother, along w i t h the dangers of desiring to dissolve it, terrifying though its maintenance has been. " T h e feel­ ings I have about you (the analyst) are insupportable. I have never loved nor hated anyone so m u c h i n my life. If I love you you w i l l destroy me, and if I hate you you w i l l throw me out." L o v i n g 200 F E M A L E SEXUALITY meant devouring, and it seemed important to this patient for a cer­ tain time that I hate her. Also if she could count on my hatred she w o u l d be better able to accept her strongly aggressive and sadistic feelings toward me. A t other times she would say: " I f you love me I am lost; then you w i l l either destroy me and throw me out like shit — o r you w i l l tie me up to you forever like my mother d i d . " Another patient brings the following fantasy: " M y mother and I are fused together. A t one end we are sealed by our mouths and at the other by our vaginas. W e make up a circle bound by cold steel bands. If it breaks we shall both be torn apart." T h i s fan­ tasy continued through several sessions and underwent the follow­ i n g transformation: " I broke that circle when I first loved another woman. B u t there was only one vagina before it broke—and my mother got it. W i t h her icy fingers she closed mine u p forever." As the terrifying oral-symbiotic universe shared with the mother becomes elucidated i n analysis and the murderous pregeni­ tal images of the introjected primal scene yield up the desires con­ cealed w i t h i n them, the deteriorated introject of the paternal phal­ lus is transformed, strengthening feminine identification. W h i l e still showing traces of the old fantasy fears, the fears which now have to be faced i n the new tentative relations w i t h men have many similar­ ities to the common neurotic fears of other women patients: the fear that one is less attractive than other women now regarded as r i ­ vals, or the fear of having nothing of equal value to exchange for what is sought i n a love relationship with a man. T h e homosexual experiences come to be analyzed i n a new and more superficial d i ­ mension. T h e common neurotic fear that one w i l l never have sex­ ual pleasure w i t h a man because of masturbation is here expressed as: "Because I have shared these clitorial, oral, and anal experiences with women I am forever barred from experiencing orgasm w i t h a man." T h e homosexual woman is now saying that because she has masturbated with guilty Oedipal fantasies (however deeply con­ cealed i n their homosexual form) she fears that she must forfeit her right to heterosexual pleasure. A t the same time she becomes preoc­ cupied w i t h her capacity to love. T h e oral-destructive and compul­ sive elements of her earlier love relations w i t h women lead her to feel that she has never really loved anyone. B u t with this realization she is already approaching a relationship based on sexual identity and mutuality. Self-image and Mother-Image As we have already seen, at the beginning of analysis these patients invariably thought themselves unlovable and physically unattrac­ Homosexuality in Women 201 tive. I n feeling they lacked femininity; they compared themselves unfavorably to their mothers, whom they remembered as attractive to men by their beauty, intelligence, talents, etc. T h e r e was no iden­ tification w i t h the mother i n any of these respects. T h e r e was, how­ ever, a large measure of destructive projective identification. T h e hostility projected onto the mother-image, along w i t h sadistic fanta­ sies of the p r i m a l scene, led them to fear constantly for the mother's safety and also to see themselves, by identification with the uncon­ sciously damaged imago, liable to catastrophic destruction, mysteri­ ous illnesses, and violent attack from men. T h e p r i m a l scene envisaged i n sadistic-oral and anal terms then served the urgent need of these patients to deny the parents' sexual relationship. T h i s denial reinforced the compulsive need to protect the mother and the patient from such "attacks." F r o m these fantasy threads the daughter wove a false identity: if mother had no desire or need for a heterosexual relationship w i t h the father, the daughter could believe that she was not a replacement for h i m and an essential part of the mother's being. B e h i n d this feeling of being the mother's very essence lay many contradictory ideas, one of which was the perception that the mother, for unconscious reasons of her own, demanded such a rela­ tionship. A l l these analysands brought to light the feeling of having been emptied out and robbed by the mother, consequently they were devoid of what was vital to their existence and deprived of what was innately their own, their feminine sexuality. T h e possibil­ ity of having any good or valuable thing i n oneself was refused them. Recurrent fears of v o m i t i n g were i n part a response to the unconscious i n j u n c t i o n to render up everything to the mother—the introjected father as well as one's own essential femininity. Another common fear with a similar meaning was that of having to urinate or defecate i n a p u b l i c place, since these functions represented a unique tie to the mother. T h i s fear restricted the freedom to work away from home, to travel, and i n two cases had contributed to i n ­ tense school phobias. A b u n d a n t material of the mother-with-the-enema, the mother who administered laxatives daily, or the mother who stressed the dangers to health i n going to sleep w i t h an unemptied bowel appeared here. Defecation was a crime. A n d to w i t h h o l d def­ ecation was a crime. T h e unconscious desire to reincorporate what had been ejected (the paternal phallus) led one patient to h o l d her breath throughout defecation, terrified that she might smell her own excrement (the same patient who, years later, said i n her anal­ ysis, " I smell like a skunk and I love i t ! " ) and convinced that her 202 F E M A L E SEXUALITY mother had forbidden her to do this. T h e mother who refused the c h i l d the right to her own fecal matter merged with the mother who refused access to the father and his penis. T h e feeling of having been robbed of a l l one's phallic and anal treasures led to the desire to steal back what had been lost. I n some patients this desire was effected i n part i n the homosexual act, but i n other patients of similar structure it led also to a com­ pulsion to steal. A brief study of the significance of the kleptoma­ niac act might help us at this point to understand more fully the nature of homosexual identifications. T w o kleptomaniac patients described identical conditions essential to their shoplifting. Said one: " I t gives me no pleasure to steal from the little half-blind jew­ eler who lives near me, yet it would be so simple. B u t I take things only from large stores with well-trained male supervisors. W h a t a t r i u m p h to take things under their very noses—you can't imagine!" ( T h e half-blind jeweler is a castrated image. There is no phallic t r i u m p h , as with the strong store supervisors.) A n o t h e r patient said: " I steal everything my father refused to give me—handbags, clothes, watches, . . . and I have stolen hundreds of dollars from his wallet without his ever suspecting i t . " A t first glance we can recog­ nize these thefts as phallic representatives, taken from the unsus­ pecting father (or his substitute) and as a secret castration of h i m . B u t the patients themselves came to realize that although they were engaged i n the compulsive theft of a penis-substitute the articles sto­ len were rarely i n themselves penis symbols; instead, they usually were articles which would enhance femininity (perfume, under­ wear, jewelry). Furthermore, they often were articles used by the mother (or her substitute), articles suggesting magical feminine at­ tributes refused the daughter by her mother. These articles epito­ mized for the daughter everything that was needed to attract the father. T h a t the objects stolen frequently represented a quality of "stolen" from the mother against her wishes was confirmed by the fact that often these stolen goods were subsequently given to an­ other woman (and i n one instance to the mother herself). T h i s gift-giving revealed the compulsion to make reparation for the u n ­ acknowledged wish to absorb and steal from the mother (or moth­ er-substitute) the essence of her femininity. T h i s might be regarded as a condensation of values: the hidden power to attract the father, the ability to make babies, and the life-giving propensities of mother as the provider of food, warmth, and comfort. A l l these qualities are unconsciously represented also as a phallus—an exclu­ sively feminine one. As Brunswick pointed out i n the 1940 paper written i n collaboration w i t h F r e u d : " T h e term 'phallic mother* Homosexuality in Women 203 . . . best designates the all-powerful mother, the mother who is ca­ pable of everything and who possesses every valuable attribute." If the right to identify w i t h her is felt to be withheld, her daughter may feel compelled to attack and rob her of these qualities. T h e stolen objects thus represented a paternal phallus which i n turn masked a maternal one. I n this respect the kleptomaniac acts reproduced exactly what the homosexual sought and symboli­ cally recaptured i n her sexual relations. T h e theft, therefore, has the following meanings: It is the father's penis, withheld from the little g i r l and offered to the mother. It is also the theft of the mother under father's very eyes, for the father, as a r i v a l for the mother and her gifts, has become a figure to be outwitted. F i n a l l y , it is a symbolic theft from the mother of the essence of her feminin­ ity w h i c h the g i r l believes exists only outside herself. Should she make pretensions to possessing such qualities herself she would feel threatened by the mother, who inevitably w o u l d take them away from her. However, she is something like the Sorcerer's Apprentice w i t h her stolen magic! It threatens to overwhelm her, and as often as not she gives the intensely symbolic objects to another woman who presumably is better able to cope w i t h the dangerous desires hidden w i t h i n ; and the giver thus shares vicarious pleasure. T h e whole act of theft is seen to be a play w i t h i n a play: an O e d i p a l drama w h i c h conceals a pre-Oedipal one. It is a desire to enact a fantasy of the p r i m a l scene and at the same time a desperate at­ tempt to restore i n d i v i d u a l identity. I n these dynamic respects it is the direct equivalent of homosexual perversion. 3 T h e homosexual patient's "theft dramas" are often acted out directly on her own body and expressed through phobic and physi­ cal symptoms. One patient reconstructed one such "theft" when talking of a disastrous evening she had spent. She was the center of interest at a fashionable reception when an attractive man entered the group and took over the conversation. Immediately over­ whelmed w i t h feelings of nausea and suffocation, she was obliged to go home. O n her way she reflected on the situation and realized that she h a d experienced a moment of murderous rage and jealousy just before the onset of the symptoms. She suddenly had imagined herself swallowing this man's penis without his noticing it and hav­ ing to vomit it u p when discovered. T h e underlying significance of this imagined drama was contained i n a screen memory i n which the patient, two years old, watched the father leaving the mother's bedside. H e r mother " h a d a smile like that of the M o n a L i s a — t h e sort of smile you see on the face of lovers who make i t quite ob­ vious that they have something of the other inside them. I remem­ 204 F E M A L E SEXUALITY ber crying as she picked me up out of the cot. She gave me a toy to play w i t h , and I was supposed to^ be satisfied. B u t she had what I wanted." A l l her life this patient believed her mother possessed u n ­ usual feminine gifts which she had not received. She constantly de­ manded things from her mother, but was never happy with what she got. Eventually, the vomiting phobia and the physical sensa­ tions from which the patient suffered were found to have crystallized around memories of the mother's pregnancy symptoms, thus further clarifying their symbolic meaning i n relation to the mother. I n summing u p the self-image of the homosexual girl, we can say that identification with the mother was prohibited i n almost every sense. B e h i n d the image of the " a n a l " mother, who demanded that her daughter be clean inside and out, was another who decreed that the daughter not be attractive or seductive. T h e merest thought of rivalry with the mother figure created acute anxiety, and the one way of achieving an uneasy feeling of completeness was by clinging to her. T o separate from her meant to lose one's identity. B u t once the fear had been revealed that this would also destroy the mother, one may well surmise that these unhappy children had to construct defenses i n order to deal with their mothers' unconscious problems. Certain of their bodily symptoms and anxieties suggest a fragility of the body ego which must have its roots i n earliest i n ­ fancy. Several of these women described feelings of being physically confused a n d of not k n o w i n g where their bodies ended, as though they extended into a terrifying nothingness. O n e patient was some­ times seized w i t h panic when she was alone and would bang her head on the wall i n order to feel that she really existed. Another re­ counts that on one occasion the woman w i t h whom she lived (and to w h o m she was as desperately attached as she had been to her mother) was obliged unexpectedly to be absent for three days. T h e patient, overwhelmed by feelings of depersonalization of psychotic dimensions, could control her anxiety only by stubbing out b u r n i n g cigarettes on her hands. O f course, it is evident that at one level she wished to protect her love from angry destruction by t u r n i n g these feelings against herself, but at another level this sadistic act of b u r n ­ ing her hands brought her an intense feeling of relief because it de­ fined her body limits. T h i s definition dispersed the feelings of deper­ sonalization and reestablished the lost cathexes of her body-ego boundaries. Psychically, the sudden loss of the mother-substitute had brought about a loss of her own sense of identity. T h e patient who believed that men d i d not defecate had many ideas about her body which had never been subjected to reali­ ty-testing and which were connected w i t h a poorly established body Homosexuality in Women 205 ego. I n the first months of her analysis she constantly referred to her clitoris as her "penis'* a n d to her vagina as her "arse-hole/* with­ out giving the slightest indication that she was using these terms i n a figurative sense. O n one occasion when she talked of the men­ strual blood w h i c h came out of her "arse-hole" I drew her attention to the fact that she seemed to regard anus a n d vagina as equivalent organs. She replied: " W e l l what's the difference? O h I suppose they aren't exactly the same—but they're connected on the inside aren't they?" A m o n g other bodily misconceptions she believed that she ur­ inated through her clitoris a n d that i n coitus the penis penetrated directly into the uterus. B o t h the above-mentioned patients suffered at times from dramatic loss of e q u i l i b r i u m (for example, when i n crowds or walk­ i n g downstairs), a n d both were beset by the fear that i n trying to walk through a doorway they w o u l d walk into the wall. T o the fear of losing control of one's orifices (vomiting phobia, body elimina­ tion rituals) was added the fear of losing the feeling of the body's physical limits, suggesting that behind the anxiety about losing the introjected father and its symbolic representation—losing one's anal contents—there lay the fear of regressing to a n undifferentiated state i n which only the presence of the mother could enable the pa­ tient to differentiate herself from the outer world. A l l i e d to the inability of these patients to maintain a stable body image was a character trait which directly related to the ma­ ternal imago: an inability to organize their lives i n even the small­ est details. T h e y seemed to live i n the midst of disorder and confu­ sion to a punitive degree. T h e inability to work constructively, to arrange papers, or to pack a suitcase reflected the same indecision and incapacity to organize a n d master, or to make a cohesive whole out of any given activity. T h e feeling of being ill-defined, incom­ plete, incapable, a n d vulnerable was thus intensified. Independent ego activity was hampered because i t was felt to be dangerous. W e see i n these different examples how the relation to the mother-image has precluded the integration of the anal components of the libido i n such a way as to be useful to the ego. T h u s , nothing could be achieved—or i f achieved, retained. These patients h a d to prove that they could sustain no effort without the constant a i d of the mother or a substitute. T o have done so w o u l d have involved a separation from the mother's unconscious demand and therefore was forbidden. T h e mother who fosters precocious control of a l l kinds i n her child, often with the desire that the c h i l d should per­ form for her, thus deprives the c h i l d of the right to perform or to master her world for her o w n pleasure. T h e desire to fulfill the 206 F E M A L E SEXUALITY ideal expectations of the mother becomes the ego-ideal. T h i s is an extension of the desire to play the role of paternal phallus to the mother, but its energetic cathexis is derived from the component i m ­ pulses of the anal phase. F r o m then on anything that is undertaken can be done only i n the service of another, never for oneself. C o n ­ flict is avoided, and instead the ego seeks to become an essential part of another's ego. T h e feelings of emptiness, of inadequacy, of damaged body image, of confused sexual identity, the blocked l i b i d ­ i n a l and aggressive strivings, and the impoverished activity now seek solution i n a homosexual relationship. T h e H o m o s e x u a l Relation a n d Its Significance N o n e of the l i m i t e d number of articles on female homosexuality stresses the fact that the girl, i n m a k i n g a homosexual attachment, is m a k i n g a b i d for freedom from the real mother as an external ob­ stacle. T h i s venture is doomed to fail i n its a i m , however, since she really struggles with a terrifying internalized mother; a l l the uncon­ scious wishes and fears attached to this imago are displaced with lit­ tle modification onto the partner. T h e r e are, however, certain dy­ namic changes i n the girl's psychic situation when she seeks overtly to fulfill homosexual desires. A l l my patients revealed i n analysis that this was consciously felt to be a t r i u m p h over the mother—and less consciously, over the father. Fear of the mother's reaction, should she discover the relationship, masks a keen desire to let her know that she has been replaced. One patient remarked: "Somehow I deliberately let mother find out about my love affair w i t h Susan. She was absolutely furious of course—and I was secretly glad, as though I wanted to punish her for something. W h e n she learns I'm i n analysis w i t h a woman, i t ' l l just k i l l her!" A further source of t r i u m p h lies i n the fact that the new rela­ tionship is an actively erotic one. Sexual wishes and masturbation, always felt to have been forbidden by the mother, are desired and demanded by the mother-substitute. R i v a l r y w i t h father for mother's love is no longer to be feared. A l t h o u g h divested of a l l l i b i d i n a l interest the father-image was constantly present; even though the mother was felt to disparage the father and to under­ mine his authority, she went to bed w i t h h i m and she had babies! T h r o u g h the homosexual relationship the daughter now "proves" that male sex organs and even men themselves are dispensable. In effect she triumphs over the primal scene and the O e d i p a l parents and short-circuits the integration of her own castration anxiety. T h e typical character traits discussed i n this study (traits which have been interpreted as manifestations of a certain type of Homosexuality in Women 207 identification w i t h the father), have always been a source of conflict between mother and daughter. T h e mother has always complained about her unfeminine daughter, who refused to dress attractively, go to parties, or behave like other girls—mother has always com­ plained about her being disorderly, crazy, irresponsible, o r i g i n a l — yet these same characteristics are accepted by the homosexual part­ ner and often highly valued. T h i s acceptance becomes another b i n d i n g feature of such relationships. H i d d e n i n the ruthless, irre­ sponsible, anal-erotic c h i l d w h i c h these patients present to the w o r l d lies not only deep anxiety and anguish but also the internal­ ized father. T h i s is what the mother and the rest of the young wom­ an's environment have never accepted. A n d this is what the partner accepts w i t h open arms. A significant example of such acceptance and sharing was re­ counted by one of my patients. She lived at that time i n a very close, dependent relationship w i t h an older woman and had often talked w i t h her about her intense vomiting phobia. O n e evening, following a digestive upset, the young woman realized that she really was about to vomit. She called her friend to come and do something—anything at a l l — i n order to prevent the vomiting. I n answer the friend held out her hands so that she might vomit into them. T h e event over, the young patient exclaimed: " N o w you w i l l never love me a g a i n ! " T h e friend then buried her face i n the regur­ gitated meal and kissed it as a sign of love and total acceptance. T h i s unusual exchange had a profound effect on my patient, bring­ ing her a feeling of security about her body and herself which she had not experienced before. T o her unconscious it meant total ac­ ceptance of every repressed sadistic and forbidden fantasy. A p a r t from the feeling of now being accepted for a l l that was rejected by the mother, the homosexual also seeks to know her own body through the body of another woman. B o t h i n fantasy and i n sexual practice she frequently has more interest i n giving sexual pleasure than i n receiving it. T h i s is motivated i n part by internal prohibitions and i n part by fantasies of controlling and dominating the partner sexually. U p to now we have been examining the positive aspects of the homosexual relationship. It is clear, however, that few of the basic conflicts are solved and that the new relationship inevitably w i l l become another closed circle. T h e woman partner is still an unconscious mother figure, w i t h her own unconscious problems which demand solution; and thus a l l the conflicts originally at­ tached to the mother imago w i l l slowly crystallize around the part­ ner. Perhaps the most striking conflict is the ambivalence toward SOS F E M A L E SEXUALITY the loved one which comes to light i n analysis. T h e hate, thinly dis­ guised as an obsessional concern for the partner's safety, leads to a compulsion to overprotect her, to demand her every movement, and consequently to control and victimize her. T h i s tendency to reduce the other to a partial object, which one can control and manipulate (and " p u n i s h w i t h love"), is equaled only by the fear of becoming, oneself, a partial object again focused upon the partner. T h u s , such a patient seeks constantly to play a role of essential importance to her friend. T h i s leads to her undertaking many tasks and functions of her partner (and sometimes playing an important counterphobic role) simply to avoid becoming the dependent and dominated one. B u t such aims contain the seeds of their own destruction. Certain of my patients spent much of their energy, which they really wanted and needed for themselves, doing things for the other woman, much to the detriment of their own work and interests. So here the wheel came f u l l circle: they found themselves back i n the early infantile situation i n which the little g i r l performed solely to fulfill the ma­ ternal demands and-oinconscious needs. (The revelation of these unconscious ties to the homosexual partner raises the question of whether their mothers were not also using their daughters as court­ terphobic objects i n order to deal with their own sexual and social anxieties.) T h u s , the ego seeks to maintain its precarious identity along the lines traced out i n childhood. B u t the fact that this is a m u t u a l a i m does result i n a certain reinforcement of the ego for these anal­ ysands. T h e threat of object-loss under these conditions may lead to grave disturbances i n the narcissistic ego libido and may give rise to suicidal impulses. T h e extent to which ego identity, and the cathex­ es of the boundaries of the self themselves, can be disturbed is ex­ emplified i n the incident of the woman who burned her hands with lighted cigarettes when she had to endure the unexpected absence of her friend. W h i l e the ego is reinforced i n the homosexual relation, bod­ ily fears concerning sexual fantasy are on the whole unmitigated and are often projected onto the partner's body. One patient brought a v i v i d example of such projection. T h i s patient was clitor­ ally and vaginally frigid and felt confused about where her vagina was. She imagined that i t could constrict and cut like a knife, and she had a recurrent fantasy of giving birth to a c h i l d which would come out i n broken segments. She attributed both oral and anal functions to her vagina. But this same frightening idea was also pro­ jected onto the vaginas of other women. I n her first homosexual ex­ perience (with an older woman when the patient was eighteen) she Homosexuality in Women 209 was excited when the other woman demanded clitoral stimulation and happy to give these caresses to her friend. B u t one day when the friend asked her to put her fingers into her vagina, the patient drew back i n horror. " I was sure my fingers would get stuck inside her, and that it w o u l d require the services of a surgeon to separate us. I was so terrified I just couldn't do what she asked." T h i s fear was attached also to an unconscious aspect of her relation to her mother: she might fuse w i t h the mother i n such a way that she would never get free. H e r mother's vagina w o u l d demand that she remain perpetually attached to it like a phallic organ, and only a surgeon's knife could separate them. T h a t this woman's father was a noted Parisian surgeon makes her remark extremely pertinent and rich i n symbolic meaning. O n l y an effective father could protect her from the dangerous maternal desire to make her into a permanent phallus. Concluding Remarks W h a t conclusions may be drawn from this clinical study regarding the psychodynamic and economic significance of female homosex­ uality? W h e n a woman builds her life around homosexual object re­ lations she is unconsciously seeking to maintain an intimate rela­ tion with the paternal imago, decathected as a l i b i d i n a l object but possessed symbolically through identification. A t the same time she achieves an apparent detachment from the maternal imago, repre­ sented i n the unconscious as dangerous, invading, and all-forbid­ ding. T h e idealized aspects of the maternal imago are now sought i n the female partner. T h e identification w i t h the father, which has alienated the young g i r l from her true sexual identity, is more disturbing to the ego structure because its erstwhile phallic significance has regressed to an anal-sadistic one. Nevertheless, this introjection acts as a pro­ tective shield against further regression and against a psychotic re­ structuring within the limitless oral universe of the p r i m i t i v e moth­ er-child relation. T h e feelings of hate and terror, which become attached to the maternal imago i n the struggle for i n d i v i d u a t i o n , are kept i n repression by idealization. As the analysis proceeds the peculiar nature of the " s o l u t i o n " to the O e d i p a l conflicts is revealed. T h e regressed phallic image, represented i n the unconscious as a dangerously exciting anal part­ object, comes to symbolize that object which, par excellence, be­ longs to the mother. In a double sense, from the O e d i p a l as well as the pre-Oedipal point of view, that object is apprehended as exclu­ 210 F E M A L E SEXUALITY sively hers and is forever a guilty possession. T h e mother is felt to demand that everything be rendered u p to her: sexual and affec­ tionate feelings for the father, as well as self-mastery and indepen­ dence. T h e daughter, however, does not simply renounce a l l i n ­ volvement with the father and return without further ado to the object of her first love, the mother of babyhood. T h e r e is clearly a regression from the triangular O e d i p a l constellation to a dyadic one. B u t w i t h i n this regressive movement the young girl's ego has incorporated the symbolic phallus, and to some extent she identifies herself w i t h i t as a whole. T h e recreated exclusive mother relation­ ship, then, is significantly different from a truly symbiotic one. T h e paternal phallus is no longer felt to belong to the mother but has become the daughter's patrimony! As i t signifies a stolen and guilty possession, the daugher w i l l forever live i n dread of its being de­ tected by other men or of losing it to the mother. H e r immense gain is that she no longer need fear a return to the fusion w i t h the mother w h i c h spells psychic death. Indeed, she now can believe that she contains a l l that is essential to equal her mother. Unconsciously, she assumes the role of the mother's phallus—an anal-phallus that only the mother may control and manipulate. A devouring love for the mother and a phobic clinging to her i n childhood is paralleled by unconscious wishes for her death. I n that decisive moment when the g i r l tied to her mother de­ cides to leave her for the woman who w i l l become her lover, she symbolically castrates the mother of her phallus-child. T h a t mo­ ment is experienced, therefore, as a moment of intense triumph. It is to the other woman that she w i l l finally offer herself as the incar­ nation of a l l that she has symbolically taken away. T h e new situation, however, contains the seeds of new dan­ gers. T h e homosexual relationship, heavily loaded w i t h narcissistic, l i b i d i n a l , and sadistic significance, becomes the scene for the o l d i n ­ ternalized drama. T h e homosexual pays dearly for a fragile identity which is not truly her own. Yet she is compelled to play this role, for the alternative is the death of the ego. T h e attempt to repair and complete her lover masks the hope of completing herself at the other's expense. T o this end she attempts to reduce her partner to the status of a partial object, one which can be manipulated as she felt she herself was i n her infantile relation to the mother. She hopes thereby to avoid the danger of becoming the total possession of the other. F r o m the point of view of clinical categories we are dealing neither w i t h classical neurotic nor w i t h truly psychotic structures but clearly w i t h a " t h i r d structure" w h i c h might be described as a Homosexuality in Women 211 "perverse" one. T h i s nomenclature w o u l d nevertheless be mislead­ i n g : the problem does not, i n the writer's o p i n i o n , belong only to the sexual perversions. It is characterized by a continual acting-out of an internal drama i n the outside world i n an attempt to m a i n ­ tain ego identity. T h e r e are many neurotic mechanisms at work, but they fail to protect the ego w i t h regard to its sexual identity. Hysterophobic and obsessional symptoms are poorly structured. Psy­ chotic mechanisms include negation (of sexual reality), disavowal (of the p r i m a l scene), and continual splitting of the parental ima­ goes w i t h consequent projection. I n the cases presented i n this paper there is a pathological introjection of the father figure ac­ cording to a depressive model. T h e consequent risk of losing the identity-emblems thus acquired makes the homosexual liable to se­ vere depressive episodes, or when projective mechanisms dominate, to psychotic episodes of a paranoid type, thus confirming Freud's early hypothesis of the genesis of this disorder. T h i s splitting i n the ego's defensive system, accompanied by splitting of the internalized objects, is characterized by a specific re­ distribution of the split-off fragments. T h e parental objects, appre­ hended as idealized on the one hand and destroyed or destroying o n the other, are d i v i d e d : the mother embodies idealized "good," while hostile aggressive feelings originally attached to her are projected onto the father, who becomes entirely " b a d , " that is, either destroyed (castrated) or dangerously destroying. In consequence anxieties, ei­ ther depressive or persecutory, are likely to come to consciousness and to overwhelm the ego i n its relation to the external world. T h e distortion i n sexual identity is inevitably accompanied by fragility of ego identity i n general, disturbance of body-ego per­ ceptions, and symptoms of depersonalization. T h e superego, re­ gressed to an archaic pregenitalized formation, constantly threatens the ego so that depression or the loss of reality-testing may occur. Faced w i t h m a n i f o l d psychic dangers the young woman thus turns to a homosexual love as a bulwark against them. If the danger inherent i n the new relation itself does not dis­ rupt this protective arrangement the ego w i l l receive some much­ needed support, though little fulfillment of sexual and narcissistic needs. I n particular the deeply repressed desire for the father's love is always liable to return and to challenge the pact w h i c h the homo­ sexual woman has signed w i t h her parental imagoes, the pact w h i c h contains the clause of her own castration. F o r the price she must pay for her homosexual identity is the renunciation of a l l feminine sexual desire as well as of the children she consciously longs for. I n conclusion we might sum u p the psychic economy of fe­ 212 F E M A L E SEXUALITY male homosexuality as follows: an attempt to maintain a narcissis­ tic e q u i l i b r i u m i n face of a constant need to escape the dangerous symbiotic relationship claimed by the mother imago, through con­ serving an unconscious identification w i t h the father, the latter factor being an essential element i n a fragile structure. T h i s iden­ tification, costly though it may be, helps to protect the i n d i v i d u a l from depression or psychotic states of dissociation and thus con­ tributes to m a i n t a i n i n g the cohesion of the ego. Notes INTRODUCTION 1. C. J . Luquet: "The great majority of psychoanalytical studies on in­ stinctual drives and the development of the ego have been made with reference to man's development, with merely a secondary ad­ justment when applying the same results to women." 2. The articles in this book do not intend to cover the whole problem of female sexuality but merely to study certain aspects of it. 3. Standard Edition (S.E.), Vol. VII. A l l quotations from Freud in this book from the Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud (S.E.), ed. by James Strachey (London: The Hogarth Press). (Tr. note.) 4. (London, 1913). 5. Collected 4 (1925)130-59. Papers, 6. S.E., Vol. X I X . 7. Ibid. 8. Ibid. S.E., Vol. X X I . 10. S.E., Vol. X X I I . 9. 11. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 9 (1928): 332-45. 12. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 1 (1920): 125-49. 13. Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 2 (1933): 489-518. 14. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 6 (1925): 405—18. 15. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 11 (1930): 48-60. 16. Vol. 9, July, 1961. 17. H£lene)Deutsch, The 18. Psychoanalytic 19. Psychology Quarterly, (New York, of Women 1944). 9 (1940), 293-319. Presse Universitaire de France (Paris, 1951). 20. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 21. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 13 (1932), 348-60. 22. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 14 (1933), 57-70. 23. Melanie Klein, 24. International Psychoanalysis Journal of Children of Psychoanalysis, 13 (1932), 361-68. (New York, 25. This could be opposed to the Freudian equation: "Pleasure = instinctual discharge/' 213 1932). 9 (1928), 169-80. 214 F E M A L E SEXUALITY 26. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 8 (1927), 459-72. 27. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 14 (1933), 28. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 16 (1935), 263-73. Journal of Psychoanalysis, 1 (1920), 371-95. 29. International 30. Collected 31. International 32. Collected 33. International Papers, 2 (1924), 255-68. Journal Papers, 1-33. of Psychoanalysis, 9 (1928), 161-66. 2 (1924), 164-71, Journal of Psychoanalysis, 3 (1922), 1-29. A MASCULINE MYTHOLOGY OF FEMININITY 1. Freud, indeed, wrote in the Three Essays: "It is perhaps in connection precisely with the most repulsive perversions that the mental factor must be regarded as playing its largest part in the transformation of the sexual instinct. It is impossible to deny that in their case a piece of mental work has been performed which, in spite of its horrifying result, is the equivalent of an idealization of the instinct." OUTLINE FOR A STUDY OF NARCISSISM IN F E M A L E SEXUALITY 1. "That is all I had to say to you about femininity. It is certainly incom­ plete and fragmentary and does not always sound friendly. But do not forget that I have only been describing women insofar as their nature is determined by their sexual function. It is true that that influence extends very far; but we do not overlook the fact that an individual woman may be a human being in other respects as well. If you want to know more about femininity, enquire from your own experiences of life, or turn to the poets, or wait until science can give you deeper and more coherent information" (Freud, New In­ troductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis, London, 1933). 2. Melanie Klein believes, similarly, that the oral desire for the penis is derived from the desire for the breast. But one could also say (see E. Jones and Karen Horney's criticisms) that sexuality is the perma­ nent factor: the child experiences it at each stage of development and that the eroticization of suckling is an attempt to abreact what should properly be called sexuality, but for which the child is not yet ready. 3. "With the onset of puberty the maturing of the female sexual organs, which up till then have been in a condition of latency, seems to bring about an intensification of the original narcissism (Freud, " O n Narcissism, A n Introduction/' in Collected Papers, London, 0 4. Of course, every case is specific and these tendencies are generalized; yet they are common enough for their study to be interesting. Furthermore, in this study we envisage an attitude toward sexuality, observable in people from our own milieu and produced by today's civilization. The kind of person we shall study here is neither i l l (like those we meet in psychoanalytical practice) nor perfectly Notes 215 normal (who probably does not exist outside fiction) but halfway between: the common man or woman who has certain conflicts but who is considered normal from a social point of view. 5. R. A . Spitz, "Hospitalism: A n Inquiry into the Genesis of Psychiatric Conditions in Early Childhood," Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 0945)> 53-74­ 6. Women are forced to assume a certain narcissistic autonomy from their dependence on their love objects, which rarely meet their expecta­ tions. Recognition of this need often brings women together, giving them solidarity. The mother can scarcely do other than help her daughter build up this autonomy. T o some extent women do achieve this and manage to organize their lives alone. 7. During analytical treatment, one must follow all phases of this integra­ tion of the phallus in increasingly complex forms. 8. One could study the differences between the sexes from the point of view of narcissistic integrity as represented by the phallic image. Indeed, in the animal world the male usually has visible, seemingly narcissistic signs of this integrity (beauty, presence, adornments), but in our society these visual phallic representations belong to woman, who finds thus a phallic compensation for her dependence on man's penis. 9. Narcissism exists in its own right, for itself. Its very existence is gratu­ itous since it serves no purpose, which, according to Ella Freeman Sharpe, defines artistic creation. I agree: Creativity is essentially narcissistic. 1 FEMININE GUILT AND T H E OEDIPUS COMPLEX 1. Sigmund Freud, "Female Sexuality," 1931. (New York, 1957). Melanie Klein, Envy and Gratitude 3. "Our understanding of feminine frigidity . . . can be complete only if we take into consideration the fact that there is a constitutional inhibition that has no parallel in men" (The Psychology of Women, New York, 1944). 4. Sigmund Freud, Beyond the Pleasure Principle (London, 1950). 5. Sigmund Freud, The Ego and the Id (London, 1927). 6. Sigmund Freud, Inhibitions, Symptoms, Anxiety (London, 1936). 2. 7. Psychology of Women. 4 (London, 1918), 217-35. 9. "I have had occasional opportunities of being told women's dreams that had occurred after their first experience of intercourse. They revealed an unmistakable wish in the woman to keep for herself the penis which she had felt." I believe that this desire, which Freud thinks is a regressive one, is, in fact, the manifestation of a desire more authentically feminine, that of keeping the penis in order to be impregnated by it. The female sexual desire to be penetrated seems to me to be in­ 8. Collected Papers, 2l6 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. F E M A L E SEXUALITY separably linked in the unconscious with the biological consequence of that desire—impregnation, that is to say the desire, as E. Jones said, to keep the penis in oneself in order to turn it into a child. Also, the instinctual drive at the level of the primary processes is absolute and unlimited and cannot be set in a spatio-temporal framework. The complementary masculine desire is similar in that it is not limited to penetrating one particular part of the woman's body at a given moment, but, as Ferenczi said in Tkalassa, it is a desire to return one's whole body to the mother's womb. "Epouser" = "to take the exact shape of" and "to marry." (Tr. note.) It is not sufficient to give purely sociological reasons for women's dif­ ficulties in professional or creative fields; we need to seek out the deep unconscious roots of these difficulties. But neither would it be exact to say that there is no sociocultural factor. Women's internal guilt is constantly encouraged by real external factors. Psycho­ analysts rightly emphasize the role of these external factors in creat­ ing neuroses—by being particularly favorable to unconscious con­ flicts common to many people. This assertion was maintained by Freud even in his "Short Account of Psychoanalysis" (1924), after many people had opposed him in theory and by clinical observation. Yet in the article Ruth Mack Brunswick wrote with him ("The Pre-Oedipal Phase," 1940), he seems to have more or less accepted that early sensations do exist in the vagina. I think this transfer of cathexis is due to the guilt associated with the anal-sadistic incorporative drives. The narcissistic cathexis of these characteristics is linked, according to Grunberger, with the anal-sadistic phase, and thus the only objects of value are those which can be measured, compared, and precisely graded. Freud not only ignores the vagina but, until the castration complex, that is, the Oedipus complex, he believes the girl's sexuality to be identical with that of the boy. She merely hopes for receptive satis­ factions from her mother, but she does not expect them to be phallic and denies the penis as well as the vagina. When she turns to the father wanting a child by him, it is not yet a desire for incor­ poration of the paternal penis. For Freud, the girl's Oedipus com­ plex occurs without interfering with incorporation desires (or desires of being penetrated in any manner); in a similar way the boy has no desire to penetrate the mother. He is ignorant of her possessing an organ complementary to his own. It is only at puberty that erection of the penis indicates a new aim—the penetration of a cavity. Apart from numerous indications that there are early desires of penetration (which many people have noted), erections are frequent before puberty, and one finds babies having erections, particularly while being suckled. E. Jones, Melanie Klein, Josine Mtiller, Karen Horney, and, more recently, Phyllis Greenacre, in Notes 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 217 discussing the girl's discovery of the vagina, stress the fact that we are used to talking about external and visible organs without taking deep coenesthetic sensations into consideration. Girl's ignorance of their vaginas does not prove the nonexistence of a genital desire to incorporate the penis, just as a congenital malformation obstructing the mouth would not deny the existence of hunger. Indeed, the impossibility of satisfying the instinct increases guilt, in face of the "condemned" vagina. Once frustration has brought the primary narcissistic phase to an end. Unconsciously, he has probably always known she had no penis just as, unconsciously, he always knew she had a vagina. But this does not exclude representations of a phallic or castrated mother, since the primary processes readily admit contradiction. International Psychoanalytic Press, 1922. Of course other causes also dictate a man's future attitude to women, one of which is an identification with the real father in his relation to the mother. See Karen Horney, "The Dread of Women." The little boy feels an aggressive desire for his mother. In her role as educator she is obliged to dominate him and frustrate him. He desires to penetrate her, but feels humiliated at being small and incapable of achieving this, which leads to his feeling narcissistically wounded and im­ mensely inferior, but he also feels a violently aggressive desire for revenge, which is projected, along with those desires caused by the first frustrations, onto the mother and her vagina. One patient suffering from ejaculatio praecox was content in his first sexual relations at the age of twenty-two with merely external con­ tact "because he did not know" that the vagina existed. Such "igno­ rance" is due to frightening sexual fantasies. For him the female organ was a threat, full of fecal content (crumbling caves full of garbage, cow's cloaca blocked with dung "as hard as granite," corpses found in rooms, crashed cars spread across an icy road, etc.). Therefore, penetration is dangerous: in order to avoid it one must "fill the vagina with powdered glass, use it as a chamber pot and fill it to the brim," think of it as a John where one puts the lid down before urinating or else tries to get rid of the contents first. Thus, at puberty, this patient spent a lot of time disembowelling flies; one of his favorite fantasies was the following: he was master of a harem and ruled women of all ages with a whip. He had estab­ lished very strict rules in which the women had to defecate by orders and under close scrutiny. This illustrates the child's inversion of sphincter education and his victory over the anal penis of the intrusive mother. (This patient also had fantasies about excision of the clitoris.) Men fear the mother's power, and her anal penis in particular. Later they try to stop women from using their anal impulses. As woman is guilty about her own anal wishes toward the father, she 2 18 F E M A L E SEXUALITY becomes an accomplice to the man's defenses. This conjunction re­ sults in the visible inhibition of women's anality in society: a woman must never swear, spit, eat strong food or wine, and until recently was not allowed to discuss money or business. Charm and grace are on the whole either reaction formations or sublimations of anal impulses (the opposite of vulgarity). At the same time, women are represented as illogical, vague, incapable of the rigors of science, engineering, etc.—all signs of successful integration of the anal components. (Owing to the enforced repression it undergoes, the anal in­ stinct may become somewhat "corrosive." The weaker muscular structure of women also favors this corrosive aspect of feminine ag­ gression, as it does not allow for adequate motor discharge. Women are said to scratch, bite, or poison, whereas men punch or knock down.) In fact this desire for victory over the omnipotent mother is often displaced by men onto all women. A n exception is the daughter, perhaps because she is in a dependent situation. The fa­ ther projects onto her an idealized image which is opposed to the (Freud, Ruth Mack Brunswick, Helene "normal lasting contempt" Deutsch) he feels for other women. His daughter often represents the best part of himself and of the good, primitive object. She is tenderness, purity, innocence, and grace and represents for him a privileged relationship which escapes his ambivalence. Of course, this relation is not always there, as some men extend their maternal conflicts onto their daughters, too. A n obsessional patient suffering from ejaculatio praecox was discussing his six­ year-old daughter who was working hard at school in order to at­ tract his attention, a fact he was well aware of: "I push her away from me but, being truly feminine, she still tries to attract my atten­ tion"; but the relation I have described exists frequently enough for it to be noticeable. Three patients told me at the outset of their treatment that one of their reasons for coming to analysis was a desire to help their daughters. 22. In her article on "The Pre-Oedipal Phase" (written with Freud), Ruth Mack Brunswick reconsiders the idea that the desire for a child is a substitute for penis envy: the desire for a child expresses mainly the desire to have what the mother possessed: a child. I believe that if the child's desire is linked both with penis envy and witli the omnipotent mother, it is because of a certain connection between penis envy and the omnipotent maternal imago. 23. For Freud (in "Femininity," 1932), if a woman comes to analysis in order to be more successful in her profession, she is by the same token displaying her penis envy. 24. The same is true of men: for a man to achieve his professional ambi­ tions is symbolically to have a penis like the father. Notes 219 25. Protecting oneself from penetration is also a way of safeguarding the object. A whole series of aggressive acts toward the father can be understood as an attempt to protect him from contact. 26. Of course, this may also be due to regression. 27. Space prevents our considering here the child's role as a narcissistic support. Joyce McDougall noted that penis envy plays as important a role in mothers as in women who are childless. It is a fact that many mothers castrate their children psycholog­ ically, which indicates that their penis envy is not satisfied by maternity. It is no solution to the problem to say that in these cases the women have not been able to transform their desire for a penis into a desire for a child. Having a child may mean possessing what the omnipotent mother had (Ruth Mack Brunswick), but it does not yet mean hav­ ing something different from what she had, and this, I believe, is the true aim of narcissistic achievements. 28. Collected Papers, 4 (1925), 39-59. 29. Collected Papers, 4 (1925), 60-83. 30. Taken anally in France. (Tr. note.) 31. This is similar to the situation described by Simone de Beauvoir in The Second Sex (New York, 1952). T H E SIGNIFICANCE OF PENIS ENVY IN WOMEN 1. Indeed, masturbation could appear later on with different fantasy con­ tent, but what has been repressed earlier leaves its negative mark on all future personality development. 2. It is worth noting that the hand as a means for the introjection of the primal scene always represents the genital organ of the opposite sex. 3. This is so true that the identification with the castrator, the one who forbids "autoeroticism," is necessarily part of a masturbatory fantasy. Without this identification, however paradoxical or neurotic it might seem, the interdiction is experienced as a true castration and is manifested by inability to do anything and by extreme tension. The psychotic autocastration has no meaning other than that of trying, in desperation, a paralyzing identification in order to remove an inhibition which is just as deadly. 4. There are two ways of compromising the child's maturing identifica­ tions, ist, to forbid the orgasm which would confirm the validity of his efforts to fulfill himself. 2d, to suppress the fantasy by sub­ stituting an objective reality for it (seduction). In this case the fantasy identification is stopped by an effective but premature achievement, and the mutilating effects of inhibition which result from this trauma are similar to those of the other stringency. That is why people who are inhibited about masturbation have fantasies 220 F E M A L E SEXUALITY to the extent of mythomania about scenes of rape, and these "precociously ravished" women behave in exactly the same way as those who are inhibited about orgasms. 5. B B means at the same time Brigitte Bardot and "baby" in French. (Tr. note.) HOMOSEXUALITY IN WOMEN 1. The woman who sprays the child with ether also represented an important fixation. We learned later that "ether" stood for the mother's urine (an unconscious phallic equivalent for this patient). She had many erotic fantasies of drinking the urine of a female partner (linked to nourishing milk, a further female "phallus") coupled with ideas of its destructive and corrosive aspects. In a brief sexual relationship with a man Karen had asked him to urinate in her vagina in expectation of an ecstatic experience. 2. Olivia's intuition seemed confirmed some years later when—still in analysis—she was planning to marry. Her father wrote to tell me that the analysis had failed, since he would lose his daughter. After the birth of her little son two years later he wrote, this time to his daughter, saying there was no reason for them ever to communicate with each other again! 3. Melitta Schmideberg drew attention in 1956 to the relationship be­ tween delinquent acts and perverse acts, such as fetishism and exhibitionism, in two male patients. i Janine Chasseguet-Smirgel, IHIHii'' * J McDou9al, wH||H lBHp ' ok and c Dav - Hil Female Sexuality represents a distinct contribution to she psychoanalyi:ic study of feminine psychology and sexual identity. First published in France as Recherches psychanafytiques noitvelles six la sexua/M feminine, the book consists of six major essays and a comprehensive introduction w h i c h reviews this various approaches to the subject. Freudian and non-Freudian vtews on female sexuality are carefully examined, thus providing a valuable perspective from which to view the authors' subsequent d i $ c u a s i o n $ H | | r a M l H H H j " P ®sent authors," writes Dr. J . Chasseguet-Smirgelin her introduction, "have attempted as far as possibie to free their theoretical ideas and their clinical interpretations from the unconscious fantasies w h i c h distort scientific objectivity." Christian David thus uses a clinical.history to study masculine myths about femininity; Catherine Luquer-Parat attributes an important role to female masochism in the young girl s "change of object"; BcMa Grunberger examines the origins of female narcissism; J o y c e M c D o u g a l i shows that female homosexuality must be integrated t o achieve a harmonious feminine nature; and Maria T o r o k gives masculinity wishes and penis-envy a new role T h e r filifflfflfflwIilffllffllB j r > t h « test essay In this significant work, Janine Chasseguet­ .biriirgel-a training analyst of the French Psychoanalytic A s s o c i a t i o n - d e s c r i b e s the young girl's relationship with Net father and discusses the aspects of this relationship w h i c h contribute an important dimension to female guilt. Sexuality: New Psychoanalytic Views helps fill a long-apparent need for authoritative analyses in this area of •fimab tfHIlillH Karnac Books, 58, Gloucester Road, Hpori ISBN 0 948439 '1 % '! Cover designed by M a l c o l m Smith