Book: Melanie Klein Today:

Developments in Theory and Practice

Volume 1: Mainly Theory
Edited by: Elizabeth Bott pillius
1!""
#The $e% library o& psychoanalysis' ()
Part T%o: Pro*ective +denti&ication
,hapter -: The relation o& anal masturbation to pro*ective identi&ication Donald Meltzer
p. !!
This article %as ori/inally a paper read at the -0th +nternational Psych12nalytical ,on/ress3
2msterdam3 4uly 1!56 and %as &irst published in 1!55 in the International Journal of Psycho-
Analysis, 0(3 77610-.
Introduction
8hen attemptin/ to relate some character traits o& the 98ol& Man9 to his intestinal symptoms3 :reud
#1!1") %as &orced to the conclusion that an anal theory o& &emininity and an 9identi&ication9 %ith his
mother9s menorrha/ia had antedated the patient9s castration theory o& &emininity. ;ntil Melanie
Klein9s establishment o& the concept o& 9pro*ective identi&ication9 it %as assumed that such a process
%ould have been due solely to intro*ection. +n her ori/inal description #1!053 p. 7<<) o& pro*ective
identi&ication3 Klein linked it very closely to anal processes but no%here else in her %ritten %ork
has this conne=ion been made more e=plicit.
:urthermore3 the contribution made by anality to character &ormation3 as studied by :reud #1!<"3
1!1()3 2braham #1!-1)3 4ones #1!173 1!1")3 >eimann #1!5-)3 and others3 has al%ays been stated in
terms o& the outcome o& character structure o& the so1called 9sublimation9 o& anal &antasies3 in %hich
the emphasis has rested on the narcissistic over1evaluation o& the &aeces on the one hand and the
ob*ect1relationship conse?uences o& the toilet1trainin/ stru//le on the other. The present paper
intends to demonstrate the contribution to character &ormation made by the combination o& all three
&actors %orkin/ in comple= relation to one another3 namely narcissistic evaluation o& the &aeces3 the
con&usions surroundin/ the anal zone #especially anus1va/ina and penis1&aeces con&usions) and the
identi&ication aspect o& anal habits and &antasies based on pro*ective identi&ication. +n studyin/ this
problem in the analytic process3 in close collaboration %ith several collea/ues3 + have been &orced
also to the reco/nition that masturbation o& the anus is a &ar more %idespread habit than the analytic
literature to date %ould imply. :reud#1!<63 1"(' 1!1(3 171) reco/nised its e=istence in children %ho
employ both &in/ers and the &aecal mass as the masturbatory ob*ect. >o%ever3 pitz9s #1!0!) study
o& &aecal play and his conclusions3 based on observational and not analytic data3 have promul/ated
an implication o& severe patholo/y not substantiated by our o%n %ork.
p. 1<< :or the sake o& presentation3 and partly to accord %ith the ,on/ress theme o& the @bsessional
tates3 this paper is also &ocused on the character constellation o& 9pseudo1maturity9 %hich %e &ind
to be intimately related to anal erotism3 a &indin/ by no means at variance %ith the descriptions by
8innicott #1!56) and by Deutsch #1!0-) o& %hat they have called the 9&alse sel&9 and the 9as i&9
personality type respectively. The relations o& 9pseduo1maturity9 to obsessional states %ill be
demonstrated and sho%n to assume an oscillatory system at a certain sta/e o& the analytic process3
thro%in/ some li/ht on the back/round o& obsessional character in a manner similar to the
description o& the cyclothymic back/round o& obsessional neurosis /iven in my earlier #1!57) paper.
,linical material and theoretical discussion %ill bind to/ether the three concepts: anal masturbation3
pro*ective identi&ication3 pseduomaturity.
The characterology
+nade?uate splittin/1and1idealisation #Klein 1!6()3 operative particularly a&ter %eanin/3 in relation
to demands &or cleanliness and a//ravated by the e=pectation or arrival o& youn/er siblin/s3
contributes to a stron/ trend to idealise the rectum and its &aecal contents. But this idealisation is
lar/ely based on con&usion o& identity due to the operation o& pro*ective identi&ication3 %hereby the
baby9s bottom and that o& the mother are con&used one %ith the other3 and both are e?uated %ith the
mother9s breasts.
2s %e reconstruct the scene &rom the analytic situation a typical se?uence %ould appear as &ollo%s:
a&ter a &eed3 %hen placed in the cot3 as mother %alks a%ay3 the baby3 hostilely e?uatin/ mother9s
breasts %ith her buttocks3 be/ins to e=plore its o%n bottom3 idealisin/ its roundness and smoothness
and eventually penetratin/ the anus to reach the retained3 %ithheld &aeces. +n this process o&
penetration3 a &antasy o& secret intrusion into mother9s anus #2braham 1!-13 7"!) to rob her takes
shape3 %hereby the baby9s rectal contents become con&used %ith mother9s idealised &aeces3 &elt to be
%ithheld by her to &eed daddy and the inside1babies.
The conse?uences o& this is t%o&old3 namely an idealisation o& the rectum as a source o& &ood and
the pro*ective #delusional) identi&ication %ith the internal mother %hich erases the di&&erentiation
bet%een child and adult as re/ards capacities and prero/atives. The urine and &latus may also come
in &or their share o& idealisation.
+n the e=cited and con&used state %hich results &rom the anal masturbation3 a bimanual masturbation
o& /enital #phallus or clitoris) and anus #con&used %ith va/ina) tends to ensue3 producin/ a
sadomasochistic perverse coital &antasy in %hich the internal parental couple do /reat harm to one
another. The pro*ective identi&ication %ith both internal &i/ures %hich accompanies this bimanual
masturbation harms the internal ob*ects both by the violence o& intrusion into them and by the
sadistic nature o& the intercourse it produces bet%een them. >ypochondria as %ell as claustrophobic
an=ieties are thus an invariable conse?uence to some de/ree.
p. 1<1
+n childhood this situation encoura/es a preoedipal #a/es -17) crystalisation o& character mani&est
by docility3 help&ulness3 pre&erence &or adult companionship3 aloo&ness or bossiness %ith other
children3 intolerance o& criticism3 and hi/h verbal capacity. 8hen this characterolo/ical crust is
broken momentarily by &rustration or an=iety3 outcrops o& hair1raisin/ virulence are laid bare A
tantrums3 &aecal smearin/3 suicidal attempts3 vicious assaults on other children3 lyin/ to stran/ers
about parental maltreatment3 cruelty to animals3 etc.
This structure bypasses the @edipus comple= and seems to e?uip a child reasonably %ell
super&icially &or academic and social li&e and may carry throu/h into adulthood relatively unru&&led
even by the adolescent upheaval. But the 9pseudo9 nature o& the ad*ustment is apparent in adult li&e
even %here the perverse tendencies have not led to obviously aberrant se=ual activities. The &eelin/
o& &raudulence as an adult person3 the se=ual impotence or pseduo1potency #e=cited by secret
perverse &antasies)3 the inner loneliness and the basic con&usion bet%een /ood and bad3 all create a
li&e o& tension and lack o& satis&action3 bolstered3 or rather compensated3 only by the smu/ness and
snobbery %hich are an inevitable accompaniment o& the massive pro*ective identi&ication.
8here this or/anisation is less dominant and pervasive3 or durin/ analysis %hen it be/ins to /ive
%ay to the therapeutic process3 it stands in an oscillatory relation to an obsessional or/anisation.
There the internal ob*ects are not penetrated3 but are rather omnipotently controlled and separated
on a less part1ob*ect level o& relationship3 as the &ocal di&&iculties have moved &rom separation
an=ieties to%ard the previously bypassed oedipal con&licts.
The delusional identi&ication %ith the mother due to pro*ective identi&ication and the con&usion
bet%een anus and va/ina to/ether produce &ri/idity and a sense o& &raudulent &emininity in %omen.
+n men these dynamics produce either homose=ual activities or more &re?uently an intense dread o&
becomin/ homose=ual #since the hei/htened &emininity is not distin/uished &rom passive anal
homose=uality). @r conversely the secondary pro*ective identi&ication %ith the &ather9s penis #in the
ensuin/ bimanual masturbation) may produce a leadin/ phallic ?uality in either male or &emale
patients especially %here omnipotent #manic) reparativeness has been mobilised as a de&ence
a/ainst the severe underlyin/ depression present in all such cases.
p. 1<-
The nature of the transference
8hen this con&i/uration o& massive pro*ective identi&ication %ith the internal ob*ects3 usually on a
part1ob*ect level as breast or penis3 is active the co1operation o& an adult sort in the analytic process
is replaced by a pseudo1co1operation or 9help&ulness9 to the analyst. This actin/ out sho%s itsel& in a
some%hat slavish demeanour3 a desire to convince3 to demonstrate3 to assist3 or to relieve the
analyst o& his burdens. Material is there&ore o&ten o& a predi/ested variety3 sometimes /iven in
9headline9 &ashion or a super&icial interpretations o& mental states. 2ll sense o& the patient9s %ishin/
to elicit interpretation is absent3 replaced by an evident desire &or praise3 approval3 admiration3 or
even /ratitude &rom the analyst. 8hen these are not &orthcomin/3 the analyst9s activities are o&ten
&elt to evince lack o& understandin/3 envious attacks on the patient9s capacities3 mere surliness3 or
&rank sadism. This latter reception o& interpretation can ?uickly lead to erotization and cause the
interpretation to be e=perienced as a se=ual assault.
8hether the patient is producin/ dreams3 associations3 or a &actual account o& his daily activities3
the actin/ out aspect is so dominant that the interpretation o& content is relatively useless unless
coupled %ith a clear demonstration o& the nature and the basis o& the behaviour. This o& course
results in sullenness o& the nothin/1+1ever1do1pleases1you variety. But by the painstakin/
demonstration o& the actin/ out3 by consistent elucidation o& the cryptic masturbation3 and &inally
throu/h dream analysis3 pro/ress can usually be made.
2ctin/ out o& the in&antile pro*ective identi&ication %ith internal &i/ures is such a prominent part o&
the character that its continual demonstration as a contaminant in the patient9s adult li&e must be
undertaken. Even in the &ace o& intense opposition this scrutiny must also include areas o& the
/reatest pride3 success3 and apparent satis&action such as %ork3 9creative9 activities3 relations to
children3 siblin/s3 or continued solicitous help&ulness to a/in/ parents. This si/ni&icance o& clothin/
&or the %omen3 cars &or the men3 and money1in1the1bank &or all must be investi/ated3 &or they are
sure to be &ound loaded %ith irrational si/ni&icance. o skilled is the counter&eitin/ o& maturity in
thou/ht3 attitude3 communication3 and action that only the dreams make possible this teasin/ apart
o& in&antile 9pseudo1mature9 items &rom the adult pattern o& li&e.
The dreams
p. 1<7
+t is %orth mentionin/ here that sensitivity to the anal masturbatory aspects o& the adult patient9s
dreams is immeasurably increased by e=perience %ith child patients and psychotics. Much o& %hat
appears belo% derives its conviction &rom such sources.
#a) +dealisation o& the &aeces as &ood A dreams o& scaven/in/ and &indin/ are in this cate/ory:
&indin/ apples amon/ the autumn leaves3 &ood in the empty larder3 reachin/ into places the inside o&
%hich cannot be visualised3 or underneath structures. :ishin/ and huntin/ may also come into this
cate/ory3 thou/h not /enerally' but /ardenin/3 shoppin/3 and stealin/ o& &ood do3 especially i& the
place is represented as dark3 dirty3 cheap or &orei/n.
#b) +dealisation o& the rectum A dreams in %hich the rectum is represented as a retreat or re&u/e
/enerally sho% it as an eatin/ place #restaurant or ca&B3 kitchen or dinin/ room) but %ith ?ualities
%hich announce its si/ni&icance. +t may be dirty3 dark3 smelly3 cheap3 cro%ded3 smoky3 belo%
/round level3 noisy3 run by &orei/ners3 in a &orei/n city. The &ood may be unappetisin/3 unhy/enic3
unhealthy3 &attenin/3 overcooked3 homo/enous #custards3 puddin/s3 etc)3 or caterin/ to in&antile
/reed in ?uantity or s%eetness. 8here rectum and breast are con&used such con&i/uration as outdoor
ca&Bs or market places %ith the above characteristics may appear.
#c) +dealisation o& the toilet situation #2braham 1!-<3 71") A this o&ten appears in dreams as sittin/
in lo&ty or e=citin/ places3 o&ten lookin/ do%n at %ater #lakes3 canyons3 streams) or sittin/ in places
%here &ood is bein/ prepared3 or in a position o& importance #9Cast upper9 dreams) or %here people
behind the dreamer are %aitin/ &or &ood3 payment3 services3 or in&ormation #conductin/ an
orchestra3 servin/ at an altar).
p. 1<0
#d) Depresentation o& the anally masturbatin/ &in/ers A these appear in dreams represented as parts
o& the body3 people3 animals3 tools or machines3 either sin/ly or in /roups o& &our to &ive3 %ith
?ualities o& &aecal contamination variously represented or denied3 such as ne/roes3 men in bro%n
helmets3 soiled or shiny /arden tools3 %hite /loves3 people dressed in black3 earth1movin/ tractors3
dirty children3 %orms3 rusty nails3 etc.
#e) Dreams sho%in/ the process o& intrusion into the anus o& the ob*ect #2braham 1!-13 7"!) A most
&re?uently seen as enterin/ a buildin/ or a vehicle3 either &urtively3 by a back entrance3 the door has
%et paint3 the entrance is narro%3 protective clothin/ must be %orn3 it is under/round3 under %ater3
in a &orei/n country or closed to the public3 etc.
#&) +dealisation o& the rectum as a source o& pseudo1analysis A this is &re?uent and may appear as
secondhand bookshops3 piles o& old ne%spapers3 &ilin/ cabinets3 public libraries A one patient be&ore
an e=amination dreamed that the &ished in the :leet treet se%er and cau/ht an encyclopaedia.
Clinical material
+ have chosen the &ollo%in/ material to sho% the comple=ity o& the conne=ions to orality and
/enitality %hich in&use the anal masturbatory situation and its attendant pro*ective identi&ication
%ith such de&ensive po%er.
Three years o& analytic %ork %ith a late adolescent youn/ man had be/un to press to%ard the
dependent relationship to the breast %hich his history su//ested %ould be e=tremely disturbed3 &or
he had been a poor &eeder3 a complainin/ baby3 and a tyrannical child in his dependence on his
mother. 8e kne% somethin/ o& his capacity &or scathin/ mockery and o& a terrible %ay o& lau/hin/
contemptuously3 but this had seldom been unleashed in the consultin/ room3 %here his behaviour
tended to be super&icially co1operative3 9churnin/ out &antasies93 as he called it3 all %ith an air o&
insincerity %hich made even the simplest account o& a daily happenin/ sound like con&abulation.
This %e had already understood as 9pretendin/ to be insincere9 but indistin/uishable to himsel& &rom
9pretendin/ to pretend to be insincere93 all o& %hich related to a deeply &i=ed paranoid &eelin/ o&
bein/ overheard by a hidden persecutor.
p. 1<6
>e dreamed that he %as amon/ &riends and seemed once a/ain3 as in school days3 to be the head
boy. 2s they came over the brow o& a hill3 he sa% a man3 %hom he kne% to be a murderer3 amon/
some /ravestones3 *ust %anderin/ about. Deassurin/ his &riends that he kne% ho% to handle the
man3 he approached him %ith an aide and3 pretendin/ to be &riendly3 led him do%n to the bottom3
hopin/ to e=tract a con&ession.
2@,+2T+@$ A his ton/ue seems to be e=plorin/ the back o& his teeth %hich &eel old and
cracked. That makes him think o& puttin/ on some slippers like the ones his &ather used to have.
+$TEDPDET2T+@$ that his teeth are represented by the /ravestones and his ton/ue as the
murderer amon/ his victims. >is device in the dream is to rid his mouth o& these dan/erous ?ualities
and trans&orm them into slippery &in/ers %hich can be led do%n to his bottom3 %here the victims
can be identi&ied in his &aeces. But by this device his &in/er1in1his1bottom becomes con&used %ith
&ather9s penis1in1mother9s1va/ina3 an important source o& the $azi1daddy1%ho1kills1mummy9s1
4e%ish1babies %hom %e kno% so %ell &rom earlier %ork.
2@,+2T+@$ A he &eels as i& a circular sa% %ere cuttin/ his thi/h #re&erence to sur/ery &or
hernia in puberty). >e ima/ines himsel& %ith his back to double doors and the analyst1sur/eon1
daddy).
2@,+2T+@$ A an ornately carved /ilt picture &rame #the analyst9s interpretation is an ornate
picture intended to &rame him by revealin/ his /uilt)3 Ma&ia A the black hand. 2 boat /oin/ throu/h
a canal %hich is shaped to &it its keelless hull #the Ma&ia1&ascist daddy /ettin/ the bi/ black penis1
&in/er into his anal canal3 reassurin/ him in an +talian accent: 9$o keelE9)
These associations are typical o& the punnin/ %hich characterises the compulsive anal masturbatory
&antasies.
:our %eeks later3 approachin/ the ,hristmas holiday3 in a state o& mountin/ resentment and
increasin/ di&&iculty at %ork due to actin/ out3 he came &i&teen minutes late and tracked mud &rom
an unpaved road #a shortcut &rom the under/round station to the consultin/ room) into my room.
@nly once be&ore had he done this.
2@,+2T+@$ A he had rubbishy dreams over the %eekend and &eels reluctant to impose them on
the analyst.
+$TEDPDET2T+@$ A this conscious %ish to spare is contrasted by an unconscious %ish to dirty the
analyst inside and out %ith his &aeces3 a bit o& %hich has been acted out by trackin/ dirt into the
room. Patient looked %ith surprise at the &loor3 and apolo/ised.
2@,+2T+@$ A @n aturday ni/ht he dreamed he %as tossin/ and turnin/ in pain due to a
dislocated &in/er #sho%s unin*ured le&t inde= &in/er).
+$TEDPDET2T+@$ A link %ith the /ravestone dream. The %eekend distress &elt as due to the
removal o& his murderer1&in/er #Ma&ia) &rom its accustomed location3 associations A but then he
seemed at school3 idle and bored. >e p. 1<5 %andered into the men9s lavatory3 %here there seemed
to be a nice bi/ clean bathtub. >e decided to have a bath3 but then it chan/ed to a small3 &ilthy
station toilet %ith porno/raphic %ritin/ and pictures on the %all3 *ust opposite the basement o& a bi/
department store. >e couldn9t decide %hat to do3 because the sta&& o& the store kept %atchin/ him
suspiciously. >e kept /oin/ in and out o& the lavatory3 until &inally he entered the store to steal
somethin/.
This dream sho%s %ith unusual clarity the %ay in %hich the current separation situations #the
dislocated &in/er at the borin/ %eekend) leads to a se?uence o& in&antile events3 &irst %ettin/ himsel&
#the bath) %ith %arm %ater urine3 and then e=plorin/ his anus #the &ilthy toilet)3 becomin/ more and
more se=ually aroused #the porno/raphy) and preoccupied %ith pro*ective identi&ication &antasies
about the bottom o& mother9s body #the toilet1rectum across &rom the department1store1va/ina %ith
the %atch&ul sta&&1penis) and his %ish to rob her.
unday ni/ht9s dream3 approachin/ %ith some an=iety the Monday session3 reveals the continuation
o& the in&antile state3 no% a baby %ith soiled nappy3 bottom3 and cot. +n the dream he %anted to
chan/e his clothes &or a party he and &riends %ere /ivin/ at his &lat3 but already every room %as
&illed %ith /uests3 lau/hin/3 drinkin/ and smokin/ #his soiled cot and nappy). But then he %as in the
park and &elt happy amon/ the /reenery3 even thou/h he had on nothin/ but an undershirt #the baby
has kicked o&& its nappy and idealises its soiled bottom and cot). >e &inds a &ootball to kick and soon
others have *oined him in the /ame #playin/ %ith his &aeces).
The later state3 sel&1idealisation throu/h athletics3 had appeared literally in hundreds o& dreams in
the &irst t%o years o& his analysis. >ere %e see in detail its derivation. +t is %orth mentionin/ that
this patient had su&&ered &rom a chronic3 but non1ulcerative diarrhoea since early childhood %hich
had only abated some ei/ht months earlier in the analysis.
The cryptic anal masturbation
Deconstruction &rom the trans&erence indicates that anal masturbation becomes cryptic very early in
childhood and tends to remain both unnoticed and unreco/nised in its si/ni&icance therea&ter3 e=cept
%hen &rank perversions declare themselves in adolescence or later. + have re&erred to it as 9cryptic9 to
emphasise here the unconscious skill %ith %hich it is hidden &rom scrutiny.
The most common &orm #see :reud3 and 2braham) utilises the &aecal mass itsel& as the masturbatory
stimulant. >ither its retention3 slo% e=pulsion3 rhythmic partial e=pulsion and retraction3 or the
rapid3 &orced3 and pain&ul e=pulsion are accompanied by the unconscious &antasies %hich alter the
e/o state. p. 1<( This chan/e in mental state can be noted in child patients %hen they return &rom
de&aecatin/ durin/ sessions. The habit o& readin/ on the toilet3 special methods o& cleansin/ the
anus3 special concern about leavin/ a bad smell3 an=iety about &aecal stain on underclothin/3
habitually dirty &in/er nails3 surreptitious smellin/ o& &in/ers3 etc. all are tentative indicators o&
cryptic anal masturbation. But it can be skil&ully hidden &ar a&ield &rom the act o& de&aecation: in
bathin/ habits3 the %earin/ o& constrictive under/arments3 in cyclin/3 horseback ridin/ or other
activities %hich stimulate the buttocks. Most di&&icult perhaps o& all to locate is the se?uestration o&
anal masturbation in the /enital se=ual relation3 %hich is invariably the case to some e=tent %hile
anus and va/ina are still con&used %ith one another. @n the other hand3 like Poe9s 9Purloined Cetter93
it may be &lamboyantly in vie%3 as in constipation %ith enemata3 suppositories &or recurrent &issure
in ano3 etc. but its si/ni&icance denied.
8hile it is not part o& my techni?ue to comment on a patient9s behaviour on the couch nor to ask &or
associations to it3 scrutiny o& the patterns o& posture and movement and linkin/ them %ith dream
material does sometimes permit a &ruit&ul interpretation o& the behaviour. By this means the series o&
modi&ications o& the anal masturbation can be revealed and a more success&ul search &or the actual
anal stimulation instituted. :or instance3 a patient %ho o&ten kept both hands in his pockets
reco/nised throu/h a dream that this %as accompanied at times by pullin/ at a loose thread. This led
to the realisation that he had a habit o& manually teasin/ apart peri1anal hairs prior to de&aecation
lest they spoil the shape o& his emer/in/ &aecal mass.
The analytic process
p. 1<"
The early years o& analysis in such cases involve primarily the resolution o& the sel&1idealisation and
spurious independence3 throu/h the establishment o& the capacity in the trans&erence to utilise the
analytic breast &or pro*ective relie& #the toilet1breast). The relie& o& con&usional states #Klein 1!6()
takes the &ore&ront3 especially those con&usions o& identity and there&ore about time and the adult1
child di&&erential %hich characterises massive pro*ective identi&ication. +t is only a&ter several years3
%hen the attachment to the &eedin/ breast is developin/ and the intolerance to separations is
rhythmically bein/ invoked at %eekends and holidays3 that these processes can be accurately and
&ruit&ully investi/ated. +t seems certain that3 unless the cryptic anal masturbation can be discovered
and its insidious production o& aberrant e/o states scotched at source3 &urther pro/ress is seriously
impeded.
This brin/s us to a most important point in our e=position3 &or + %ould su//est &rom my e=perience
that the dynamic here described is o&ten o& such a subtle structure3 the pressure on the analyst to *oin
in the idealisation o& the pseudo1maturity so /reat3 and the underlyin/ threats o& psychosis and
suicide so covertly communicated that many o& the 9success&ul9 analyses %hich break do%n months
or years a&ter termination may &all into this cate/ory. +t is necessary there&ore also to stress that the
countertrans&erence position is e=tremely di&&icult and in every %ay repeats the dilemma o& the
parents3 %ho &ound themselves %ith a 9model9 child3 so lon/ as they abstained &rom bein/ distinctly
parental3 either in the &orm o& authority3 teachin/3 or opposition to the relatively modest claims &or
privile/es beyond those to %hich the child9s a/e and accomplishments could reasonably entitle it.
This seductiveness must not be thou/ht o& as mere hypocrisy nor its lovin/ ?uality a sham. :ar &rom
it3 a ,ordelia1like tenderness can be ?uite /enuine3 but the preconditions &or lovin/ are incompatible
%ith /ro%th since they are both intensely possessive and subtly deni/ratin/ o& their ob*ects.
Termination o& analysis is ?uietly pursued as a &iat &or a non1analytic and interminable relation to
the analyst and to psychoanalysis. $eedless to say3 there&ore3 the con&i/uration described in this
paper is o& special interest and concern &or the analyst %ith patients %ho have a pro&essional or
social link %ith psychoanalysis.
+n my e=perience3 %here the seduction o& the analyst to idealise the achievement o& pseudo1maturity3
in its ne%ly modi&ied and 9analysed9 edition3 is &irmly resisted3 interruption o& the analysis may be
&orced by the patient &or ostensibly 9realistic9 reasons. This may be done throu/h en/ineerin/ a
/eo/raphic shi&t3 a chan/e in marital status3 by promotin/ opposition &rom parent or marital partner3
by contractin/ &inancial obli/ations %hich render payment &or the analysis p. 1<! in&easible3 etc.3
%hile still clin/in/ to the idealised positive trans&erence. +& the analytic penetration is to succeed3 a
prolon/ed period o& violently ne/ative trans&erence and mani&est unco1operativeness must be
e=pected and may prove intractable. This takes the &orm o& in*ured innocence3 sel&1pity3 and the
constant complaint that the analyst9s implication that anal masturbation e=ists and continues in &act
is either doctrinaire3 a pro*ection3 or a mani&estation o& outside inter&erence #e./.3 &rom a supervisor).
Thanks to the constant clari&ication brou/ht by dreams it is usually possible &or the analyst to
persevere. Fradually3 by ur/in/ improved co1operation about consciously %ithheld associations and
closer attention to body habits3 the analyst can brin/ the hidden anal masturbation to li/ht. 8ith this
the &eedin/1breast trans&erence breaks throu/h the restrictions imposed upon it by the idealisation1
o&1the1&aeces. :ull1blo%n3 pain&ul and analytical &ruit&ul e=periences o& separation an=iety become
possible &or the &irst time.
+t is at this point in the analytic process that the relation to obsessional characterolo/y becomes
evident. The oscillation o& the t%o states3 pseudo1maturity and obsessional states3 can be seen to
take place3 as the @edipus comple= in its /enital and pre/enital aspects takes the &ore&ront o& the
trans&erence. +t can be understood that3 &or all the oedipal implications o& earlier material %hich had
re?uired interpretation3 a &ull e=perience o& oedipal con&lict only becomes possible %hen the
di&&erentiation o& adult and in&antile parts o& the sel& has been thus arduously established.
Further clinical material
The clinical material %hich &ollo%s is intended to demonstrate the %ay in %hich stren/thenin/ o&
the alliance to /ood ob*ects internally and to the analyst in the trans&erence make possible a ne%
stand a/ainst old anal habits. The patient in ?uestion came to analysis because o& lack o& direction in
his %ork but analysis soon revealed also the pseudo1mature structure outlined in the paper. +t also
brou/ht to li/ht a little noticed continuation o& anal habits and preoccupations %hich could be traced
back in the anamnesis to nocturnal /ames %ith an older brother3 probably never overtly se=ual. But
the unconscious splittin/1o&& and pro*ectin/ o& a bad part o& the sel& into the brother had played a
lar/e part in the sel&1idealisation %hich underlay the patient9s 9/oodness9 as a child. +n &act the
brother %as by no means a bad child nor a bad siblin/.
2pproachin/ a ,hristmas holiday3 the patient9s recurrent &issure in ano became active a/ain as the
material s%un/ to%ard patterns o& anal intrusion into internal ob*ects already %ell kno%n by this
&ourth year o& the analysis.
@n a Tuesday3 he reported havin/ &elt ill and cold since the unsatis&actory session o& the day be&ore.
p. 11< >e dreamed that he %as in a house %ith a man his youn/er brother9s a/e and yet it %as also
the patient himsel& as a youn/er man. This &ello% seemed &riendly and pleasant at &irst and %as
tellin/ the patient that the bodies o& police inspectors3 o&ten in a state o& advanced decomposition3
%ere bein/ &ound all over Britain. @nly %hen he indicated that there %as one such in the ne=t room
under a sheet did the patient become alarmed. 8hen the youn/ man invited him to see it and the
patient demurred3 a tense situation arose. The patient backed to%ard the door and &inally dashed out
as the youn/ man lun/ed &or his throat. To his surprise there %ere policemen outside %ho reassured
him that road blocks %ere already established and the youn/ murderer %ould be dealt %ith.
+n the second dream o& the same ni/ht he &ound himsel& %alkin/ on the pavement3 naked but &or a
tiny bath1to%el3 acutely embarrassed that his penis %as visible. Thinkin/ to /et home more ?uickly
and cut short the distress3 he headed &or a station3 but %as intercepted by a tramp %ho invited him to
his nearby lod/in/s. >e /ladly accepted3 but once in the tramp9s bed he could not /et to sleep3 &or
the tramp stood upri/ht by the bed all ni/ht and &ri/htened him.
$ote the contrast in these t%o dreams. in the &irst he is able to resist involvement in anal sadistic
oedipal attacks on police1inspector daddies and &inds himsel& com&orted by the e=ternal relation to
analyst and analytic road1block process. But in the second dream oedipal humiliation in the bath1
analysis drives him back to the anal preoccupation %ith a bad tramp1brother9s &aecal1penis in his
rectum #the constipation %hich is a re/ular prelude to activity o& his anal &issure).
@n the :riday he complained o& his constipation and noted that he had be/un to diet in an
obsessional %ay. 2n amusin/ incident had occurred the previous evenin/ in %hich a 9&at9 &ly %as
buzzin/ about the house3 &inally landin/ on a vase. 2s he announced his intention to 9sho% the old
/entleman to the door93 pickin/ up the vase %ith the slu//ish &ly on it3 his youn/ son %ittily took the
patient9s arm and led him to%ard the door. >e dreamed that he %as %aitin/ &or a haircut in a ?ueue3
but it took so lon/3 despite the &act that both man and %i&e %ere barberin/ on t%o chairs3 that he
despaired. Then he &ound himsel& lyin/ com&ortably in a little &lat bottomed boat /oin/ throu/h a
little tunnel #like one he9d been on as a child on a visit to :ather ,hristmas at a bi/ department
store). 8hen the boat %as meant to make a ri/ht1an/led turn to the le&t3 it became stuck3 so the
patient put his ri/ht hand into the %ater3 makin/ a scoopin/ motion #as he had done the ni/ht be&ore
%hen the kitchen sink drain %as p. 111 blocked3 to clear it). But he realised %ith a shock that his
&in/ers %ere in the mouth o& a tramp3 lyin/ in the %ater beneath the boat3 %ho %as about to bite him
#an=iety about the constipation leadin/ to the tearin/ open o& his &issure3 in contrast to the /entle
9sho%in/1the1&at1old1/entleman1#&ly)1to1the1door9).
+n this dream con&irmation o& the intolerance o& separation #the couch1boat turnin/ to the le&t' in &act
%hen the patient leaves the couch it is he %ho makes a ri/ht1an/led turn to the ri/ht) and turnin/ to
the tramp1&aced brother inside the mother9s :ather1,hristmas1tunnel3 is impressive. $ote ho% the
%ish to rid himsel& /ently o& his oedipal rival #as son9s *oke makes clear) leads him a/ain to the
alliance %ith the tramp brother3 the constipated &aecal penis and the tearin/1open1the1&issure type o&
anal masturbatory de&aecation. The in&antile %ish to make daddy old and e=pel him anally is still
overpo%erin/ly active3 even thou/h the patient9s stru//le a/ainst abandonment to anal sadism has
%ell commenced.
Three %eeks later3 on a Monday3 he reported himsel& in a peculiar mood3 &ull o& intense and mi=ed
&eelin/s to%ard the analysis3 a%are that a recent insi/ht helped him to curb a &re?uent type o&
provocative behaviour to%ard his %i&e but very %orried and resent&ul about the comin/ holiday
break. >e dreamed that he %as at a pond near my consultin/ room3 %aitin/ to /o to his session. 2
man %as &ishin/3 thou/h there are no &ish in that pond3 and had one o& his t%o hooks stuck in the
bottom. The patient had to &ree it3 but %as a&raid the man %ould cruelly keep the line ti/ht and cause
the patient to be hooked. +n &act this is e=actly %hat happened. Determined to be &ree3 he tore the
hook out o& his &in/er %ith pliers3 tearin/ a piece o& the &lesh %ith it. To have it dressed he needed to
/o to a to%n outside Condon to see the 2merican ambassador. >e %as bein/ &eted in a horsedra%n
carria/e be&ore returnin/ to the tates' but3 nonetheless3 le&t the carria/e and dressed the patient9s
&in/er and took him to his home. There the patient3 &eelin/ very happy3 %atched the ambassador and
his &amily have their lunch3 separated &rom him by a per&orated partition.
>ere3 be&ore a holiday3 the stru//le to accept the oedipal distress #%ound on his &in/er3 linked to
circumcision)3 and to &ree himsel& &rom the addiction to the anal masturbation #the man %ith his
hook cau/ht in the bottom o& the pond3 linked to the tramp1brother &aecal penis) has proceeded %ith
remarkable rapidity and clarity o& insi/ht. +t is interestin/ that subse?uently on t%o occasions he
developed a paronychia o& an inde= &in/er at %eekends.
Summary
:or the purpose o& illustratin/ a current trend o& our researches into the intimate conne=ion p. 11-
bet%een pro*ective identi&ication and anal masturbation3 + have chosen to describe the trans&erence
mani&estation o& a type o& character disorder seen %ith relative &re?uency amon/ the many
intelli/ent3 /i&ted and out%ardly success&ul people %ho seek analysis3 namely o& 9pseudomaturity9.
The concept o& pro*ective identi&ication3 &irst described by Melanie Klein3 has opened the %ay to a
ne% &ruit&ul investi/ation o& hitherto une=plored aspects o& anality. By demonstratin/ ho%
pro*ective identi&ication %ith internal ob*ects is induced by anal masturbation3 a richer conception o&
the derivation and si/ni&icance o& the narcissistic evaluation o& &aeces is un&olded3 thus linkin/ the
anal phase more surely to symptom and character patholo/y.
References
2braham3 K. #1!-<) 9The narcissistic evaluation o& e=cretory processes in dreams and neurosis9 in
Selected Papers3 Condon: >o/arth Press3 #1!-().
#1!-1) 9,ontributions to the theory o& the anal character9 ibid
Deutsch3 >. #1!0-). 9ome &orms o& emotional disturbance and their relationship to schizophrenia93
Psychoanalytic Quarterly3 11.
:reud3 . #1!<6)9hree !ssays on the heory of Se"uality, S!, (.
#1!<") 9,haracter and anal eroticism9 S!3 !.
#1!1() 9@n trans&ormations o& instinct as e=empli&ied in anal eroticism9S!3 1(.
#1!1") 9:rom the history o& an in&antile neurosis9. S!3 1(.
>eimann3 P. #1!5-) 9$otes on the anal sta/e93 International Journal of Psycho-Analysis3 07.
4ones3 E. #1!17) 9>ate and anal eroticism in the obsessional neurosis93 in Papers on Psycho-
Analysis, -nd and subs?. editions3 Condon: BalliGre3 #1!1").
#1!1") 92nal1erotic character traits.9 ibid#
Klein3 M. #1!05) 9$otes on some schizoid mechanisms9 in M. Klein3 P. >eimann3 . +saacs3 and 4.
Diviere De$elopments in Psycho-Analysis3 Condon: >o/arth Press #1!6-) -!-17-<
#also in he %ritin&s of Melanie 'lein vol. 73 11-0).
#1!6() !n$y and (ratitude Condon: Tavistock #also in the %ritin&s of Melanie 'lein vol. 73
1(51-76).
Meltzer3 D. #1!57) 92 contribution to the metapsycholo/y o& cyclothymic states.9
International Journal of Psycho-Analysis, 00.
pitz3 D. #1!0!) 92utoeroticism93 Psychoanalytic Study of the child, 710.
8innicott3 D.8. #1!56) he Maturational Processes and the )acilitatin& !n$ironment, Condon:
>o/arth Press.