O Oedipus myth or story or Oedipus-King is one of the most striking in Western culture. We will see a summary of the Oedipus story. Freud formulated the Oedipus Complex from this Greek tragedy by Sophocles, a concept that proved to be foundational in psychoanalytic theory.

Table of Contents

• The formation of the human personality
• A brief summary of the life of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud
• The Oedipus story as a basis for understanding a psychic process
• Summary of the Story of Oedipus or Oedipus the King
  • 1. the disobedience of Laius
  • Unraveling the Enigma of the Sphinx
  • 3) Ending of the Oedipus story
• The Oedipus Complex: Freud's understanding
  • The consequences of intercurrences in child development
  • Conclusion

The formation of the human personality

Knowing how we are and why we act as we do is one of the challenges not only for academia, but also for our human development at all stages of life. To look at our attitudes and know why we act in a certain way helps us to foresee and correct the attitudes that we consider inappropriate.

There are several theories about human behavior. Hippocrates is part of the hundreds of personalities who have tried to explain our attitudes. But before explaining the way we act, it is important to know the beginnings that lead us to act .

This article does not aim to approach human behavior in all its aspects, but to focus on sexual behavior under the influence of facts that occurred during the formation of the human personality.

A brief summary of the life of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud

One of today's most respected and studied personalities is the Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud. Sigismund Schlomo Freud was born in Freiberg, Moravia, then part of the Austrian Empire, on May 6, 1856.

Son of Jacob Freud, a small businessman, and Amalie Nathanson, of Jewish origin, he was the firstborn of seven siblings. At the age of four, his family moved to Vienna, where Jews had better social acceptance and economic prospects.

At the age of 17, he entered the University of Vienna as a medical student. During his college years, he was fascinated by the research carried out in the physiological laboratory, directed by Dr. E. W. Von Brucke. From 1876 to 1882, he worked with this specialist and later at the Institute of Anatomy, under the guidance of H. Maynert.

The Oedipus story as a basis for understanding a psychic process

Freud graduated in 1881 and decided to become a clinician specializing in neurology. Freud was ahead of his time, dedicated to the study of human behavior.

He studied for a decade on his own and his ideas were not accepted, really, was harassed by the academics of his time Today we understand a lot of your studies.

Like a human being, he could not get everything right, but he certainly got more right than wrong in his theories. Much of what he discovered and theorized has been studied for years and we still have much to understand.

Freud found in Greek mythology a great substratum for understanding the psychic processes of his patients Freud analyzed with great interest artists and their works, myths and religion, and gave special emphasis to dreams.

Summary of the Story of Oedipus or Oedipus the King

The year 1899 was marked by the publication of his great work "The Interpretation of Dreams".

The interpretation of dreams is Sigmund Freud's greatest work. It inaugurated the era of Psychoanalysis and changed forever the way human beings perceive themselves.

A work as brilliant today as it was when it was first published, "The Interpretation of Dreams" is considered one of the founding works of contemporary thought and one that has had the greatest influence on 20th century thought.

Mythology was used by him to explain many of the human behaviors. Myth plays an important role in Freudian thought. One of the best known tales is the Oedipus story .

1. the disobedience of Laius

Laius, king of the city of Thebes and married to Jocasta, was warned by the oracle that he could not bear children, and if this commandment were disobeyed, he would be killed by his own son, who would marry his mother.

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The king of Thebes did not believe it and had a son with Jocasta. Later, he regretted what he had done and abandoned the child on a mountain with her ankles pierced so that she would die .

The wound that remained on the boy's foot is what gave rise to the name Oedipus and, consequently, to the story of Oedipus, which means swollen feet. The boy did not die and was found by some shepherds, who took him to Polybus, the king of Corinth. He raised him as a legitimate son.

As an adult, Oedipus also went to the Oracle at Delphi to learn his fate.

Unraveling the Enigma of the Sphinx

The oracle said his destiny was to kill his father and marry his mother Astonished, he left Corinth and headed toward Thebes. Halfway there, he met up with Laius, who asked him to make way for him to pass.

Oedipus did not heed the king's request and fought with the king until he killed him .

Unaware that he had killed his own father, Oedipus continued his journey to Thebes.

On the way, met the Sphinx a monster, half lion, half woman, who tormented the people of Thebes, for he threw riddles and devoured those who could not decipher them.

The riddle proposed by the sphinx was the following: Which animal has four feet in the morning, two at noon, and three in the afternoon?

He said it was man The Sphinx was furious that it had been deciphered, and killed itself.

3) Ending of the Oedipus story

The people of Thebes welcomed Oedipus as their new king, and gave him Jocasta as his wife. After this, a violent plague struck the city and Oedipus went to consult the oracle. He answered that the plague would not end until the murderer of Laius was punished.

In the course of the investigations, the truth was clarified and Oedipus caused his own blindness, while Jocasta hanged herself .

The Oedipus Complex: Freud's understanding

Freud made use of this Oedipus story to idealize the Oedipus Complex, the phase that occurs from the ages of 3 and 4 until the ages of 6 and 7.

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The Oedipus Complex can be considered one of the fundamental concepts of Freudian theory. This phase is common and universal in child development, marked by the "dispute" between the child and the parent of the same sex, for the love of the parent of the opposite sex. As an example, the boy disputes with his father for the love of his mother.

The consequences of intercurrences in child development

All phases are important, and if they are not passed in a healthy way, they will bring lifelong consequences. In the case of the Oedipus story, the consequences come from fear of castration in boys and the absence of the penis in girls .

The healthy thing is for girls to accept the absence of a penis and for boys to lessen their fear of castration.

Conclusion

Even in adulthood it is possible to see sequels from childhood and we can take as a guide the Oedipus story .

Boys can, in adult life, live in subjugation to the father figure, with fear of castration. Many neuroses can have their origin justified by an unsuccessful passage through this phase.

This Summary of the Story of Oedipus Rex and its relation to Psychoanalysis was created by Valdecir Santana, exclusively for this blog. Training Course in Clinical Psychoanalysis .