The early establishment of a sadomasochistic relatedness in an 18-month-old child is presented as a means of coping with a sudden traumatic loss of the symbiotic "object", as a revengeful defence against this loss, and a distorted means of restoring the symbiosis.

Hilary was a child who ignored the presence of her mother and other women, and concentrated much of her libido on autoerotic rocking, which she watched in the mirror, When her mother persisted in trying to force some contact, Hilary would run out of the room, provoking her mother, who felt noticeably rejected by the child, to chase after her.