If there are two things I’ve learned in this life, it’s that 1) drinking more water solves all of life’s problems and 2) talking about the Oedipus complex freaks people out. I mean, I get it. We can all probably agree that Freud had some bogus ideas and that Oedipus did some pretty terrible stuff and that killing and/or sleeping with one’s actual parent is a big no-no.
But I’ve been doing some thinking lately—classes haven’t really started, so I have time to think about the tough stuff—and I’ve come to the conclusion that we’ve got some modern day Oedipus shit going on that needs to be addressed. Think I’m being ridiculous? I present to you my thoughts on the matter.
Exhibit 1: Dad bods
While the term “dad bod” may seem a bit passé, having reached its prime back in 2015, I assure you that both the phrase and the body type are still around. And I’m all for more realistic body expectations (or even lack of expectations), so good for everyone who is celebrating bodies, no matter the size or the number of cans in the pack. But what does it say about our generation that we call this a “dad bod” and not just a “slightly squidgy body?” What happened to the geometric shape and fruit terminology that was undeniably oversimplified but did not objectify the father figure? Oedipus and I would like to know.
Exhibit 2: Dad jokes
This is one topic I’ll admit to having some personal experience with. Writing for the Rib obviously means I have a super sophisticated sense of humor, but turns out I’m also a sucker for lame jokes and puns, commonly referred to as “dad jokes.” And I know I’m not alone. Admit it: some of you have also crushed on or even dated someone who tells dad jokes. But I’m also going to guess that this someone was not actually a dad, and now you’re thinking about if they were a dad, and wow doesn’t it freak you out just a bit that we call them dad jokes? What if we just always called them bad jokes? “Dad” and “bad” rhyme, this would be so easy. “Rad” and “sad” also rhyme with “dad.” The possibilities are endless for descriptors that don’t involve fathers, and I can almost guarantee the jokes will be just as good!!
Exhibit 3: Mom jeans
I get the general appeal of the pants we call mom jeans. We’ve been cramming ourselves into tighter and tighter jeans for the past ten years, and it’s liberating to wear a pair of pants that lets things breathe. But I feel like calling them “mom jeans” is reminiscent of the whole “bikini body” argument. Wearing a bikini? Have a body? You have a bikini body! Wearing jeans? Have kids? You’re wearing mom jeans! But if you don’t have kids, couldn’t they just be called “slightly shapeless pants that somehow still make your butt look pretty damn good?” But no, we call them mom jeans, and I hate to break it to you, but Oedipus probably thought mom jeans were pretty great too, if you catch my drift.
In conclusion, I’m so in favor of all of these concepts—bods, jokes, jeans—but I think the words we’ve placed in front of them might be a cry for help from the millennials. Let’s be a generation remembered for our fondness for avocados and our ridiculous amounts of student debt, not for our strange propensity to name things after moms and dads. Although the “mill-oedipal complex” does have a certain ring to it, no?
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