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When a child is awakened, or becomes aware of life between two-and-a-half and five years of age, then the personality will be
considerably different to the earlier awaking Oral. Somehow, the child has not become fully mentally active previously. That is not to say he
remained ‘zombie’ like or unaware of himself or his surroundings, but rather that life did not have the same intensity as it has to the Oral
in his first years. It is as if the Anal, having been less interested in life in his earlier years, is suddenly prompted to take that
interest and become aware of life, just when he reaches a stage where things have become expected of him.
Yesterday nothing was asked of him, today everything is. He ‘sees’ his vulnerability. Everyone is bigger than he is; they have more authority and possess many things and are more talented. The people around him are not told what to do, as he is, and his life is conducted according to the dictates of others. He is dressed, washed, put to bed, taken out, provided for, and all important decisions are made on his behalf.
People must be talking about him, but what are they saying? In all this he perceives himself to have little or no say himself. He feels he has awakened to a dominating, demanding and slightly hostile world. A world to which he must respond, develop and cater for. In addition to this, he has to make the transition from nappies to potty and then on to the toilet.
As the Oral becomes aware of his mouth, so does the Anal become aware of the Anal orifice, hence the name given to this character type. The Anal’s subconscious reacts to his experiences by developing a self protective response to life, to ensure he is never again to find himself weak, dominated or threatened. It is from this self-subconscious programming that he becomes the Anal character.
THE ANAL
Given his perception of life, as he awakens to it, and like the Oral has his, he too will develop reactions and character traits. Unlike the Oral to him everybody else is wrong. He’ll become ambitious for wealth authority and prestige. He will have a distinct tendency to be secretive, suspicious, plotting, planning, and be unforgiving.
Given intelligence he may aspire to become a member of parliament, become some leading industrial figure, or go on to develop his own business. Seeking prestige and authority, Anals can be encountered holding office in charities, clubs and other organizations.
As with the Oral the Anal too can suffer depression and high emotion, although his emotion is more likely to take the form of anger, the need for revenge or spite. Where the intelligence of the Anal is low, but perhaps his cunning tendency is higher, he may well become the criminal. Probably eighty percent or more of convicted criminals in prison today are the Anal’s of this group.
THE ANAL’S CHARACTERISTICS
The Anal can be described as having a harder outlook on life, with less if any regard for the feelings of others. They are power and promotion conscious, seeking authority and prestige. Possessive, both of objects and people, they are mostly highly opinionated with little tolerance for others. They find it difficult or impossible to apologize, admit to being wrong, show appreciation or praise from the heart, for in so doing they see themselves as being what they cannot accept – weak, vulnerable, needing and beholding.
Instead they can take an inner pleasure in seeing others weakened, being hurt or losing, and seeking to make matters worse by perceiving their own position to be uplifted by the adversity suffered by others. They often have sadistic streaks, seeing in this the opportunity to realise the subconscious need to take revenge, and promote their desire for superiority.
Anal’s often have fixed rules, regulations and routines; they can be Obsessional, jealous and suspicious and subject to plotting, planning and scheming. To them everyone else is wrong, only they are right. Strength is right, weakness is desirable and to be taken advantage of. In this way Oral’s are perceived as the easy target. Anals can be extremely vain, give to holier than thou impression. In personal hygiene, turnout, homes and work places they can vary from perfection to the total opposite. Either extreme normally being preferred to some compromise.
They are given to vulgar language and terms. They are prone to bad temper, and woe betide those who upset them, for they have enduring memories and can carry a grudge to their grave. Anals are materialistic, and often mean with a tendency to hoard. They are watchful and protective against others who might seek to take advantage. Anals feel they have a great depth of insight and understanding, but in reality they have little. When it suits them they can exhibit enormous charm and delightful manners.
It is often this switch ability that often so deceives others, and especially where contact is occasional, the deception can remain undetected for even years. On many occasions I have encountered this deception. The Oral employee, with an Anal senior, for example. In this the manager can make life hell for his junior, if he decides too, whilst appearing to his superior as the most reasonable, understanding and charming member of staff. Given this double act, should any conflict between the two come to the attention of the senior manager, it will then be very ‘clear’ to him as to who is in the wrong. This double act must cost companies millions of pounds in disruption, demoralization and staff turn over, all without senior management realising what’s going on.
Underneath, however, Anal’s remain rather shallow in character while displaying confidence and determination. Anal’s are normally equipped with a quick tongue and hurtful expression, being never lost for an answer. Seeking to dominate and control. Appearing strong, confident and hard, they are nevertheless vulnerable to capitulating to events that the Oral survives. Should they do so, they may become their own opposite, seeming weak and submissive. They may mellow with age but often by not much. The Anal has much in common with the chief weasel in The Wind in the Willows.
FURTHER ANAL TRAITS
As with the other two personality types, Anal’s are more vulnerable to certain neurotic symptoms – a typical example is hypochondria. The Anal is totally convinced of the reality of his condition, which of course has to be more severe than anyone else experiences. He will take an almost pride-like attitude to his condition, he will dwell on it, talk about it, and make it an essential feature of his life, even though in reality there may be little or nothing wrong with him.
His condition is the externalisation of a subconscious conflict, and as such he requires its continuation in its present or subsequent form. No medical test will convince him that he is well. He will nurture and pander to his condition, expecting others to do so too.
Another common neurotic condition of the Anal is Obsessional thoughts or behaviour. In these conditions he has a powerful and unstoppable urge to think some thought, or to take some action from which he cannot prevent himself repeating. However, each repetitive thought or action gives no lasting satisfaction. The sufferer may be completely aware of the futility of his actions, but still cannot stop them.
A sufferer of Obsessional thoughts has probably lived with his problem for many years. An Obsessional thought would mostly be recognised by the victim as an unwanted mental intrusion, and because of this realization it may change from one concept to another over time.
Should he overcome his obsession however, he will need some equally unacceptable alternative symptom of his neurosis to come into being.
Where the obsession is with some task, such has his work or interest, the Obsessional is less likely to accept that he is in fact obsessed. In this situation the intensity of his attention and effort are such that he can barely get enough of them. The activity has to be carried out to exacting standards, worked at and participated in with enormous effort and dedication. While the activity itself may have commenced in a harmless enough way, it comes to be the outlet for his neurosis and is taken over by it. Since the neurosis will persist until released, this symptom of it must also continue.
As a further example of the Anal’s personality, though not necessarily the reaction to a repression but more to his character, there is a magical belief. To solve some problem, or to avoid one, some belief is held as the solution. One day I shall win the lottery and be rich’ I shall be cured by a magical treatment that will soon become available’ or ‘don’t do such-and-such because it will bring bad luck’ or, he might say to the therapist: ‘knock me out completely, and make me pull myself together’.
In magical belief there is a difference between it and the superstitions that have been installed in most of us. To the Anal, superstitions are taken to a higher order, and almost as if they are proven scientific facts.
© Dennis McCarthy 2006
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Case Studies 
