Starting from Chasseguet-Smirgel's idea of the 'girl's legitimate wish for a penis' and from Grunberger's and Sandler's comments on narcissism, the author states that, with regard to the oedipal processes of identification, the object-representations of the male and female genitals must be differentiated as to their significance as biological-sexual organs and their symbolic aspects respectively. Neurotic processes and (in the girl) castration fears will arise if the boy's or the girl's self-representations become identified with the sexual aspect of the genitals of the opposite sex. On the other hand, identification with the symbolic aspects of the representations of both the paternal and the maternal genitals are decisive for autonomous development and for the efficiency of the ego functions.