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The Oedipal legend has had a central and formative role in the development of psychoanalytic theory. But, quite separate from that role, the Oedipal legend itself is extremely rich. It has a multitude of variations within which the central themes of a son's murder of his father and intercourse with his mother are surrounded by changes in other aspects of the story.
Relying on a large number of Oedipal tales from many countries and across many centuries, allowed the exploration of several variations. The Oedipal story, for example, blends to incorporate local religious and cultural tales. Also, as we move from culture to culture we find variations in the crimes committed by the Oedipal hero (in addition to patricide and mother/son incest); in whether or not the concept of penance is used in the story; and in the range of punishments. There are also vast differences in the degree to which some Oedipal tales allow indirect reënactments of the mother/son union.
Although we reviewed 73 stories from ancient Greece, medieval Europe, the Near East, modern Europe, Slavic countries, Africa and the South Pacific, this is clearly not an exhaustive review of the Oedipal legends around the world. Notably absent are stories from Asia and South America. We relied primarily on the collection of Oedipus legends presented by Edmunds (1985). Even this limited number of studies provides impressive support for the concern, fascination, and universality of the twin themes of patricide and mother/son incest.