Analysis for John Tulloch, 23 December 1998

This is how you described the room:

It is a cool room. Everything is white. The only furniture is a futon and a small chest of drawers.

The initial room is the subject’s childhood. What interests us here is the general atmosphere of the room, in addition to the level of furnishings described by the subject. This room is neither comfortable nor uncomfortable; this suggests the subject had a bland, uninspiring childhood. No furnishings at all tells of either a complete absence of memories from that time or active suppression of said memories.

You wanted to stay in the room.

The subject did not want to grow up.

This is how you described the forest:

The forest is full of tall maple trees which obscure the sky. There is very little underbrush but plenty of moss. It is damp and there is a musty smell.

The forest is growing up, and the trees are those adults with whom the subject interacted at that time. Tall trees imply that the adults had a strong influence on the subject. A semi-dark forest tells us that the subject felt somewhat oppressed by the attention the adults gave.

This is how you described the path:

The path is marked by red indicators nailed to the trees. If they were not present there would be no way of knowing where the path was or to distinguish it from the other spaces between the trees.

Adolescence is represented by the path through the forest. Poor visibility of the path tells us the subject was often confused by the changes brought on by adolescence. Most of the confusion was dispersed with the help of a mentor, someone who had gone through the same troubles before and helped guide the subject (the markings on the trees).

This is how you described the water:

There is a small stream in the forest. It is filled with large rocks and the shallow water splashes noisily over them as it flows. Between some of the rocks there are pools where tiny minnows can be seen.

The water is the subject’s sexuality. What interests us here is the clarity of the water (representing attitude) and its movement (representing libido). The movement of the water suggests a normal, average if somewhat playful sex drive. Clear water tells us that the subject has no issues regarding sex. The presence of life in or around the water indicates a strong desire for children.

When you came to the water, you crossed it.

The subject is open to new sexual experiences.

This is how you described the cup:

The small gold cup is unadorned but highly polished. It is warm to the touch.

The vessel, or specifically the practicality of the vessel, is how the subject approaches marriage or bonding. A container that is both decorative and practical indicates that the subject considers both romantic and pragmatic aspects of marriage.

You took the cup and filled it.

The subject is interested in marriage, and sex will be a significant part of that relationship.

This is how you described the key:

The key is very small. It is obviously made for hands much smaller than human ones. It probably unlocks a chest containing cookies made by the Keebler Elves.

The key is the ideal career for the subject. What interests us here is how the key appears (representing how others view the career) and what it may open (representing the subject’s goals for the career). Magical or fantastic keys suggest that the subject has unreasonably high expectations of what will result from a career. An ordinary-looking key suggests that the subject desires a nondescript career. (The size of the key in this case is irrelevant to analysis.)

You confronted the bear.

In a crisis, the subject prefers the direct, no-nonsense approach.

When you came to the wall, you jumped over it.

The wall represents death: by jumping over it, the subject not only acknowledges death but has come to accept its finality.