CASE HISTORIES 1 7 



His mother and little brother were angels, and his sister was 

 Jewish and owned Jerusalem. Often he grabbed his nose to feel 

 of it, saying it felt as if it were being drawn into a Jewish shape, 

 He strongly resisted divulging what significance Jews had for 

 him. All I could learn was that one of the men in the office in 

 which he first worked was a Jew and told many smutty stories. 



General observations: In the first interview it was apparent 

 that he was trying to fight off unpleasant ideas. The subjects 

 that seemed to excite and upset him most were sex, his boyhood, 

 the Maker, and his little brother. He said he loved his little 

 brother, that the little fellow was sad and he wanted to comfort 

 him, then he got very excited and rushed to look out a window. 



He talked much about not wanting to hurt people's feelings 

 and said perhaps he had done so but not enough to kill them 

 outright. He was excessively polite and anxious not to give 

 offense, and went about the ward shaking hands with each patient. 

 He said he didn't want hard feelings with anybody and that he 

 always tried to make up. 



He had partial insight into his condition. He considered he 

 had just passed through a "period" between youth and man- 

 hood, and was now safely through it and should be discharged. 

 He refused to be treated by any physician but would talk with 

 the analyst because "we're friendly." He was well and ought 

 not to be locked up like a criminal, especially after all his services 

 to his country (much emotion). He described the horrors of the 

 front, the noise, the maiming, the blood, and the danger of death. 

 Noises bothered him greatly now because they recalled the 

 sounds of the front. He hoped some day he would be able to 

 think of these experiences without pain. The horrible sights had 

 changed him. He used to be effeminate and sensitive but the war 

 had made a man of him. It was the strain of life at the front 

 that had made him "unnatural," and he had remained that way 

 until he became natural in the receiving ward a few weeks previ- 

 ous. It was not his being in the hospital that had made him 

 natural. It would have happened anywhere for the period was 

 over, that was all. He felt very bitter at the doctors for 

 refusing to allow him to go home. It was just awful for people 

 to oppose his will. 



