The author suggests reading the case of Little Hans from the point of view of (temporarily impaired) symbolization. The case story is seen as a record of dialogues between father and son, speaking and writing about mother as a desirable object. Freud's role is to be addressee and witness of this process of building up a “semiotic triad.” This framework allows Hans to articulate his wishes, particularly his destructive impulses, without danger to his real objects. Insofar as Hans succeeds in articulating and representing his wishes and fears verbally and through symbolic play, his anxiety diminishes. The fantasy about the big and the “creased” giraffe is the center of the interpretation. Freud's interventions emphasize involvement in conflict and guilt as an inevitable consequence of desire. The acknowledgement of this inevitable involvement and its resolution by means of symbolization are seen as forming an essential part of the oedipal complex.