I enjoy discussing literature but I must admit that I found this discussion more intriguing then past seminars. I knew that the book is filled with various themes and what not, but it was fascinating to discuss what my other peers had picked up on. I don’t ever think I would’ve thought of the possible Oedipus complex connection between Jack and his mom... Gross. But after it was mentioned it definitely made sense. I’m curious to know what other “surprises” Robert Penn Warren alluded to. Although the topic was rather shocking, it was absolutely fascinating. Jack seems to dislike his mother and disrespect her due to her various husbands and other life decisions. He does not take her seriously in the least. Yet, in the chapter where he visits his mom, it’s as if her touch is hypnotic. He was very hesitant towards her affection but the second her hand touched his forehead he was immediately relaxed and entranced. It’s as if his mother has this seductive power over him; even if he doesn’t respect her, her charm is undeniable. Also, does he have this complex due to his lack of father figure? Maybe because his mom was the only constant thing in his life he felt some bizarre attraction to her. As we had discussed earlier, her husbands were compared to the constantly changing furniture so I guess having a constant woman in his life made him subconsciously respect her whether he thought her worthy of it or not. Also, I thought it was weird that Robert Penn Warren described his mother as beautiful and Anne as not very beautiful at all. Perhaps his hope was to emphasize inner beauty? Afterall, Anne does have a good personality especially compared to his mom but that’s really only emphasized in her youth. Her affair with Willie seems like something that his mom would do. Both women have issues with men. So maybe Anne is more similar to Jack’s mother then I thought. And if so, then the Oedipus complex is definitely apparent in Jack because he is essentially going after Anne because she is like his mom. And maybe he actually would prefer his mom to Anne and that’s why RPW doesn’t make Anne beautiful. This novel is very strange. On a side note- I’m glad that we were required to read about themes in the text book. I’ve always been a bit facetious towards all of the possible themes and connotations in literature- I mean really, how do we actually know if the author used a certain word, phrase, or connection on purpose? But the article cleared some of that up for me. I’ve learned that a truly gifted writer is able to subconsciously make those strings attach to make a more profound piece. So even if there was no initial objective to using one phrase instead of another, in the end, it will serve a purpose. So maybe RPW alluded to this Oedipus complex unintentionally and it grew into something that actually makes sense. Just a thought.
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