Page:The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis II 1921 1.djvu/31

 PSYCHO-ANALYTICAL OBSERVATIONS ON TIC

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IV

Although the observations of the authors are of such value to us, the theoretical conclusions that they deduct from them profit us but little. For the most part their explanations are con- fined to tracing the symptoms to certain near causes (occasions) or to predisposition or degeneration. Where the patient can offer no explanation for the tic, they regard it as "senseless and without purpose". They forsake the psychological path too soon and lose themselves in physiological speculations. At last they get so far as to accept Brissaud's theory of "hypertrophy of the functioning centre in the brain" (inborn or acquired by constant use), and this they regard as the "central organ of the tic function" in tic patients. Their therapy also is based upon "causing this hyper- trophy to recede by a treatment of quiescence". Meige and Feindel speak of "congenital anomaly" of "deficient and faulty development of the cortical association paths and subcortical anastomoses"; of "molecular teratological misconceptions, which our anatomical knowledge unfortunately does not permit of our recognising". Grasset ^ differentiates between the bulbar-spinal "polygonal" and mental tics, in the proper sense of the word. The former Meige and Feindel exclude, with right, from the series of tics and assign it a place among the "cramps" ; "mental" tics are those which owe their origin to conscious psychic motor force; Grasset terms "polygonal" tics all those to which we should ascribe unconscious psychic motives. On the basis of a cortical mechanism constructed after the well-known Aphasia scheme, which he calls "Cortex Polygon", he attributes all unconscious and automatic functioning to the functioning of the Polygon. "One dreams with the Polygon", "People in a state of abstraction act with the Polygon", etc. Finally Meige and Feindel come to a decision on the following definition of Tic : "It is not sufficient that a gesture is inappropriate at the moment it occurs, on the contrary it must be certain that at the moment of its being performed it is not in connection with any idea to which it could owe its origin .... If beyond this the action is characterised by too frequent repetition, by constant lack of purpose, by violent urge, difficulty in sup- pression, and resulting satisfaction, then "it is Tic." In one place only they say : "We here find ourselves on the dangerous territory • Anatomic clinique des centres nerveux, Paris 1900.