A Closer Look at Dreams
A Space For Grey? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? By Huda Momin
A Closer Look at Dreams
Schubert, for instance, claims: "The dream is the liberation of the spirit from the pressure of external nature, a detachment of the soul from the fetters of matter."- Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams (1900). [1]
From pre-socratic philosophers to today's modern scientists, academic scholars have been investigating the conscious experience of dreaming for centuries yet the phenomenon of dreams largely remains to be one of the biggest mysteries in the universe.?
The civilizations of Greek, Babylonian & Mesopotamian of early centuries, laid heavy emphasis on the assumption that dreams were prophetic messages delivered by the Gods. Dreams were also assumed to offer foresight and premonitions. Greek physician Hippocrates (c. 460–c. 377 BCE), for example, suggested that dreams provide early evidence of disease.
Viewing Dreams through a Philosophical Lens
?Artemidorus
The Greek Philosopher, Artemidorus published the Oneirocritica (Interpretation of Dreams), a series of five books describing numerous symbolisms found within dreams. (Coolidge, 2006; Hoffman, 2004).?
Artemidorus emphasised dream foresight; individual differences in dreams; symbolic interpretations, etc all were postulated in a practical manner. The works of Artemidorus laid the foundation for pioneering figures in the disciplines of psychoanalysis and dream studies including Sigmund Freud.?
Aristotle
Aristotle's dream theory steered away from the prevalent religious dream beliefs. The Greek philosopher postulated dreaming as an extension of reality in which human perception gets activated during the dream state. Aristotle's essay 'On Dreams' proved to be a fundamental one, inspiring Sigmund Freud and other influential figures. Remarkably, Aristotle's dream theory closely resembles today's understanding of dreaming.?
So, what is dreaming??
Contemporary times define the concept of dream as a conscious and involuntary experience of the mind characterised by a collection of sensations, emotions, images and ideas that occurs during REM sleep.?
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) is a sleep stage accompanying random rapid eye movements,? body twitching, and increased brain activity which resembles wakefulness. Hence, REM is also known as paradoxical sleep. Individuals in the REM sleep phase, experience elaborate, vivid and hallucinogenic dreams.?
Viewing Dreams through?the Scientific Lens
The discovery of REM Sleep in 1953 served as an initiative for the neurocognitive study of dreams.
The discipline of cognitive neuroscience describes dreams as a result of brain processes. fMRI Imaging scans report that dreams are a built-in mechanism of brain activation which operates while we are asleep.?
Neurobiologists proposed a theory titled as activation-synthesis hypothesis which states that dreams are by-products of neural impulses. Thus, the visual imagery, pseudo-sensory and motor elements in our dreams randomly appear from our memories.?
In other words, the theory asserts that random waves of neurons from the brain stem are synthesised into higher-level information which is manifested as visual imagery and sounds - creating dreams.?
Limitations of the theory:?
The above neurobiological theory proved to be fundamental, paving the way for further fundamental research in the field of neurology. Nonetheless, the theory of activation-synthesis hypothesis has its limitations.?
According to the groundbreaking theory, the activation-synthesis process takes place exclusively during REM sleep. However, dreams occur during both REM sleep as well as NREM sleep, which was replicated by (Hiroyuki Suzuki et al. Sleep. 2004.)[2]?
Furthermore, activation synthesis is unable to clearly explicate the reason behind dreams. The theory proposes a? vague assumption that dreams occur due to "neural impulses" which isn't adequate enough to provide an elaborate understanding of the highly complex workings of the brain.?
Researchers have propounded multiple scientific theories so as to explain the neurological process behind dreaming, yet the scientific discipline fails to answer why a person experiences dreams.?
Nevertheless, Psychoanalytic dream studies do offer possible explanations behind the phenomenon of dreaming.??
Viewing Dreams through the?Psychoanalytic Lens
Cognitive science proposed that dreams are meaningless: a mere by-product of chemical processes. In sharp contradiction, psychoanalytic studies assert that dreams are meaningful experiences that can be interpreted with respect to individual differences.
Freudian Dream Analysis:?
Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis undertook dream analysis and interpretation as a way to treat pathologies. He published two psychological works on dreams, 'Interpretation of Dreams' & 'On Dreams'. Freud posits the psychological reasoning behind dreams and a psychoanalytic technique of dream analysis in his published works?
According to Sigmund Freud, dreams are the royal roads to the unconscious. He postulated that dreams are representations of inner motives and repressed sexual drives, hidden in the depths of the unconscious mind. Thus, the conscious dream experiences serve as a portal to the innermost thoughts of the unconscious and assist one to uncover concealed emotions and sentiments.?
Freud asserted that there are two types of dreams viz., Manifest content and Latent content. The manifest content is the dream one can recall after waking up. Latent dream content, on the other hand, is the real and complete dream however the dreamer can't recall it. Latent dreams depict one's repressed wishes, feelings and thoughts and it is also a means to fullfil such wishes. Freud calls it wish-fulfilment.?
The Theory of Wish fulfilment suggests that the presence of certain desires and wishes is made imperceptible to the conscious mind by the superego and ego. However, the subsidence of the superego during our sleep state leads to the disclosure of our unfulfilled wishes in our dreams. The attempt to satiate our repressed desires by latent dreams later materialises into manifest content so as to keep the underlying wishes concealed from the conscious mind.
In other words, Dreams are disguised fulfillments of repressed infantile sexual wishes.
?The process whereby underlying wishes exhibited during latent dreams, transmuted into? manifest dreams is called the process of dreamwork. The purpose of dreamwork is to transfigure hidden desires into an ordinary and non-disturbing dream content, in order to avoid anxiety and to allow us to have a peaceful sleep.?
Dreamwork involves three unconscious mechanisms viz., condensation, displacement, and secondary elaboration.?
The process of Condensation is the joining of two or more ideas/real-life events into one context.?
Displacement is another unconscious mechanism which displaces the significant theme of latent dreams with a secondary dream context.??
Secondary Elaboration aims to transfigure distorted dream contents into a logical and meaningful dream.?
Freud believed in analysing and interpreting our dreams so as to unearth the instinctual intrapsychic forces of our repressed urges.?
Dream analysis is a psychoanalytic technique utilised in psychotherapies, to reveal underlying intentions and motivations in latent dream content. Dream analysis is undertaken by means of free association.?
He conducted dream analysis on two parallel lines:(a) through interpretation of his dreams, and (b) through empathy and insight into his clinical experience with patients.?
Two crucial parts of Freud's research are intimately connected with his self-analysis: the interpretation of dreams, and his growing appreciation of infantile sexuality
Freud claimed that Dreams are symbolic expressions of libidinous desires. He suggested certain universal symbols found within dreams which came to be regarded as 'Freudian Symbols'. Emperor, king, or an exalted male personage stands for father. Empress, queen, or an exalted female personage stands for mother.?
?Nonetheless, the psychoanalyst also emphasised that a valid dream interpretation cannot be conducted with the help of the above universal symbols. Freud asserted that individual differences play a chief role in dream analysis as dreams are heavily based on the dreamer's personal circumstances. Therefore, a dream interpretation cannot be directed with the help of common universal symbols.?
The psychoanalytic technique is involved in the therapeutic discipline that encourages individuals to express their thoughts and dream experiences without any restrictions. Thus, Dream interpretation becomes a gateway to the unconscious mind. Dream interpretation aids individuals to gain insightful information and further aims to resolve the issues involved.
Criticism: The fundamentals of Sigmund Freud's dream analysis are based on one's rooted instincts.?
However, Freud asserted that every dream stands for the expression of repressed sexual desires. The theory has overemphasised the repressed libido as the motivation behind dreams. Since not all dreams are expressions of sexual desires, the theory becomes refutable.?
Critics also state that ungratified wishes cannot necessarily be ensued from the unconscious mind. Such desires could be occupants of the conscious mind.?
Jungian Theory:
In sharp contrast to Sigmund Freud's belief in dreams as an outlet for repressed sexual drives,?Carl Jung asserted that dreams are representations of the unconscious mind. He zeroed in on symbolic dream imagery and emphasised dreams as a source of creativity.?
Jung suggested that dreams are doing the work of integrating our conscious and unconscious lives; he called this the process of individuation.?
Debunking the myth of dream symbolism
A number of dream dictionaries have been published, consisting of various dream symbols to interpret dreams. ? The popular belief claims that dream interpretation can be piloted by the so-called "dream dictionary".
To illustrate an instance, Water can be a positive or negative symbol. Water can show energy and the flow of life through a steady river, or it can symbolise destruction through a flood or crashing wave. Therefore, the symbolism of water in this example can depict different meanings for different people.?
Nonetheless, dreams are influenced by one's individual circumstances, environment, culture, etc. Therefore, the proclaimed universal dream symbols are illogical means of dream interpretation.?
Correlation between Mental Health and Dreams
Studies report that over 70% of individuals with psychiatric disorders
experience nightmares or/and recurrent dreams.[3]?
Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Depressive disorders are linked with disordered sleeping patterns, recurring nightmares, insomnia and so on.?
Individuals diagnosed with Major? Depressive disorders, Post-Traumatic Disorder, Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorders are more likely to experience chronic nightmares than the general population.[4]
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Rather than fixating on the frequency of nightmares, it's important to acknowledge that the distress arising from nightmares is presumed to be correlated to psychiatric disorders.?
For people with depressive disorders, it's either difficult to fall asleep or a tendency to oversleep. Regardless of that, the REM sleep stage for depressive individuals is comparatively longer than the average REM sleep phase. Hence, the probability of experiencing intensely vivid and disturbing dreams elevates.?
It's not uncommon for the general population to frequently experience recurrent dreams. In recurrent dreams, the plotline of the dream is consistently repeated over and over. The themes of recurrent dreams often being appalling and exhilarating, further induces anxiety and fear.?
Recurring dreams might be indicators of underlying issues. Individuals who experience such dreams are reported to have poor psychological health, high levels of emotional strain, unresolved conflicts with oneself or others and so forth.?
Citations:
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Bibliography:
The Instance of the Letter in the Unconscious, or Reason Since Freud ? By Jacques Lacan
Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming by Stephen LaBerge and Howard Rheingold