Page:Fielding - Sex and the Love Life.pdf/43

 the erogenous tendency of the lip zone is constitutionally pronounced.

Children in whom this erogenous trait is retained become habitual kissers as adults, or if men, they frequently show a marked desire for drinking or smoking. However, if repression comes into play, they may experience disgust for eating and evince hysterical vomiting. Because of the extreme sensitiveness of the lip-zones, the repression encroaches upon the normal desire for nourishment. Psychiatrists report that female patients showing disturbances in eating, such as hysterical globus, choking sensations, and vomiting, have been energetic thumb-suckers in infancy.

The significance of sucking as a sexual pleasure is further indicated by the fact that the mouth and lips remain the most prominent of the erogenous (love-producing) zones throughout normal life, as is evidenced by the function of the kiss.

Narcissism. Childhood is also the state of narcissism (self-love, so called after the Greek legend of Narcissus, who fell in love with his own reflection in the pool).

This trait is evidenced in the child's natural interest in, and admiration of, its nude body. The inclination of the child to glory in its own nakedness is nothing to be ashamed of, nor is the existence of an unconscious sexual motive a matter to be horrified over. The child should not be severely scolded for this propensity, as such treatment leaves an exaggerated impression on the young person, and tends to set up repressions in the background of the mind that may lead to future troublesome conflicts.

Undue erotic concentration may best be prevented by a general educational regimen which will direct the mind of the child into various constructive activities suited to its age and development. This is the process of sublimation, or