Kappa

In this satirical video the Yonemotos deconstruct the myth of Oedipus within the framework of the myth of Kappa: a malevolent and hedonistic Shinto god of fresh water, whose prankish harassment of young maidens includes hiding beneath outhouses to pinch their behinds. The Kappa figure (Mike Kelley) encounters an Oedipal scene—updated Southern California style—and acts as the conscience and proxy of Eddie and Jocasta, supplying an ambiguous poetic resolution to their desires. All three characters are associated in the quest for insight beyond apparent reality, illustrating “the essence of the Oedipal complex as the project of becoming God, replacing the father in order to become the father of oneself.”  This piece comments on the position of both legends in their respective societies.