Freud Theory Course 2021: Seminar 3

Seminar 3: Infantile Genital Organization & The Oedipus Complex

Freud, S (1923) The Infantile Genital Organization (An Interpolation into the Theory of Sexuality) (1923). Ibid. pp 303 - 312.

Freud proposes that before puberty there is an early, temporary form of genital organization in which the child’s sexual life becomes centred on the phallus. In this phase, Freud argues, children recognise only one genital—the male one—and interpret bodily differences through a phallic lens. Both boys and girls, he suggests, assume the presence of a penis, and the discovery of anatomical difference becomes a decisive psychological event. This “phallic phase” is marked by heightened masturbation, curiosity, and the intensification of Oedipal wishes. It represents a moment when the previously diffuse infantile sexual drives become organised around a single dominant zone, though still without the mature aims of adult sexuality. Freud sees this phase as laying the groundwork for the conflicts and anxieties that will later shape the Oedipus complex and its resolution.

Freud, S (1924) The Dissolution of the Oedipus Complex (1924). Ibid. pp 313 - 322

In this companion paper, Freud describes how the Oedipus complex comes to an end and how this dissolution shapes the child’s emerging superego and sexual identity. For boys, the threat of castration—arising from the recognition of anatomical difference—forces a renunciation of incestuous wishes and rivalry with the father. This fear leads to repression, identification with the father, and the internalisation of parental authority, forming the basis of the superego. For girls, Freud argues that the process unfolds differently: the discovery of the absence of a penis leads to “penis envy,” a shift in libidinal attachment from mother to father, and eventually a loosening of Oedipal desires as the girl identifies with the mother. In both sexes, the dissolution of the Oedipus complex marks a decisive reorganisation of desire, identification, and moral development, shaping the child’s later capacity for love, authority, and social life.