ABSTRACT
The concept of the erotogenic zone stems from what Freud once called the “hysterogenic zone”, a zone of the body which, on being stimulated, unleashed a hysteric attack. In everyday life, the idea of the skin as a privileged erotogenic zone comes from the study of infantile sexuality and the expression of affect. In obsessional neurosis the importance of the erotogenic zones as surrogates for the genitals is not as evident as it is in hysteria. The skin is also intimately related to the expression of the emotions. Freud states that among other physical changes which are part of the expression of emotions, the ingurgitation of the skin is an example of the mind’s action on the body. The relationship between the skin and the unconscious and its functioning can be analysed by following the path that takes us through the study of The interpretation of dreams, Totem and Taboo and the works on group psychology and fetishism.
