ABSTRACT
The expansion of characterology in the direction of the oral character, for example, was not made until a previously sketched oral phase of libido development had been submitted to elaborate clinical investigation. Character traits of omnipotence are usually associated with their anal manifestations but, as we shall have occasion to see, there is a close connection between oral and anal characteristics, the former constituting the groundwork to be modified later by anal influences. The intimate relationship between character reactions and the technique of sexual gratification is illustrated by an attitude in which the oral qualities of omnipotence, impatience, envy and apprehension are all expressed. It is very common to find amongst patients with a strong oral disposition a desire for rapid mastery of any object or objective, with which is combined the wish to get the process over as quickly as possible.
