Freudian Psychoanalytic Theory of Dreams
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Freudian Psychoanalytic Theory of Dreams
Psychologists are divided over the function and meaning of dreaming, with each offering a different purpose. Dreams include images, thoughts, and emotions experienced when one is asleep. The two major theories of dreams include the activation-synthesis hypothesis proposed by John Allan Hobson and Robert McCarley and Freudian psychoanalytic theory of dreams. The activation-synthesis hypothesis argues that dreams are a physiological process caused by changes in neuron activities. Differently, the psychoanalytic theory of dreams of Feud posits that human beings dream for a reason, dealing unconsciously with problems that a conscious mind cannot deal with. The paper seeks to support the psychoanalytic theory, which gives a clear understanding of dreams and how it shapes one’s personality.
Freud argues that the mind follows rules which people were set to discover. The theory says that dreams represent unconscious desires, thoughts, and motivations. In the book “The Interpretation of Dreams,” Freud says that dreams are “.disguised fulfillments of repressed wishes”(Freud, 1958). The two types of dreams explained by Freud include manifest content made up of actual thoughts and images and latent content, which represent the hidden psychological meaning of a dream (Frieden, 2012). Psychoanalytic Theory of Dreams contributes to the popularity of the interpretation of thoughts, which is studied even today.
The Freudian psychoanalytic theory offers an understanding of how childhood events influence heir adults’ lives and shape their personalities. The theory provides a clear understanding of dreams caused by an intrapsychic conflict that arises when unconscious Id pushes into the conscious process and Ego defending “(Freud, 1958). The theory shows explain why dreams always conflict with the reality of life. According to Freud, dreams work through conflict, from waking a challenging life to be rationalized by an unconscious process. The dream thus acts as a form of therapy since they inform the analysts of personality character traits caused by repeating patterns of an individual.
References
Freud, S. (1958). The handling of dream-interpretation in psycho-analysis. In The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, Volume XII (1911-1913): The Case of Schreber, Papers on Technique and Other Works (pp. 89-96).
Frieden, K. (2012). Freud’s dream of interpretation. suny Press.