When Father leaves the family home: Lessons from work discussion and infant observation

Abstract

This paper presents material from an infant observation and a work discussion observation (centreing on two different boys of different ages) in an attempt to show how modern day conceptualizations of the Oedipus complex can develop our understanding of what it means for a child when the father leaves the family home. Graham Lee's (1997) theory (following Winnicott) of ‘oedipal potential space’ is introduced as a means of organizing the analysis of complicated and highly condensed observation material. Particular attention is paid to patterns of ‘exclusion’ and ‘not-exclusion’ and how this might be understood in the mind of the child. In addition, the author attempts to make links between the different experiences of work discussion and infant observation and argues that making such links may be an opportunity to facilitate the kind of knowledge that Bion (1962) argued comes through ‘learning from experience’.

Keywords:

• Oedipus complex
• potential space
• exclusion
• not-exclusion
• fathers

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Katherine Arnold and Christine Porter for their guidance in the original infant observation and work discussion seminars respectively.