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February 5, 1968. THE TERMS 'MOTHER' AND 'FATHER' AS A DEFENSE AGAINST INCEST. Martin Weich, M.D.
The use and significance of the terms 'Mother' and 'Father' are explored in relation to their level of thought and language development to illustrate that one of their functions is related to a verbal tabco instituted to deny or avoid incestuous conflict. Linguistic denotation has an essentially ambiguous relationship to reality; linguistic expressions, like thought, show a general developmental process. While the ego uses words to denote and connote, it may also use them in the service of defense. At the height of Oedipal anxiety, the ego must repress the full cognitive schema of the parent. The repression, aided by the use of the less inclusive concept embodied in the terms 'Mother' and 'Father', then acts as a defense against incestuous wishes.