ABSTRACT
Rebellion against authorities may lead to outspoken refusal of the precautions they have imposed. The main factors which affect propitiatory or orgiastic reactions in a situation of anticipated danger would seem to be: the certainty or uncertainty of the outcome, beliefs about one’s ability to influence it, and compliance or rebellion towards punishing powers. According to the unconscious logic, the imminent threat to body intactness and to life itself was construed as punishment for sexual activity. Renunciation of sex was thus undertaken as a means of propitiating the threatening powers and of warding off the feared punishment. The conception of the powers that govern one’s fate is undoubtedly a different one than in the case of attempted propitiation. For those who find sanction for increased gratification in a time of danger, it would seem that the justice of the powers has become subject to doubt.
