Page:The theory of psychoanalysis (IA theoryofpsychoan00jungiala).pdf/143

 little patient. We saw from the first dream that her sexual phantasy centers round the father; the psychological condition is here the same as with the Bataks, being found in the idea of incestuous relationship.

Still a third version is the growth of the child in the intestinal canal. The child tried several times to provoke nausea and vomiting, in accordance with her phantasy that the child is born through vomiting. In the closet she had arranged also pressure-exercises, in order to press out the child. Under these circumstances, we cannot be astonished that the first and principal symptoms of the manifest neurosis were nausea-symptoms.

We have come so far with our analysis that we are now able to throw a glance over the case as a whole.

We found, behind the neurotic symptoms, complicated emotional processes, which were undoubtedly connected with the symptoms. If it may be allowed to draw some general conclusions from this limited material, we could construct the course of the neurosis in the following way.

At the gradual approach of puberty, the libido of the child assumed rather an emotional than a practical attitude towards reality. She began to be very much taken with her teacher, but the sentimental self-indulgence, evinced in her riotous phantasies, played a greater part than the thought of the increased endeavors which such love ought really to have demanded of her. For this reason, her attention and her work left much to be desired. The former pleasant relationship with her favorite teacher was troubled. The teacher was annoyed, and the little girl, who had been made somewhat conceited by her home-conditions, was resentful, instead of trying to improve in her work. In consequence her libido withdrew from her teacher, as well as from her work, and fell into the characteristic forced dependence on the little boy, who on his side made the most of the situation. Then the resistances against school seized the first opportunity, which was suggested by the case of the little girl who had to be sent home on account of sickness. Our little patient followed this child's example. Once away from school, the way was open to her phantasies. By the regression of the libido, these symptom-making phantasies became awakened to a real activity, and were given an importance they had never had before, for they had