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JUST OVER 50 YEARS AGO MELANIE KLEIN BECAME MUCH OCCUPIED with a little boy called Fritz (see 1955). She had often given advice on his upbringing and when, at the age of 4¾ years, Fritz began to ask a series of questions closely concerned with his own origins, Klein found herself involved in assuaging his curiosity. Six months later, the relationship became an analytic one, and in 1921 accounts of each phase of her contact with him were combined
to form her first published paper—an event of undeniable historical importance.
The first part of her paper, which deals with the first period of observation, education, and sexual enlightenment, shows great sensitivity and perceptiveness, and is charmingly told. The same can be said for the second part, which is subtitled "Early Analysis." In the first part, Klein is content to let the material speak for itself, which it does with eloquence. In the second part, she introduces interpretations, though sparingly in comparison with her later analyses, based largely on the content of anxiety dreams. The child's oedipus complex as well as the homosexual aspects of his difficulties come under scrutiny. Aggressive wishes are brought to consciousness, and in all these matters Klein's skill seems undeniable.
From this one analysis she draws two conclusions. The first is that it should be possible to analyze children of 3 years or even younger, an assertion which, with qualifications, has long ceased to be a matter of controvers