Beyond the Oedipus complex for women: Rethinking identification and desire

Abstract

In this paper I attempt a critical evaluation of psychoanalytic theories of women’s psychosexual development to determine whether there is coherence between theories over time and evaluate new insights from psychoanalysis and related disciplines. These will be explored in relation to the socio-cultural environment, particularly the influence of the feminist movement, on ways that women can be thought about and can think about themselves. I take the seminal framework of Freud’s Oedipus complex as a starting point, with reference to the separation of identification and desire at the Oedipal stage, and retain a particular focus on identification as an area both overlooked and with a potential for rethinking existing ideas. The symbolic meaning of the penis/phallus and the relationship with a father/other is considered from a variety of perspectives.The question of female desire is also explored in relation to heterosexual and homosexual orientations. I contest that for a more comprehensive understanding of female psychic development it may be helpful to take a less binary approach and to include a consideration of the gendered implications of what is available to be taken in from existing socio-cultural structures via interpersonal relationships. The concept of identification is proposed as a vehicle for examining these links between inner and outer worlds.