The ‘autistic’ level of the Oedipus complex

Abstract

In this paper, the author describes some of the tripartite constellations occurring in the material of children on the autistic spectrum. These could be thought of as constituting a primitive, ‘autistic’ level of the Oedipus complex where the fundamental anxieties are existential ones. It is suggested that these fears of annihilation are experienced on a bodily level, and that this physical aspect appears to be a distinguishing feature of the experience of the Oedipal constellation in children with autism. The clinical illustrations concern the experience of bodily mutilation within the feeding relationship; Oedipal aspects of sense perception; the nature of the link between masculine and feminine elements making up the psychic skin; and the balance between the child, the mother, and the mother' internal figures. Some implications for cognitive development are discussed.