The short stories titled “Boys and Girls” by Alice Munro and “The Rocking Horse Winner by D.H. Kiefer share a common theme rooted in the power of desire and the struggle to establish loving relationships that appears to be a struggle for many developing adolescents. Both of these short works give us a snapshot of two unique characters mental development during a vulnerable period of development. As these stories progress we become increasingly aware of the underlying themes of the struggle to form healthy relationships, as well as, the power of desire as a driving force of our loyalties to others. Early on in in both of these works it is apparent that both Paul in “The Rocking Horse Winner” and the Girl in “Boys and Girls” are experiencing
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The Oedipus complex is defined as the “a desire for sexual involvement with the parent of the opposite sex and a concomitant sense of rivalry with the parent of the same sex; a crucial stage in the normal developmental process.”(Britannica). It appears that both Paul and the Girl may be experiencing delayed sexual maturation which could potentially explain their obsessive fixations on their parents of the opposite sex while failing to identify with their parents of the same sex. Paul is fascinated when his mother tells him how she feels about her luck: “I can’t be, if I married an unlucky husband” (P.603). It seems that from this point on Paul becomes increasingly intent on pleasing his mother to the point of neurosis. Freud states: “that unsuccessful resolution of the complexes might lead to neurosis. (Wikipedia). As the “The Rocking Horse Winner” progresses Paul is fixated solely on finding luck for his mother. As stated by Kiefer: “he would sit on his big rocking horse, charging madly into space, with a frenzy” (P.603). In a similar fashion, the Girl’s negative thoughts towards her mother throughout “Boys and Girls” are evidently growing as she mentions that “I felt my mother had no business down here and I wanted him to feel the same.”(P.141). Although, both of the protagonists in the
The Oedipus complex is defined as the “a desire for sexual involvement with the parent of the opposite sex and a concomitant sense of rivalry with the parent of the same sex; a crucial stage in the normal developmental process.”(Britannica). It appears that both Paul and the Girl may be experiencing delayed sexual maturation which could potentially explain their obsessive fixations on their parents of the opposite sex while failing to identify with their parents of the same sex. Paul is fascinated when his mother tells him how she feels about her luck: “I can’t be, if I married an unlucky husband” (P.603). It seems that from this point on Paul becomes increasingly intent on pleasing his mother to the point of neurosis. Freud states: “that unsuccessful resolution of the complexes might lead to neurosis. (Wikipedia). As the “The Rocking Horse Winner” progresses Paul is fixated solely on finding luck for his mother. As stated by Kiefer: “he would sit on his big rocking horse, charging madly into space, with a frenzy” (P.603). In a similar fashion, the Girl’s negative thoughts towards her mother throughout “Boys and Girls” are evidently growing as she mentions that “I felt my mother had no business down here and I wanted him to feel the same.”(P.141). Although, both of the protagonists in the