Chapter 2 Freud: Psychoanalysis 45to a baby. He also believed that in the unconscious the concepts of penis and
baby—because both are referred to as a “little one”—mean the same thing. Also,
feces, because of its elongated shape and because it has been removed from the
body, is indistinguishable from baby, and all three concepts—penis, baby, and
feces—are represented by the same symbols in dreams.
During the oral and anal stages, no basic distinction exists between male and
female psychosexual growth. Children of either gender can develop an active or a
passive orientation. The active attitude often is characterized by what Freud
(1933/1964) considered the masculine qualities of dominance and sadism, whereas
the passive orientation is usually marked by the feminine qualities of voyeurism
and masochism. However, either orientation, or any combination of the two, can
develop in both girls and boys.
Phallic Phase
At approximately 3 or 4 years of age, children begin a third stage of infantile
development—the phallic phase, a time when the genital area becomes the leading
erogenous zone. This stage is marked for the first time by a dichotomy between
male and female development, a distinction that Freud (1925/1961) believed to be
due to the anatomical differences between the sexes. Freud (1924/1961, p. 178) took
Napoleon’s remark that “History is destiny” and changed it to “Anatomy is destiny.”
This dictum underlies Freud’s belief that physical differences between males and
females account for many important psychological differences.
Masturbation, which originated during the oral stage, now enters a second,
more crucial phase. During the phallic stage, masturbation is nearly universal, but
because parents generally suppress these activities, children usually repress their
conscious desire to masturbate by the time their phallic period comes to an end.
Just as children’s earlier experiences with weaning and toilet training helped shape
the foundation of their psychosexual development, so too does their experience
with the suppression of masturbation (Freud, 1933/1964). However, their experi-
ence with the Oedipus complex plays an even more crucial role in their person-
ality development.
Male Oedipus Complex Freud (1925/1961) believed that preceding the phallic
stage an infant boy forms an identification with his father; that is, he wants to be
his father. Later he develops a sexual desire for his mother; that is, he wants to
have his mother. These two wishes do not appear mutually contradictory to the
underdeveloped ego, so they are able to exist side by side for a time. When the boy
finally recognizes their inconsistency, he gives up his identification with his father
and retains the stronger feeling—the desire to have his mother. The boy now sees
his father as a rival for the mother’s love. He desires to do away with his father
and possess his mother in a sexual relationship. This condition of rivalry toward
the father and incestuous feelings toward the mother is known as the simple male
Oedipus complex. The term is taken from the Greek tragedy by Sophocles in which
Oedipus, King of Thebes, is destined by fate to kill his father and marry his mother.
Freud (1923/1961a) believed that the bisexual nature of the child (of either
gender) complicates this picture. Before a young boy enters the Oedipus stage,