Analysis for Anonymous, 1 March 2004

This is how you described the room:

The room is spacious without being too large. There are big windows with sunlight streaming through them onto pale blue tinted walls. The room is warm and filled with comfortable furniture. Covering the walls are vintage posters of all kinds and photos of friends. Everywhere there are books and little mementos that have no meaning to anyone but the person who owns them.

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. The significant detail in the description of the room tells us that the subject has rich, lasting memories of childhood.

You wanted to stay in the room.

The subject did not want to grow up.

This is how you described the forest:

There are all kinds of trees - pines, oaks, beeches, dogwoods. They are spaced out a little away from each other but still very wild. Their leaves litter the ground. Dappled sunlight breaks through the treetops.

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:

The path is relatively easily navigated. There are some obstructions (fallen trees, boulders, etc.) but that's to be expected in a forest and they are easily climbed over or avoided. The path is wide enough for two or three people to walk next to each other or in a loose group. It is basically abandoned yet still well-marked.

Adolescence is represented by the path through the forest. The visibility of the path tells us that the subject had a good idea of what to expect from adolescence. A wide path indicates that the subject had numerous options for emotional growth at this time. The lack of evidence of fellow travelers suggests strong feelings of isolation at that time. A few, scattered obstructions indicate the occasional problem in adolescence, but nothing consistent nor insurmountable.

This is how you described the water:

This is a creek. It is moving quickly and merrily and is just a little too wide to simply step over and jumping over it would result in falling in. It is necessary to pick my way across the creek on projecting stones. The water itself is shallow and clear towards the banks and darker and deeper towards the middle. However, it is still possible to see the bottom at the middle of the creek.

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 crossed it.

The subject is open to new sexual experiences.

This is how you described the cup:

It is a leather canteen lying on its side. It is about six and a half inches long. The leather is tanned and warmly colored. It is very smooth. A Celtic knot design has been tooled into it.

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 left the cup behind.

The subject is not interested in marriage.

This is how you described the key:

The key is an iron key. It is scrolled towards the top and looks heavy. It has not begun to rust. I think it unlocks a garden gate.

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). Having the key open a house, car, or other commonplace use tells us that the subject has no extraordinary expectations about a career. Old-fashioned keys suggest that the subject desires a traditional career.

You avoided the bear.

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

When you came to the wall, you tried to go around it.

The wall represents death: by trying to walk around it, the subject shows an acknowledgment of death, but also a need for an alternative to its finality, such as an afterlife or reincarnation.