Imago

Zulliger, Hans. The Psychology of Mourning and Burial Customs.

Malinowski, Bronislaw. Mother Right and the œdipus Complex.

Rank, Beata. Woman's Role in the Development of Human Society.

Kraus, Flora. Women's Speech among Primitive People.

Arndt, Adolf. Taboo and Mysticism.

Spiez, R. Two Chapters on Cultural Development.

Zulliger, H. The Psychology of Mourning and Burial Customs.—Whereas in “Totem and Taboo” Freud proved that the mental life of the savage and of the neurotic is similar, Mr. Zulliger proposes to show in a study of burial customs that the same laws apply to normal and to neurotic man, the latter merely having been less successful in repression. The first part of the study consists of excerpts from the writings of a group of school children, describing their feelings over the death and funeral of a schoolmate. Much which is repressed by the adult comes to light in these naive statements. Viewing the dead causes anxiety, a fear that the corpse may come forth in ghostly form and threaten them. The basis of the fear of ghosts is the œdipus wish, which is aided by the mechanism of identification. The boys, for whom identification with the dead girl is less easy, exhibit fewer signs of mourning. Mourning is based upon self-reproach and indicates atonement. For the girls the identification contains an element of satisfaction in the form of revenge upon the mother. In accordance with their attitude toward their own mothers, the boys feel more pity for the mother than for the father of their schoolmate. Pity may represent a repressed sadistic component which delivers its energy to a masochistic trend. Contrary to civilized man's belief that he is moved by pity at the death of a fellowman, Mr. Zulliger is of the opinion that burial customs generally have their origin in fear of the dead man's return, and symbolize atonement and defense against the danger which the corpse represents for the living. They also signify a regression of the libido to an earli