IdiomDaily Life
French
FrenchLe complexe d'Œdipe
Meaning: A child's unconscious attachment to the opposite-sex parent and rivalry with the other.
Literally: The Oedipus complex
Example: “Le psychanalyste a évoqué un complexe d'Œdipe mal résolu.” — The psychoanalyst mentioned an unresolved Oedipus complex.
Origin: Named by Freud after Sophocles' king, who unknowingly kills his father and marries his mother. Freud took the play as evidence that the pattern was universal rather than particular to Oedipus.
More French idioms
- La corne d'abondance A source of inexhaustible abundance.
- Un choix cornélien A dilemma in which every option requires sacrificing something one is bound to.
- À son corps défendant Reluctantly; against one's own will.
- Corvéable à merci Available to be worked without limit and without recourse.
- Avoir la cote To be well regarded; to be popular.
- Sans coup férir Without any resistance at all; effortlessly.
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