Dreams

"And then, in dreaming,
The clouds methought would open and show riches
Ready to drop upon me; that, when I wak'd
I cried to dream again." The Tempest (3.2.96-104)

What is a dream?

How is the word "dream" defined? Want to interpret your dream?

First, a "dream" is a form of thinking that occurs when (a) there is a certain, as yet undetermined, minimal level of brain activation, and (b) external stimuli are blocked from entry into the mind, and (c) the system we call the "self system" is shut down. This may seem overly complicated, but it is worded this way because we don't just dream during sleep, but also on some occasions in very relaxed waking states when we "drift off" and suddenly realize we have been dreaming (happened to you in lecture this morning?).

Second, a "dream" is something we "experience" because the thinking is very real and makes use of our senses--especially seeing and hearing; because usually we are the main actor; and because a dream is sometimes very emotional (but not always).

If you want it to be more simple, you can think of dreams as the little dramas our minds make up when the "self" system is not keeping us alert to the world around us.

From the psychology department at UCSC. See some FAQs about dreams.

Meaning

What does my dream mean?

Are you having a recurring or especially strange dream? There is no research to suggest that symbolism in dreams can be meaningful, but it can be fun to speculate. These websites and books offer some insight.

www.dreammoods.com
iVillage Dream Symbols Dictionary

Books

• Inner Work, Robert A. Johnson
• Breakthrough Dreaming, Gayle Delaney
• A Little Course in Dreams, Robert Bosnak
• The Dream: The Vision of the Night, Max Zeller
• Dreams, Marie-Louise Von Franz
• Dreams: God's Forgotten Language, John A. Sanford