"Today, guys, your dream journals are due. (OOC: In other words, one dream write-up in the homework thread.) We're going to talk about dream analysis today. In psychoanalysis, Jung thought that dream interpretation was the key factor. He said, "Dreams are neither mere reproductions of memories, nor abstractions from experience. They are the undisguised manifestation of unconscious creativity." Now, mind you, Jung was not a guy who thought all dreams were created equal. He got deeply creative, and coined the terms 'big dreams' and 'little dreams.'

I only wish I were kidding. You'd think a guy who could codify archetypes would come up with something a little more creative than that. Now, little dreams were from the personal unconscious, and generally? A reflection of day-to-day activity. Essentially? The processing of mental detritus. Big dreams--well, they have symbols of unrealized or unconscious material. Things that a therapist is supposed to help you bring to light and resolved. That can include repressed memories--don't get me started on the iffiness of that--life events, and memories of things that disturb you. Or it could be caused by physical stimuli, like someone snoring next to you, or the room being cold.

Most people in psychotherapy are required to keep intensive dream journals. Dreams aren't easy to remember, though, but the best way to keep track of them is to write them down as soon as you wake up. Otherwise, dreams aren't realized and the information falls back into the subconscious--and practice makes perfect. The more often you write down your dreams, the better you get at remembering them. That's why I had you guys keep a journal for a while.

Interpreting dreams? Your goal is to relate the symbolic meaning of the dream to the conscious situation o the dreamer. Sometimes the symbols are personal. Say, dreams about an upcoming birthday. Sometimes they're archetypal, and things like mythological or fairy tale images are brought in. Now, since we haven't covered archetypes in this class, I won't expect you to know them in any depth, but keep in mind common themes from fiction. Here's a handout with some more information for you guys, though.

So. Let's talk about dream interpretation and symbolic content. Because on Thursday? You guys are interpreting each other's dreams."

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