The Breaking Point - Page 29/275

On Wednesday morning David was in an office in the city. He sat

forward on the edge of his chair, and from time to time he took out

his handkerchief and wiped his face or polished his glasses, quite

unconscious of either action. He was in his best suit, with the tie Lucy

had given him for Christmas.

Across from him, barricaded behind a great mahogany desk, sat a small

man with keen eyes and a neat brown beard. On the desk were a spotless

blotter, an inkstand of silver and a pen. Nothing else. The terrible

order of the place had at first rather oppressed David.

The small man was answering a question.

"Rather on the contrary, I should say. The stronger the character the

greater the smash."

David pondered this.

"I've read all you've written on the subject," he said finally.

"Especially since the war."

The psycho-analyst put his finger tips together, judicially. "Yes. The

war bore me out," he observed with a certain complacence. "It added a

great deal to our literature, too, although some of the positions are

not well taken. Van Alston, for instance--"

"You have said, I think, that every man has a breaking point."

"Absolutely. All of us. We can go just so far. Where the mind is strong

and very sound we can go further than when it is not. Some men, for

instance, lead lives that would break you or me. Was there--was there

such a history in this case?"

"Yes." Doctor David's voice was reluctant.

"The mind is a strange thing," went on the little man, musingly. "It

has its censors, that go off duty during sleep. Our sternest and often

unconscious repressions pass them then, and emerge in the form of

dreams. But of course you know all that. Dream symbolism. Does

the person in this case dream? That would be interesting, perhaps

important."

"I don't know," David said unhappily.

"The walling off, you say, followed a shock?"

"Shock and serious illness."

"Was there fear with the shock?"

David hesitated. "Yes," he said finally. "Very great fear, I believe."

Doctor Lauler glanced quickly at David and then looked away.

"I see," he nodded. "Of course the walling off of a part of the

past--you said a part--?"

"Practically all of it. I'll tell you about that later. What about the

walling off?"

"It is generally the result of what we call the protective mechanism of

fear. Back of most of these cases lies fear. Not cowardice, but perhaps

we might say the limit of endurance. Fear is a complex, of course.

Dislike, in a small way, has the same reaction. We are apt to forget

the names of persons we dislike. But if you have been reading on the

subject--"