e abandoned her in the woods. Luckily she found a home and lived with the dwarves. “Despite her stepmother’s jealousy, Snow White not only survives but finds great happiness.” (Bettelheim 199). The servant sent to kill Oedipus could not commit the terrible dead and opted to leave him at a home in the forest. In spite of the king’s attempts Oedipus gains the crown. Both tales are of unwanted children who prevail in the end.Sigmund Freud’s theory of sexual development contains five stages. This theory has faced opposition from many critics. “Freud went down deeper, stayed down longer, and came up dirtier than anyone else.” (Miller 242). The third stage or the Phallic stage occurs from the age of two until the age of five or six. During this stage children suffer from what is known as the Oedipus complex. The Oedipal conflict for a girl centers on her father. She wants to be with her father and give him children. She views her mother as an overpowering or evil force that prevents her from being with her father. In the Oedipal conflict, a young boy resents his father for standing in his way of the mother’s full attention. The boy wants the mother to see him as the hero. He wished to get the father out of the way. However, he needs his father to protect him. He also fears the father will castrate him. This fear forces the child to repress his desire and his hostility. When the repression is complete the complex disappears. The theory of the Oedipus complex can be seen in many fairy tales. Tales such as “Cinderella” and “Rapunzel” contain oedipal overtones. Cinderella is the tale of a young girl held captive by her dictatorial stepmother. Her stepmother tries to prevent her from attending the royal ball and meeting Prince Charming. The prince can be compared to Cinderella’s father. The queen is standing in the way of Cinderella’s desires for...
