George Perkins was an advocate for the abused child in the best clinical sense of facilitating differential diagnoses, recognizing basic issues, and encouraging effective confrontations not only through interpretation but also through environmental influence. He was most protective of children's right to protect themselves from abuse and grow in their own way. He was particularly aware of the vicissitudes of the instincts, the defenses, and the ego defects and strengths in each person and each family situation. He was committed to traditional psychoanalytic theory and practice, although he showed an optimism and activism that went beyond the usual psychoanalytic approach, foreshadowing current modifications of psychoanalytic technique. He demonstrated a therapeutic realism coupled with a sensitive noninterference in patients' goals.