The Oedipus Complex
The noted Viennese physician Sigmund Freud was one of the firsts to suggest workable cures for mental disorders. Although Freud's theories were at first disputed, his work became the foundation for treating psychiatric disorders through psychoanalysis. A psychological complex, according to Freudian theory, is a group of repressed feelings and desires. Based upon psychological research and various studies, Freud conceived the Oedipus complex. In Freudian psychoanalytic theory, the Oedipus complex is a desire for sexual involvement with the parent of the opposite sex. This attraction to the parent of the opposite sex and rivalry with the same parent of the same sex appears to be apparent throughout William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. Hamlet is arguably one of the most criticized and well-known plays in British literature. The play is the story of Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, whose father, King Hamlet, is killed. Barely after one month, Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, marries her deceased husband's brother, Claudius. Hamlet is appalled by his mother's lack of sympathy towards the death of his father. Then comes the appearance of King Hamlet's ghost. The ghost then tells Hamlet that its death was due to murder and goes on to name Clau
On only one occasion does Hamlet for one moment appear to escape from the implication with which his love has taken on. Within the Oedipus conflict there are two main sad states the mind passes through when it is subjected to too much repression. According to Freud, the child often exceeds such cynicism in the adult. Because of this cynicism, the child finds itself anticipating disappointment but not always receiving it. Freud says that these repressed feelings are very often manifested within the unconscious during the early developmental state of childhood, usually between the ages of five and seven years. The ideas seem to find expression when Hamlet says, "O my prophetic soul! My uncle?"(I. Jones suggests that as much as Hamlet hates Claudius, he can never really denounce him with the ardent indignation that boils within him. In accordance with Freudian theory, these reparations are usually viewed in some way, to be negative. This appears to occur for the sake of Hamlets consciousness. This is in part due to the fact that hamlets mother has been his ideal to love. Whenever Shakespeare intended to be the explanation, the fact that remains a mystery will keep literary critics busy writing for another 500 years. Freud discovered that repressed fantasies might exert a powerful and continual influence on one as an adult. Hamlet is therefore in a tug of war and moreover into dilemma. As suggested by Jones, this possession mirrors hamlets own desire, thus Hamlet cannot kill Claudius without killing himself.
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