Besides the fact that Oskar participated in his school's production of Hamlet, there are several more connections between the two based on parallel structure of the families.
Both Oskar and Hamlet are affected by tragedies dealing with their fathers. In the latter's case, King Hamlet was killed by his brother Claudius. Hamlet was suspicious of his uncle, even though it had not been proven that he orchestrated the murder. Those feelings towards Claudius were fueled by his unresolved anger and frustration all stemming from the death of King Hamlet. Although he had a right to suspect Claudius, Hamlet lost focus and his emotions turned into a blind search for revenge. This same situation is also present in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Although Ron did not kill Oskar's father, he replaced him as the male figure in the family and thus all negative feelings were channeled towards him. In Oskar's eyes, Ron was stealing his father's position and did it intentionally. In both of these stories one can find examples of Sigmund Freud's Oedipus complex, which describes the subconscious sexual feelings a young child feels towards the parent of the opposite sex as well as hostility towards the parent of the same sex. With a new father entering the picture, both Hamlet (even though he is not a young child) and Oskar felt threatened.
Another example of the parallel structure between families is the relationship of mother and son. Hamlet and Gertrude did not have a particularly strong relationship. They were distant from one another and could not understand each other's points of view on King Hamlet's death and Claudius' new position. This barrier between the two isolates Hamlet as well as the fact that he has no father figure to confront. Instead, he is forced to search elsewhere for someone to understand. And although he has Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, there is no one he can trust implicitly except for himself. Like Hamlet, Oskar and his mother have a distant relationship. With Ron suddenly thrown into the mix as a "friend", as well as their unwillingness to see the other's point of view, Oskar is left with nothing but his troubled and questionable thoughts. "...but they didn't even hear me, because they were playing music too loud and cracking up too much...Even though I knew I shouldn't, I gave myself a bruise" (Foer 37). Due to the sudden disappearance of a father figure and the lack of attention and understanding from their mothers, Hamlet and Oskar are alone.
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3 comments:
I too choose this topic for my blog, and i love how you analyzed it! I did not even think of these points until I read your blog. But correct me if I am wrong, doesn't the Oedipus complex infer that the child has a deep love for the parent of the opposite sex and hostile feelings to the parent of the same. This may be going on with Oskar, but it seems to me he more so cares for his dad while he has much hostility towards his mother especially when he tells her he wishes she was the one who was killed. Just a thought... but Hamlet seems to be hostile with his mother as well with a few suspicous incestual lines that are present. Ha, anyway i enjoyed your blog and your analysis!
Now, I understand how Ron is a potential threat towards Oskar and he believes that he is replacing his father but is the Oedipus complex really relevant considering how Oskar shows his feelings towards his mother and how much he loved his father? I may be wrong, but I thought that the complex was more jealousy towards the male figure in his mother's life, which would in turn not fit for Oskar because he loved his father. He is threatened by Ron only because Ron is taking his father's place, not his own, in his mother's life.
With your blog, I can understand why Hamlet and Oskar are connected. I never read Hamlet, so your blog clearly demonstrates how they have parallels. Thanks, I'm really glad you analyzed this topic because it helped me out a lot. Great blog:)
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