The author questions the existence of unconscious guilt and unconscious need for punishment. His thesis is that the self-destructive acts and sufferings of the moral masochist are not caused by an unconscious need for punishment, but rather by a flight from severe castration anxiety into masochistic acts. The analysis of the latent castration anxiety leads to the maturation of the superego. Clinical material from one case is used to support this thesis. Further material from the same case shows how the moral masochism of adolescence and adulthood grew out of the feminine masochism of latency. In addition, the author discusses another case of moral masochism which reviews the intricate relationship between psychic health and moral codes. The importance of the cultural atmosphere is emphasized, particularly what the moral masochist extracts from it.