Class Notes 3/8/10

• Hamlet and his mother may have had a sexual relationship, this has been argued in both directions.
• Freud's Psychosexual Stage Theory:

Oral Stage: infant-age 2, they want to put everything in their mouth

Anal Stage: age2-4potty training, the idea of someone being "anal" comes from this theory

Phallic Stage: age 4-6 sexual feeling occur but are then sublimated

(From then on puberty occurs and then adulthood)

• Freud's ID Ego and Superego Theory:

You are born with your ID which simply tells you what you need

Ego develops later which is basically common sense and knowing right from wrong

Superego acts as you conscience and tells you right from wrong

• Madonna Complex

A problem that can develop in young boys and follow them into adulthood. They can only view women in two ways, either the virgin mary or (for lack of a better way to describe it simply) a whore. Therefore they have issues maintaining healthy relationships because they can't have sex with the virgin mary and they see no point in treating a whore with respect and have no desire to be with her.

• All of this can be related to Hamlet's relationship with his mother and why he cannot be with Ophelia and tells her to "go to a nunnery"

Emma