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The subjective narrative employed by the little girl to account for her femininity draws on her primary sense of femaleness, as well as on any secondary elaborations. The secondary nature of femininity is highlighted by the Freudian view wherein femininity is thought to be achieved through changes in libidinal aims and objects. The primary nature of femininity is highlighted by current views elaborating on ego development.
An examination of the subjective role of the phallus in a number of clinical reports reveals that envy of the penis may represent the intersection of several associative chains. For example, the girl's castration reaction could result from a condensation of the libidinal theme of not having a penis as Freud argued. However, Freud's reliance on the phallus as a metaphoric representation of instinctual vicissitudes is not an end point. In addition to Freud's elaborations of the phallic theme, the desire to possess the penis may represent the girl's associations to contiguous events. That is, through the process of displacement, the phallus also functions as a metonymic symbol. To fully appreciate penis envy, both the metaphoric and metonymic meanings assigned to femininity must be analysed.