ABSTRACT
Bugs and crocodiles are not the prettiest of creatures. This evocative story speaks to every child's anxiety about whether what the mother sees when she looks at her child is felt to be beautiful and lovable in spite of all his bug and crocodile feelings, which, of course, we all have. We often speak of ugly feelings as if feelings can be seen and judged to be appealing, pleasing to the mind's eye, or else repellent. One of the functions of the good-enough mother is to help the child bear such ugly bug or crocodile feelings in himself because they can be seen and accepted by her. Beauty, in this sense, is indeed in the eye of the beholder.
