Since its formulation by Bleuler in 1911, the generalisation of the term “autism”, mainly due to its use by Kanner in 1943 and its remake by authors of Kleinian inspiration, implies problems which mislead us, blurring our perception and understanding of clinical realities. Our psychoanalytical possibilities can be enlarged by a clear knowledge of the history of psychoanalysis, a dynamic approach to psychiatric classification and to problems related to our conception of the setting. On the basis of a case history the author shows how a child and its family worked through major autistic symptoms and proposes new approaches to some psychoanalytical concepts.