What Do Dreams Tell Us - Coursework Example

Unit Introduction The “American Heritage Dictionary” defines a dream as a series of emotions, ideas, sensations, and images which occur in the mind involuntarily during sleep. There has been great fascination about dreams among philosophers and scientists alike. However, it is only recently that they have developed into a subject of systematic, scientific inquiry. In spite of great studies and speculation, the cause, purpose and content of dreams is still a mystery under speculation. Even though scientific inquiry has offered answers to most phenomena, it still cannot fully account for the numerous how, why, and what questions that characterize the phenomenon (Curci & Bernard 158). Ancient civilizations and religion have often cited dreams as inlets or portals through which divine revelation and wisdom is received from the gods and other world realms. This may be a subject for another forum. However, the first and perhaps somewhat concrete explanation offered on dreams was by Sigmund Freud. According to Freud’s classical theory on dreams, dreams “pathway to the unconscious,” which is one the three elements of human conscious in Freudian psychology (psychoanalytic theory). Another theory by Allan and Robert posits that activation of neurons in the brain during the “Rapid Eye Movement” sleep period triggers the limbic system, which is often responsible for memories, sensations and emotions (Activation synthesis theory).  The psychoanalytic and activation synthesis theories offer the most elaborate basis on dream causation. These are accompanied by other minor theories backed with limited research. In spite of all these theories offering some form of explanation as to how and why people dream, there is significant lack of detailed knowledge that could fully explain the dream phenomenon. However, it emerges that dreams could be a link to the unconscious, and as such poses hidden desires, drives and needs of the unconscious. These may as well include repressed thoughts, feelings and experiences. In addition to these, recent memories on recent activities and engagements could also influence dream content. However, other dream elements such as lucid dreaming and dreams about elements that have never been experienced before is still least understood. Why and how do People Dream? /Causes of Dreams The psychoanalytic Theory: Freud was the first to offer a psychological explanation for the basis of dreams. Freud’s classical, psychoanalytic theory on dreams is based on his interpretation of personality as an element made of three parts including the Id, ego and super-ego. The Id is the unconscious, un-socialized part of personality that presents raw desires and natural drives such as sexual desires. This part is acquired directly from nature. The ego develops out of the worldly interaction, and is a conscious part shaped by social interactions. Therefore, the ego serves the purpose of satisfying the ego while considering reality constraints (Domholf 18). As such, it acts as a constraint to the Id, which cannot restrict itself because of its unconscious nature. Finally, the super-ego is the conscience of quasi-conscious part that limits biological instincts causing higher levels of guilt. Freud’s personality description shows that the human personality inhibits a lot of natural biological drives generated by the Id at the unconscious level. As such, much of the generated raw biological human desires such as sexual desires never get fulfilled due to restrictions from the ego and super-ego. According to Freud, the restriction does not eliminate the forces of these natural instincts. Instead these become intense and redirect their energy to activate the brain in a manner that results in the dreams, where these natural urges get fulfilled (Domholf 17). Therefore, a dream is pathway through which the Id vents its unconscious drives. The brain activation explains the “how” to dreaming, whereas the withheld or inhibited natural drives and desires explain the “why” in dreaming. In essence, this classical theory posits that dreams are a result of interactions between the suppressed drives of the Id and the psychological controls of the body. The psychodynamic theory by Freud, therefore, implies that dreams help fulfil hidden wishes. As such, it could be inferred that people influence their dreaming patterns and content through their day-to-day through processes and the dreams are a reflection of their thoughts. Therefore, a dream about a car accident is perhaps an indicator of hidden fear about the possibility of getting into an accident. This also explains why individuals may dream at night about previous engagements during the day. As such, dreams may be a reflection thoughts, ideas or activities that the dreamer was engaged in before sleeping (Freud & Daniel 1237). In Freud’s time there was little knowledge on REM (“Rapid Eye Movement”) and NREM stages in sleep due to the lack of technology to monitor this phenomenon. Modern day studies on the REM and NREM cycles has revealed new information about dreaming and thus led to the development of contemporary theories on dreaming, which are based on physiology rather than psychology. The Activation Synthesis Theory: The use of the electroencephalogram (ECG) in measuring brain active led to the development of classical dream theories that cite physiological activity in the brain as the possible cause of dreams. The most prominent theory in this category is the activation synthesis theory. This theory was first posited by McCarley, Robert and Allan Hobson in the 70s. Allan and Robert theorized that activation of neurons in the brain during the “Rapid Eye Movement” sleep period triggers the limbic system, which is often responsible for memories, sensations and emotions. This region also includes the hippocampus and amygadala (Domholf 8). The reception of signals generated in this process triggers the brain to seek meaning in the signals by trying to make an interpretation, and the resultant effect is a dream. As such, the theory holds that dreams result from subjective interpretations made by the brain as it tries to comprehend the messages generated and relayed by the brain while in sleep. For example, the researchers propose that the ‘flying dream’ is a result of the activation of the vestibular, whereas dreams involving visual imagery are attributed to visual cortex activation. These propositions imply that the kind of dream that manifests is influenced by the brain part that is activated during the generation of these signals responsible for the dream synthesis process. As a result, proponents of the activation synthesis theory state that dreams can be interpreted in terms of the part of the brain that is activated (Domholf 11). The nature of this theory and propositions imply that it may have very little to state about the meaning of dream. However, tests of physiological theory show modest support to theory by showing that there are some physiological reactions attributed to specific dreams. For example, a person involved in a running dream may have their feet moving due to the activation of the brain part responsible for motor senses. The brain part activated determines dream typology, and therefore, the conceptualization of dream types under this theory could be explained in terms of the brain part activated (Hobson 92) Other dream theories: The psychodynamic and activation synthesis are by far the most popular and comprehensively described theories. However, these are not the only theories, and there are other theories that attempt to explain the dream phenomenon. The computer metaphor account holds that dreams are a ‘clean up’ means through which the mind reorganizes itself by clearing the daily clutter caused by thought processes and day-to-day stimuli. It is akin to a preparation for a fresh day by cleaning up (Newman & Evans 578). Another theory supposes that dreams result from the brains effort to make interpretation of external stimuli that is received by sensory organs during sleep. For example, audio sounds from playing music may be incorporated into a dream. This theorization is however deficient considering that it proposes only an inclusion of stimuli in an already initiated dream, without stating the actual cause of the dream (Hobson 71). Another theoretical model proposes that dreams are a psychotherapeutic mechanism through which a person can connect to different emotions and thoughts within a safe environment (Hartmann 225). Inferences The overall review of dream causation based on the above highlighted theories shows that dreams have nothing to do with the future-they do not bear the capacity to predict or influence the future on their own. Unless of course someone tries to implement what they dreamed because they believe it should happen. In fact, by and large the theories seemingly point to the fact that dreams are a reflection of the past and more so the recent past, where thoughts and actions from this time-span occur as part of the dreams’ content (Curci & Bernard 161). For example, it is often likely to dream about a past sad or negative event. This is commonly the case among soldiers experiencing post-traumatic stress as a result of combat. The stress, strain and moments of combat leave an imprint in their memories that often emerges as dreams (nightmares probably). The only relation that dreams would perhaps have with the future is in relation to future anticipations. Anxiety or strong anticipation of a certain occurrence, whether negative or positive may mimic natural Id drives within the personality, and as such, these may manifest during as dreams. This manifestation is akin to the manifestation of desires and drives hidden deep in the unconscious. Therefore, if dreams have any symbolism, which should perhaps, be a symbolism of a person’s collective thoughts, actions and future anticipations (Hobson 58). Conclusion In conclusion, dreams are a form of perceived simulation that mimics reality by evoking a non-existent world and accompanied by sensations and images. Evidence exists to show that dreams often reflect thoughts, ideas and physical engagements from the past. However, there is very limited objective evidence to prove that dreams reflect future occurrences. However, the only relation that dreams have with future may be in relation to anticipations on the future, which are akin to internal desires. The cause of dreams, their content and typology can best be explained by Freudian psychoanalytic theory and the activation synthesis theory (Hobson 81). The former proposes that dreams reflect ideas, thoughts and drives generated by the Id, but suppressed by the ego. As such, the dreams provide a vent through which the desires and drives from the unconscious manifest. This is supported by the reports of manifestations of people’s common fears in dreams. On the other hand, the later proposes that the dreams are only a representation of the brains attempt to make sense of the sensory stimulation that is made by the nervous system on different parts of the brain during sleep. In spite of the seemingly satisfying theories posited thus far, there are still several dream aspects that cannot be comprehensively explained by such theories. For example, lucid dreaming where individuals are in a state that they can perceive the ‘real’ world and the dream world. This theory often dubbed “double consciousness” is not yet well explained (Freud & Daniel 1242). Additionally, there are cases in which individuals dream about issues or happenings that are totally strange to their thoughts, experiences and encounters. In essence, such dreams seem to pop up as very new or strange things and happenings, which have never even been thought about. The many grey areas that exists show that dreams are still a mystery to human understanding. Works Cited Curci, A. & Bernard, A. “Dreams, Emotions and social sharing of Dreams.” Cognition and Emotion Journal, 22.1 (2008): 155-167. Print. Domholf, W. G. “Refocusing the Neuro-cognitive Approach to Dreams: A Critique of the Hobson versus Solms Debate.” Dreaming, 15.1 (2005): 3–20. Print. Freud, S. & Daniel, O. The Interpretation of Dreams and Lucid Dreams, 3rd edition, Cornwall, UK: Plain Label Publishers, 1911. Print. Hartmann, E. “Making connections in a safe place: Is dreaming psychotherapy?” Dreaming, 5.2 (1995): 213-228. Print. Hobson, J.A. Sleep. New York, NY: Scientific American Library, 1995. Print. Hobson, J. A. Consciousness. New York, NY: Scientific American Library, 1999. Print. Newman, E. and Evans, C. “Dreaming: An Analogy from Computers.” New Scientist, 419.1 (1964): 577-579. Print. Read More