The Oedipus Complex ( Oedipus ) - 1666 Words

It has been said by Karl Taro Greenfield that: â€Å"The harsh truth of every relationship, even between those who love each other, like fathers and sons and daughters, or husbands and wives, is that the love is always unequal†. When a child is little, everything their parents do is seen as perfect, a parent can do no wrong. As a child grows older, they start to see that their parents are in fact flawed and this can cause an inward conflict for the child. Psychology has done a lot of research about family relationships, especially the relationship between a mother and her son. Sigmund Freud himself came up with the Oedipus complex, which is when a boy has an attachment to the mother, which in turns results in aggressive and envious feelings toward the father and these feelings are largely repressed. The Oedipus complex comes from Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus but has largely been associated with Hamlet as well, since he and his mother Gertrude, have an extremely complicat ed relationship (Oedipus Complex). Hamlet is the predecessor of modern psychological thought because Freud came after Shakespeare. In the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, the relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude is complicated, and it is hard to know the truth because of Hamlet’s emotional state along with his Oedipus complex, Gertrude’s possible involvement with her husband’s murder, and her relationship with Claudius. Although their relationship is still complicated, towards the end of the play it startsShow MoreRelatedThe Oedipus Complex And The Electra Complex1032 Words   |  5 Pagesof his day regarding mental health, childhood development, and human sexuality. Freud explored the inner life of children developing into adulthood by reviving mythological stories of incest, brutality, and obsessive self-love: The Oedipus Complex and the Electra Complex, both variations on the theme of destructive love, murdering the same-sex parent and marrying the o pposite parent, and narcissism, destructive love of self, vividly allegorized the perils of the journey to adulthood. Freud approachedRead More Hamlets Oedipus Complex Essays1190 Words   |  5 PagesVarious works of literature contain characters who embody the elements of the classic Oedipus Complex, that of a son with an undue and unhealthy attachment to his mother. D.H Lawrenceamp;#8217;s Sons and Lovers, along with other early modernist works, shows how a sonamp;#8217;s bond to his mother can lead to that characteramp;#8217;s major downfall. Even earlier than works of the late 19th Century does the Oedipus Complex appear, in this case, William Shakespeareamp;#8217;s Hamlet. Shakespeareamp;#8217;sRead MoreEssay on Hamlet and the Oedipus Complex1319 Words   |  6 Pages When examining Hamlet through the lens of the Oedipus complex, it is critical to first define and thoroughly explain the Oedipus complex, then to apply it to Hamlets relationships, before a final conclusion is reached. The Complexities of the Complex Before one can understand the Oedipus complex, one must understand Sigmund Freuds theory on infantile sexuality. The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy points out that the roots of Freuds theory can be foundRead More The Oedipus Complex in Literature Essays3480 Words   |  14 Pages According to Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the Oedipus Complex is a child’s positive libidinal feelings toward the parent of the opposite sex and hostile or jealous feelings toward the parent of the same sex that develop usually between the ages of three and six and that may be a source of adult personality disorder when unresolved (Merriam-Webster). In Sons and Lovers, Paul Morel demonstrates the classic symptoms of the Oedipus complex. Paul and his father’s relationship is destroyed earlyRead More My Oedipus Complex Essay1066 Words   |  5 Pages The story â€Å"My Oedipus Complex† by Frank O’Connor deals exclusively with a little boy named Larry and his feelings towards his father. When his father returns home from World War II, Larry is resentful and jealous of losing his mother’s undivided attention, and finds himself in a constant struggle to w in back her affections. I really enjoyed â€Å"My Oedipus Complex,† because it reminded me a great deal of my elementary school days. My brother Brian was born when I was five, and from that day on thereRead More Sigmund Freuds Oedipus Complex Essay1355 Words   |  6 PagesOedipus Complex It is the fate of all of us, perhaps, to direct our first sexual impulse towards our mother and our first hatred and our first murderous wish against our father. - Sigmund Freud(Clark, 122) The Oedipus conflict or complex is a concept developed by Sigmund Freud to explain the origin of certain psychological disorders in childhood. It is defined as a childs unconscious desire for the exclusive love of the parent of the opposite sex. This desire includes jealousy toward the parentRead MoreThe Difference Between Girls and Boys in the Oedipus Complex by Sigmund Freud530 Words   |  3 Pagesconsequences and impact the Oedipus complex and Penis envy. Freud studies the consequences and how boy and girls develop and move forward from this phase. It is to say that Freud has a strong point of view about this, and somehow this theory can come as masochism and has been criticizes by many feminist; but I cannot ignore the complexity and how his ideas are proper. But can we used this theories to understand the modernity if the society we live in. The Oedipus complex came to my knowledge in myRead More The Half Brothers By Elizabeth Gaskell and My Oedipus Complex By Frank OConnor2386 Words   |  10 PagesThe Half Brothers By Elizabeth Gaskell and My Oedipus Complex By Frank OConnor These two stories are very different upon first glance. For example one is about a pair of half brothers set in Victorian times and the other is about a small child named Larry who thinks hes a lot wiser then he is. However, if you look deeper you can start to find similarities between the two. They have similar themes, and links can be made between them. A big difference between them is the titles. ForRead MoreLacan once said, in an unpublished seminar, â€Å"the Oedipus Complex is a dream of Freud† (Felman,1600 Words   |  7 Pages Lacan once said, in an unpublished seminar, â€Å"the Oedipus Complex is a dream of Freud† (Felman, 1034). It is a questionable theory and a so-called ‘dream’ because Sigmund Freud developed the Oedipus complex in such a way that allowed him to stand as an example of his own theory. It begins with what Freud would call ‘introspection’; the analysis of one’s self. He developed terms to use in his psychoanalysis; terms that divide the self and attempt to explain aspects of the human personality. AddingRead More The Oedipus Complex in Oedipus Rex Essay732 Words   |  3 PagesThe Oedipus Complex in Oedipus Rex Thousands of years after Sophocles wrote the story of Oedipus Rex; psychologists named a complex after the behavioral characteristics of Oedipus. For many years psychologists have called a son having a sexual attraction toward his mother the Oedipus Complex. It is common belief that Oedipus Rex did not actually suffer from the Oedipus Complex. The basic support for this theory can be found through Oedipus inherent fear of the prophecy placed upon him,