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In “the internalized primal scene” Aron takes two related concepts from clinical theory, the combined parent figure and the primal scene and exposes them to rigorous analysis and modification. He argues for the validity and utility of these classical concepts with respect to a number of phenomena: creativity, grandiosity, splitting, obsessional defenses. Because he is interested in reducing what he sees as an exaggerated gap between preoedipal and oedipal phenomena in earlier theorizing, Aron goes on to develop links between the combined parent figure and the primal scene.
In its theorizing style, Aron's paper bears comparison with Benjamin's (1991), which attempted, in part, to show the value of the concept of penis envy when viewed from a particular developmental perspective. Both writers emphasize what they see as the value of retaining classical psychoanalytic concepts while redefining them and recasting them as metaphors, in the interest of developing a maximally rich theoretical vision. By indicating the ways in which the concepts he is arguing for do not necessarily entail the privileging of heterosexuality, procreation, or particular sexual acts, Aron's work is unique in anticipating potential feminist, gay, and epistemological critiques of his ideas.1