Oedipus

Oedipus Everyone has a family or at least knows a family, so everyone can relate to a story about family. “Regret, by Kate Chopin, and “My Oedipus Complex,” by Frank O’Connor, are two very different stories about the same thing – family. “Regret,” a tale about an older woman, who, never having married or had children, gets her first experience with them by taking care of her neighbor’s children for a short while, and “My Oedipus Complex,” a short story about a young boy who decides he is better suited to the affections of his mother than is his father, are two very different approaches to show the need for a complete family. The similarities between the two stories are easily appreciated. First, as I stated earlier, both of the stories are about families, and how the lack of, what most people consider, a “normal” and “complete” family causes problems. In “Regret,” Mamzelle Aurélie completely lacks a family; she has never married, has never had children, and has only had one marriage proposal, which was promptly rejected. Mamzelle Aurélie is not even properly a woman without a family; she much more resembles a man with her determination, man’s hat, army overcoat, oedipus, family, children, mamzelle, complex, complete, aurélie, regret, father, about, very, mother, larry, having, two, story, son, never, care, alone, stories, one, neighbor’s, man, incomplete, both, between, becomes, woman, war, soon, same, people, message, makes, least