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Dr. Fried's book deals with man's experience in sexuality and love. In it she studies various defenses of the ego—such as apathy, unresponsiveness, clinging or hostility between mates, the narcissistic quest for similarity of experience—in blocking the pathways of sexual arousal and release. Impotence, frigidity, voyeurism, homosexuality and other sexual disturbances are seen as a result of deficits in ego relationships rather than primarily as an outgrowth of a sexual disorder. The therapeutic task is to find a remedy for the patient's failure in ego relation ships, to strengthen as well as to loosen his ego structure, which will then permit him to form reciprocal and discriminating ties with his mate.
The author perceives that in pathological conditions the ego is unable to enjoy change fully but views challenge and variety in response as a threat. For instance, the homosexual will choose a partner from whom he expects many reactions similar to his own. In her treatment, she does not encourage the patient to dwell on his homosexual condition but instead emphasizes ego problems such as these: The patient's body image, his narcissistic need to find a reflection of himself, his feelings toward the opposite sex with emphasis on the fear rather than the hostility toward the mate. In other cases, Dr. Fried may encourage the patient to address the therapist, help a patient to seek out occasions that usually would create feelings of embarrassment, may encourage a clash between the patient and therapist or my planfully convey the anatomical facts of normal heterosexual functioning. She prefers of lively therapeutic situation, one that contains surprise elements and is filled with stimuli. The author's goal is to increase the patient's capacity for relations with other human beings, hence she will foster in the patient the enjoyment of change, challenge and the wide range of emotional and mental differences between patient and partner of the opposite sex.
Encouragement, instr