Analysis for Anonymous, 3 January 2003

This is how you described the room:

Warm inside, but I can feel the cold coming in through the open windows. There is a night table, a white dresser with multi-colored handles, some music posters on the walls and door, a black cat is asleep on the pink bed. There is a guitar case near the heater, and an eyeball on the ceiling.

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 comfortable room suggests a childhood that was pleasant. Note that the cold (the unpleasant outside world) intruded on the subject’s youth. The depth of description tells us that the subject has strong memories of childhood. The eyeball is curious. Did the subject feel overly monitored?

You wanted to leave the room.

The subject wanted to become an adult.

This is how you described the forest:

Lush, green. Very serene and calming. There's moss growing all over the place, on every rock and tree. Sun is shining through the spaces between the large trees. It is pleasant, yet mysterious and dark.

The forest is growing up, and the trees are those adults with whom the subject interacted at that time. Average-sized trees imply the normal influence adults have on a child: neither insignificant nor impressive. Average lighting tells us that the subject received enough attention from the adults to be guided but not oppressed.

This is how you described the path:

Long and winding, vines and branches sticking out, trying to block my way. The path is quite narrow, as if it hadn't been used in many years; abandoned, or just forgotten. If you look for it, you can find it, but if you're just passing by, you won't see it.

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. A narrow path suggests that the subject had limited options for emotional growth at this time. The lack of evidence of fellow travelers suggests strong feelings of isolation at that time. That plants are the major source of obstructions tells us that the subject’s problems arose mostly from interactions with adults.

This is how you described the water:

A shallow stream, crystal blue, cutting between the rocks. The water is cool and refreshing.

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.

When you came to the water, you went around it.

The subject is not interested in new sexual experiences.

This is how you described the cup:

Army green flask. Old and worn. Partially buried under the earth.

The vessel, or specifically the practicality of the vessel, is how the subject approaches marriage or bonding. A practical container indicates that the subject is pragmatic when it comes to questions 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:

Visibly worn, yet still shiny. Bronze metal. Hope it unlocks some sort of treasure.

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). Keys that allow access to treasure or other valuable things indicate that the subject is fixated on gaining wealth through a career. An ordinary-looking key suggests that the subject desires a nondescript career.

You avoided the bear.

In a crisis, the subject prefers the indirect, non-confrontational 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.