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The author attempts to define more clearly the somewhat vague conception of oral fixation. He investigates the various conditions that are termed oral fixation and tries to determine whether they are based on special qualities of oral impulses and specific defense mechanisms of the ego. Denying the first possibility, this interrelation is demonstrated in two cases and is stressed as the decisive factor. The particular lack of emotions of the first patient and his incapability of loving is interpreted as a defense against oral-sadistic impulses. The latter were based upon early infantile traumas, like abrupt weaning and the birth of siblings. Early independence, a strong ego and developing of normal genital sexual relations at an early age brought about a solution of the conflict characterized by diminishing of the emotions without resulting in the formation of symptoms or inhibitions. The second patient was tied by exaggerated love to her husband. She could not live without him, but though she was completely devoted to him, she was incapable of having normal sexual relations. The exaggerated love changed repeatedly to coldness and feeling of strangeness as soon as her partner showed some independence of her. The love object was loved only as long as it could be thought of as identical with the ego of the patient. As soon as this delusion had to be given up the repressed oral sadistic aggression broke loose. The author thinks that in this case oral sadistic impulses similar to those of the first patient were conquered by a different mechanism which consists in making use of oral libidinal instincts. The oral libidinal attitude substitutes the deeper repressed sadism. The author explains how rather similar instinctual set-ups result in different structures depending on the form of the defense