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Pressman reviews theories of silence in analysis, postulated by Baker and Fliess, summarizes Bergler's libidinal classification, and offers his own structural classification. Silence due to predominance of ego factors reflects the existence of psychic equilibrium or situations where the ego deems it wise to remain silent. Superego silence may indicate prohibition of speech because it is aggressivized or sexualized; it may represent punishment for id impulses. When id factors prevail, the significance of silence will, of course, depend upon the libidinal level and the transference. Like any other psychic product, silence is overdetermined. It is not only a resistance but also a communication. The special quality of silence is dependent not so much upon the underlying fantasies as upon the fact that the speech apparatus has been chosen as the site for the expression of fantasies. This can be understood in terms of specific determinants in the patient's history and general considerations, such as the special suitability of silence for defense purposes, its contribution to the secondary process, and its effectiveness in expressing some id drives.