The answer lies in the type of sexual gratification which his stealing supplied. We have mentioned the anal sensations, the feeling as though there was something in the rectum of which he had to rid himself, and which for years led him to run to the toilet soon after the commission of a theft. To one versed in the psychology and manifestations of the sex instinct this can only mean one thing, namely, that we are dealing here with a homosexual whose erotic receptors were concentrated in the anal region, with an anal-erotic.
The possibility of a full, happy, satisfied existence for this individual lies in the gratification of this biologic, instinctive, and perverse sex-craving. It is the intense revulsion, the protest of his whole personality against such mode of sex-expression which brought about the habitual stealing in this individual. So soon as he discovered that the emotional accompaniment of the act of stealing served to gratify this biologic sex-craving he clung to it with the tenacity which characterized his life of recidivism. In other words, the process of sublimation of which we spoke took an asocial turn in this individual, with the resultant pathological stealing.
It would lead us far beyond the scope of this chapter to discuss the problem of the genesis of homo-sexuality, and we shall not attempt it.
The impression which I desire to make is that in this case of pathological stealing we are dealing with a form of asocial behavior which has its roots in a mighty instinctive, biologic craving, which demands gratification at any cost.
Furthermore, because of the nature of this etiologic factor the chances for reformation are very poor, which prognosis has already been justified by the subsequent career of this patient. He is at present again under arrest for grand larceny and housebreaking.
It would be premature to draw any general conclusions from this study, or to promulgate any general principles of treatment. All that the chapter is intended for is to stimulate further interest in criminologists for research along these lines.
REFERENCES
[1] Goring. C.: “The English Convict.” His Majesty’s Stationery Office, London, 1913. pp. 440.
[2] Healy, W.: “The Individual Delinquent.” Little, Brown, & Company, Boston, 1915.
[3] White, W.: “The English Convict.” A review in Journal of Am. Ins. Crim. Law and Criminology, vol. v.