Pacifiers

Abstract

In this investigation of the hidden meaning of pacifiers, we make use of two linguistic devices, metaphor and metonymy, to understand the significance of these objects. The term “pacifier” suggests something that tames babies, who are thus, at the unconscious level, seen as wild animals. The chapter also considers psychoanalytic approaches to sexuality and the relation between stages in sexual development and material culture—that is, objects that relate to children’s needs as they develop sexually.