People may have perceptions of their age which do not correspond to their actual age; sometimes there is a true split. As with neuroses, one must differentiate between the conscious and the unconscious concept. As one ages, one tries to fool oneself and others. This is illustrated by examples from clinical psychoanalysis, biography (George Simenon, Annie Schmidt), and literature (Peter Pan by James Barrie, The Tin Drum by Gýnter Grass, and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde). The author examines the unconscious motives for this fixation or regression, and how analysis can assist in reconciling chronological and perceived age.