The germs of the concept of the curative fantasy are present in Kohut's writings and—as I indicated earlier—he considered this to be an aspect of a selfobject transference:

The clinical example demonstrated that it may not be in the clinical setting and not necessarily in relation to the analyst that unmet developmental needs become remobilized, but rather, that such remobilization may occur in marriages and other intimate relationships. Expectedly, in these relationships such infantile wishes become repeatedly frustrated and patients become more, rather then less, symptomatic. If, in a therapeutic situation, these transference expectations are recognized and the