What effects would an unresolved oedipus complex have on an older man?
First of all, I think Freud is full of poop. The whole Oedipal thing was based on his theory that we all spend a significant amount of our energy resisting our overwhelming impulse to have incest. I don’t believe that is true. What I do believe is true is that we learn how to have relationships through early practice at home. If we learn that people can’t be trusted because the relationships at home are abusive or inconsistent, then we take that into our adulthood. As for the guy you’re describing, I’m sure there were male figures in his life, so blaming the dad doesn’t fly. At the age of 5 he might be old enough to remember either being abandoned or being kidnapped (whatever happened) but he is more likely to remember what he was told happened rather than what actually happened. His mother taught him to be submissive, but it doesn’t sound like she messed with his ability to trust. In fact, it sounds like she was a rather dominant, strong, constant presence in his life. That may be why
