Dream interpretation
Dream interpretation is the art of determining the meaning (or alleged meaning) of the symbolic content of a dream.
Dream interpetation is a part of psychoanalysis; the seminal work on the subject is The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud.
Joseph in the Old Testament interpreted the dreams of a Pharaoh of Egypt. Daniel also had the gift of interpreting dreams, saying "There is a God in heaven that reveals mysteries."
Interpretation of dreams is also a part of contemporary pop or new age culture. See new age dream interpretation; Edgar Cayce on Dreams by Harmon H. Bro, 1968; and Edgar Cayce.
The interpretation of dreams
This section will (once completed) summarise older theories about dreaming's function and interpretation (from Freud but not earlier) and explain more fully contemporary theories. Just to get you started, a simple method to help you interpret your own dreams is also presented.
The interpretation of dreams intends to look beneath the manifest content of a dream, i.e., what we perceive in the dream, to the latent content of a dream, i.e., the meaning of the dream and the reason we dreamt it.
Some theories are:
Intuitive interpreting
First and foremost, realise that the best person to interpret your dream is you. Thus, the simple method mentioned earlier involves just asking yourself what your dream was all about. It probably helps to make this question as “concrete” as possible, so you could either write it down or ask it out loud. Here's an even more thorough procedure:
- Take two chairs, place them to face each other, and sit on one of them.
- Picture your subconscious sitting on the other chair. Ask it your question.
- Walk over to the other chair and sit on it. Answer the question. Go back to your original seat and continue.
This feels a little silly, but this method (and similar ones) is capable of giving some insightful answers. Once you get used to it you can shorten the procedure, up until the point where you can get the answers just by thinking.
Another thing that helps dream interpretation is your dream diary. Look for common themes and repeating issues, and you will get hints of what objects are important. If you are lucid, you can ask dream characters and things what they symbolise! Or ask the dream to express itself more clearly. An interesting thing to do is, if you're having a nightmare and become lucid, to turn around and face what's chasing you. You'll find that it tends to change when you look at it again.
Lastly, some dream objects that might be somewhat universal in their interpretation.. (Note that your mileage may vary)
A house can represent your mind. The cellar might be your subconscious. What does the house look like? Who lives there?
Trains and similar vehicles can represent sexuality. Are you on the train, or are you afraid of being hit by one?
Flying could represent success or escape. What would falling mean?
Other people in the dream are often manifestations of different parts of your own personality. Try to communicate with them.
Occasionally you may have dreams that are so vivid and real that you retain all the details, even after you wake up. Definitely write these down! Many times these dreams have special meaning for you about a problem or concern you are facing at the time. Compare the dream and its elements to your real-life problem to see if it corresponds, and if so, how. If they correspond, then you will be able to take a lesson of some sort from it that can help you with your real-life problem.
Modern theories
There has been much scientific research on dreams, and modern theories attempt to explain as many facts found in scientific research as possible. These include:
- Why we dream the most before being born; why the amount of dreaming decreases at old age; why mammals born prematurely, such as rats, dream more than mature animals.
- Why depressed people dream more.
- Why we may have evolved to dream.
- to be written
Hall's cognitive theory
to be written
Joe Griffin's theory
to be written
Older theories
Freud
Freud thought that dreams were created to solve a conflict between a conscious wish and an unconscious wish, repressed from childhood, which would prevent sleep.
Freud thought that these repressed wishes were active in the unconscious during waking, but were kept from entering consciousness by a “censor”. During sleep, however, this censor is not as alert as it is during waking. Repressed wishes therefore disguise themselves to pass the censor as dreams. When we wake from a nightmare, the repressed wish has not disguised itself well enough and the censor has awoken us to full alertness.
Freud listed the possible transformations used by the wish to get past the censor as a dream:
- Condensation where one dream object could stand for several thoughts.
- Displacement where the dream object's significance is less important than the disguised significance.
- Representation where a thought is translated to visual images.
- Symbolisation where an action or a person is replaced by a different symbol.
These transformations help to disguise the latent content.
Continuation to be written
Jung
to be written
Further reading
- Elsie Sechrist with foreword by Hugh Lynn Cayce, Dreams, Your Magic Mirror, Warner Books, 1974, mass market paperback, ISBN 0-446-31384-X