There are many perceptions of what a dream actually is. Some view dreams as the subconscious trying to speak to people, and others see it as religious visions of the future. Over the years, physicians and psychologists have collected countless amounts of research and evidence to support their viewpoints on dreams. I have always believed that dreaming is a time when the brain develops and analyzes important information (Bernstein 149). Dreams do not mean anything specific, and everyone has their own cultural perspectives of dreams. In reality, no one has the power to analyze and tell people the meanings of their dreams. According to Bernstein’s psychology book, dreaming is a time when the brain experiences story-like perceptions and sensations. …show more content…
Early studies from a physician named Sigmund Freud played a role in psychologists studying dream analysis (Bernstein 149). According to Freud, dreams are wishes that may be unacceptable to the conscious mind and society. He assumed that dreams represented unsatisfied wishes and that they happened during a state of the unconscious (Bernstein 149). According to researcher Judd Marmor, Freud did not obtain the information without help from others. Ancient people studied dreams around 2000 B.C. in Egypt, way before Freud was even born. The “Dreaming and Modern Dream Theory” article goes into great details about the history of dreams. During the Biblical time period, dreams were viewed as communications from God. People regarded dreams seriously and they thought that they had specific meanings (“Dreaming and Modern Dream Theory”). This information proves that dreams were analyzed based on people’s perceptions, and not on pure facts. Each Individual’s perceptions were based solely off of their …show more content…
In fact, Freud believed that one of his dreams helped him treat a patient. “Simply Psychology” goes into details about Freud’s dream. He had been blaming himself for not finding a cure for a young woman named Irma. One night, Freud had a dream that he met his patient at a bar and he examined her. After a few moments, he saw a formula for a drug that another doctor gave Irma. At that moment, he realized that he did not have anything to do with Irma not being cured, and it was the other doctor’s fault for using a dirty syringe. This dream relieved Freud’s guilt, and he interpreted this as a wish-fulfillment. Freud had been wishing that he was not the cause of Irma’s poor condition, and the dream fulfilled the wish by showing him that it was another doctor’s fault (“Sigmund
I wrote this paper to get a better understanding of Sigmund Freud’s method and theory of dream analysis. The purpose of the paper will be to show the principals of Freud’s dream related theory that focuses on the physiology, interpretation, and psychology of dreams and to explain concepts such as latent and manifest content of dreams, the part of unconscious process, and the nature of dreams role in the determination of dream content. I would like to explore Sigmund Freud’s explanations of psycho-analytic and psychological theory and method to reveal whether Freud’s continuous revising to sexually based conclusions are able to support his own arguments. One of his themes was the amount of activity that goes on in our brains without us even realizing it is happening. Freud studied dreams looking for a better understanding of certain features of our personalities, mainly the features that developed into disorders and psychological problems. He believed nothing a human being did, could happen by chance, and every action, if it was big or small, was in some way motivated by the unconscious mind.
The interpretation of dreams developed by Dr. Sigmund Freud is a theory that is still believed by many. Freud thought the function of dreaming was to allow the discharge of repressed instinctual impulses in such a way as to preserve sleep. He also believed the instigating force behind dreams was always an instinctual and unconscious wish. Dr. Freud considered these wishes to be predominantly sexual in nature. In "Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis," he wrote: "Though the number of symbols is large, the number of subjects symbolized is not large. In dreams those pertaining to sexual life are the overwhelming majority…They represent the most primitive ideas and interests imaginable." Every dream according to Freud, is created by an instigating force/ unconscious wish, that sexual or otherwise is a meaningful message in disguise. The fact that dreams so regularly contained sexual and other unacceptable wishes explained why dreams are so regularly and so easily forgotten. This is why many dreams that contain repressed and unacceptable wishes remain in the unconscious (according to Freud's theory).
The interpretation of dreams by Sigmund Freud holds a ton of information, mostly about what our dreams mean and how they can influence our daily lives. He expresses on page 310, that dreams can be wishes, fears,
A common definition of dreams according to “Patterns for College Writing” is “the symbolic representation of mental states”, but this sparse definition does not begin to encompass the complex mechanisms behind dreams and its effects on human culture around the globe. Dreams have long been the topics of folklore and urban legends. Since human beginnings, people have sought to uncover the origin of dreams. The ancient Greeks believed dreams came from the God Oneiroi. The Chinese believes that dreams happened when the hun or spirit leaves the body for the land of the dead. The Ishi Indians believed that dreams were sacred messages from the Gods. Yet even now, with the current technological and intellectual advancements, scientists and psychoanalysts have still to find the true reasons and meanings of these dreams. Some argue that dreams are the products of overactive subconscious minds while others argue that dreams are solely randomized emotions from the limbic system during sleep. Despite these contrasting theories, the truth of the matter is that the topic of dreams and the reasons behind them remain a mystery.
Dreams are a very ponderous things. Simply saying, dreams are a stream of images, sounds, and
Psychology, neuroscience try to explain them, 2012). He studied dreams to better understand aspects of personality as they relate to pathology. Freud believed that every action is motivated by the unconscious at a certain level. In order to be successful in a civilized society, the urges and desires of the unconscious mind must be repressed. Freud believed that dreams are manifestations of urges and desires that are suppressed in the unconscious. Freud categorized the mind into three parts: the id, the ego, and the superego. When one is awake, the impulses if the id are suppressed by the superego, but during dreams, one may get a glimpse into the unconscious mind, or the id. The unconscious has the opportunity to express hidden desires of the id during dreaming. Freud believed that the id can be so disturbing at times that the id’s content can be translated into a more acceptable form. This censor leads to a sometimes confusing and strange dream image. According to Freud, the reason one may struggle to remember a dream is because the superego protects the conscious mind from the disturbance of the unconscious mind (Dream Theories,
The history of dreaming began in the early centuries. “Dreams were often considered prophetic” (Comptons by Britannica). That means that dreams were seen as a message from the gods. Thousands of years ago, “Greek sick people slept in temples in order to receive dreams that would heal them” (Kantrowitz, Babara; Springen Karen). Current dream science started at the end of the 19th century. Dreams were seen as a kind of “desires” (Kantrowitz; Springen) stemming from childhood. Scientists still don’t know for sure why we are dreaming and what are dreams made of; howe...
During Freud’s time, society typically viewed dreams as an intervention of a higher being or entity (Freud, 1900, p.4). However, Freud made the claim that dreams are the product of the dreamer and also that it serves two purposes. First, dreams form to keep a person asleep at night by blocking out external stimuli, much in the same way a person consciously does when turning off the light and minimizing noise before going to bed (“Freud’s Approach,” 2000). Next, Freud (1900) viewed humans as having grotesque sexual urges that “are suppressed before they are perceived” (p.37) in order to protect the person and allow him or her to get along in society; however, dreams serve the purpose of releasing these repressed desires as wishes which are disguised in the dream. Because a person cannot readily be aware of the unconscious wish, the dream is divided into two ...
Freud uses an objective perspective as he explains the validity of his belief that all dreams are significant and has a specific place in an individual's psychic activities. Through the use of his interpretation technique the meaning of dreams can be disclosed. The significance of each dream may be studied. Freud states that every dream is consequential and that the meanings of these dreams will be brought to light, lending information into the understanding of an individual's make up. Freud's work with free association has helped him to make a link between the symbols of the wake mind and the subconscious mind to give credence to his belief of successful dream interpretation.
Despite the large amount of time we spend asleep, surprisingly little is actually known about sleeping and dreaming. Much has been imagined, however. Over history, sleep has been conceived as the space of the soul, as a state of absence akin to death, as a virtual or alternate reality, and more recently, as a form of (sub)consciousness in which memories are built and erased. The significance attributed to dreams has varied widely as well. The Ancient Greeks had surprise dream encounters with their gods. Native Americans turned to their dreams for guidance in life. Shamans dreamed in order to gather information from the spirits.
« The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious activities of the mind ».1 While Freud already used hypnosis and free association with his patients, he soon felt the need to include the interpretation of dreams in psychoanalysis as well. Freud decided he would developped his 'theory of dreams' to go further in his analysis. According to Freud, dreams allow unconscious desires, fears or emotions to express themselves in a disguised way. Dreams are an expression of wish fulfilment communicating through symbols.
He goes further with his interpretation. He compares dreams to psychopathological conditions since both refer to thoughts on a subconscious level, and thus decides to break down dreams through the process of psychotherapy. This process requires the dreamer to record the dream (on paper or to a therapist) “without self-criticism”, analyze the dream and draw a conclusion. To demonstrate this process, Freud records one of his dreams, which is given below:
Freud’s theory however, is only one of many such as Francis Crick’s. He believed that dreams were a way of mental “house cleaning” or getting rid of unneeded memories. He thought them useful because you don’t have to remember every small minute detail of your life.
Sigmund Freud (1922) “Dreaming is the royal road to knowledge of the unconscious in mental life” (as cited in Arnold; Vogal, 2007, p20-21). Freud became adamant that dream symbols and interpretation with regards to psychoanalytical perspectives will always be prevalent and never disproven. The methodology of psychoanalysis’s enforces the notion that analysis of dream content is a vital necessity for the individual a...
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, dream is defined by a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring involuntarily in a person’s mind during certain stages of sleep. Dreams have fascinated humans since the beginning of time. The recorded history of dream interpretation dates back to 3000-4000 B.C. with the Sumerians in Mesopotamia. They documented their dreams on clay tablets. People back then saw the dream world as an extension of reality, but that it was a more powerful realm. Furthermore, they believed that when they dream, their souls would leave their body during sleep and travel to the dream world.