Psychology of sex - Total No. of Records in System :: 2032

SEXUAL DEVIATIONism" (or more narrowly, erotic fetichism)is meant acondition in which the psychological sexual process iseither abridged or deviated in such a way that some specialpart of the process, or some object or action normally onitsmargin or even outside it altogether, becomes, oftenat an early age, the chief focus of attention. What isthe normal lover of secondary importance, or even indifferent,thus becomes of primary importance, and mayproperly be said to be the symbol of the whole sexualprocess.Looked at broadly, all the sexual deviations are examplesof erotic symbolism, for in every case it will befound that some object or act that for the normal humanbeing has little or no erotic value has assumed such value;that is to say, it has become a symbol of normal love.Moreover, erotic symbolism comes into play even in themore refined forms of normal love, for these involve atendency to concentrate amorous attention on somespecial points in the beloved person, such points beingthemselves unimportant but acquiring a symbolic value.When we thus use the term "symbolism" in its moreancient sense and applyit in the erotic field to deviationswhich were formerly called indiscriminately "perversions,"it is seen to go beyond the more narrow significanceassigned to it in psycho-analytic literature. Thehas in viewpsycho-analyst, when using the term, mainlya certain psychological mechanism which is often undoubtedlyoperative. "The essential function of all formsof symbolism/' says Ernest Jones, "is to overcome theinhibition that ishindering the free expression of a givenfeeling-idea," That isundoubtedly one way, and an interestingway, in which a symbol may function; but we mustnot incautiously attribute it to all forms of symbolism.To take a highly typical symbol: the flag is for die patriotto