tionally held in psychology. Depending on whether the viewpoint
is Freudian or Jungian, qualities that are characteristic of virgin
goddesses have been defined as either symptoms or pathology or
as expressions of a less than fully conscious masculine element in a
woman’s psyche. These theories have inhibited behavior and dam-
aged the self-esteem of women who fit virgin goddess patterns.
Many women familiar with Freudian theory have thought of them-
selves as unnatural, for example, because they wanted a career more
than they wanted a baby. And many women familiar with Jungian
theory have hesitated to voice their ideas, knowing that Jung felt
women’s capacity to think objectively was inferior and opinionated.
Sigmund Freud’s theory of women’s psychology was penis-
centered. He described women in terms of what they lacked anatom-
ically, rather than in terms of what was present in their bodies or
their psyches. In Freud’s view,^4 not having penises made women
maimed and inferior. As a consequence, he felt, normal women
suffered from penis envy, were masochistic and narcissistic, and
had poor superego development (that is, an inferior conscience).
Freudian psychoanalytic theory interpreted women’s behavior as
follows:
- A woman who is competent and self-assured, who accomplishes
something in the world, and who appears to be enjoying the
opportunity to actualize her intelligence and capabilities is exhib-
iting a “masculinity complex.” According to Freud, she is acting
as if she believes that she hasn’t been castrated, when of course
she has. No woman really wants to excel—the need to excel is a
symptom of a masculinity complex, a denial of “reality.” - A woman who wants a baby really wants a penis and sublimates
this wish, substituting a wish for the baby in place of her desire
for a penis. - A woman who is sexually attracted to men is so because she
discovered her mother doesn’t have a penis. (In Freudian theory,
a woman’s heterosexuality goes back to that traumatic moment
when as a little girl, she discovered that she didn’t have a penis,
and then found out that her mother didn’t have one either, and
so turned her
Goddesses in Everywoman