Dreaming: The True Wake Up Call

We all have dreamed, whether that means we've dreamt of a situation quite plain and even realistic or we've dreamt of a situation that is downright crazy. We've all been there. In the chapter over Freud's Dream Theory taken from Appignanesi, Zarete, and Engelhardt's book Freud for Beginners, we look closer at dreams through Freud's interpretation of what they could mean. According to Freud, dreams are made of two things: latent and manifest content. The manifest content within the dream is forced to express the latent idea by using symbols and this leads to the conclusion that dreams are only a partial or censored expression of a wish. No matter how normal or how crazy a dream may seem to according to Freud it doesn't stop there, there is always some kind of deeper meaning behind the content and dreams and can represent thoughts deep within one's psyche.

One of the classic examples that backs up this interpretation made by Freud can be seen in the movie American Beauty (1999) in which the main character Lester Burnham is found having a dream about one of his daughter's friends whom which he is finding himself to be sexually attracted towards and this attraction is represented by symbols within the dream. The young woman can be seen completely naked covered in rose petals, the red petals representing passion and romance, and them being flowers can be seen as representing a basic natural urge that Lester is experiencing towards the young woman. What is important to not from the movie and as the backstory of how Lester got to this point in the first place is that Lester is very unhappy with his life, the attraction he is feeling almost awakens him and makes him even more aware of how unhappy he is and it is a turning point in the movie. This dream is almost his way of defying the suppressiveness of suburban life that he is feeling throughout the beginning of the film. It can be safely stated that the film was created to show how even the ideal suburban family isn't always as ideal of some would think, it can be underlined with the symptoms of depression and denial and can lead to a lot of unhealthy behavior. But, this unhealthy behavior and the dream that Lester experiences only help back up Freud's theory of that there is always a hidden meaning behind content in a dream (manifest content represents latent content).

Short and Sweet (Dreams)

After reading Psychoanalysis of Dreams by Walden, Freud's Dream Theory by Appignanesi, and recalling information from principles of psychology and what we learned about Freud's dream analysis theories, it took me a while to think of media that explicitly talk about dreams or use Freud's theory.  The song "Sweet Dreams" by the Eurythmics is a perfect example of media that talks about dreams and hints at Freud's theories.

Freud said that our dreams reveal the inner most parts of ourselves, and are often our subconscious repressed sexual thoughts. This could hold true for "Sweet Dreams", depending on how you analyze it. Like Walden says, "dreams cannot be interpreted directly," so they are always open for multiple interpretations, which is exactly what Sweet Dreams entails. There are many different interpretations of this song in the realm of dreams.

In the song, the singer, Annie Lennox, sings about some sort of a "sweet dream" and asks who could disagree with her. The "sweet dream" here is undefined, but that's where Freud's theories can come in. Lennox then sings about traveling the world because everyone is looking for something. In the eyes of Freud, this could be "partly a conflict" or "partly a compromise," as mentioned by Appignanesi. Everyone is looking for something, but everyone's something is different, and if it's in their dream (by the title "Sweet Dreams") then it could symbolize anything. 

Another lyric of the song could be analyzed by the part of Freud's theory dealing with sexually repressed thoughts. Lennox sings "some of them want to use you, some of them want to be used by you" and "some of them want to abuse you, some of them want to be abused by you," which, by Freud, would be a prime example of a dream manifesting through fulfilling sexual wishes. This line sung by Lennox hints at BDSM, made popular by the novel and movie 50 Shades of Grey. This interpretation of the sweet dream the Eurythmics sing about makes the most sense from Freud's theory. 

In Freud's theory "everything symbolizes something," as stated by Walden, and media dealing with dreams is all about symbols. Not only in "Sweet Dreams" but in most movies and songs mentioning dreams, there is some hint of Freudian analysis. Many people have criticized Freud's ideas because they seem far-fetched and draw from very juvenile/young experiences, but like "Sweet Dreams," many dreams, or media in general, are open for interpretation. 

The American Daydream

The readings this week discuss the roles of dreams in popular culture and the deeper meaning they can reveal about a character or story. Freud believed "generally that all dreams represent the fulfillment of wishes". LeMaster believed that the use of dreams by Chaplin helped develop an authentic relationship between the character and the audience. Walden and Poch go further and analyze the dreams of certain media to interpret the dreams of characters, the deeper meanings of these dreams and what they reveal about a character. 

Jim Carrey ripping out a man's heart in the name of love.

The first example of this idea of dreaming in pop culture comes from the movie Dumb and Dumber. Lloyd Christmas played by Jim Carrey daydreams while driving about Mary, a woman he meets earlier in the movie and seems to be attracted to. During this dream he wins Mary's heart by fighting another man, being the funniest person at a Christmas party and impressing her friends and family. By the end of this dream Lloyd is very happy as he has won the girl of his dreams. But, of course this is all just a dream of his. 

This is a classic dream example of a character dreaming about something he wants to attain but seems to lack the capacity to do so. As Billy Joel once said, "humans dream to release their goals and dream about a magnificent future". This idea is evident in this scene. Mary is completely out of Lloyd's league as she comes from a wealthy family and is very beautiful. Lloyd understands this, and the dream shows what Lloyd strives to be, despite the ridiculous of the dream, it still shows how Lloyd wants to be a better version of himself so that he can one day win Mary's heart in reality. 

A second example of dream's playing a major role in media comes from a classic movie, A Christmas Story. Ralphie repeatedly asks for a Red Ryder B.B gun for Christmas as he believes he is old enough and idolizes a figure who uses the B.B gun to protect people. Of course the lines of "You'll shoot your eye out" are some of the most famous lines from the movie, and prove as opposition to Ralphie getting his gun. Ralphie has a day dream while at the table of using this gun to fight off a group of criminals led by Black Bart attempting to break into his house. 

This day dream sequence really plays on Freud's dream theory, specifically, the instance from Freud's childhood. Freud overhears his father say "the boy will amount to nothing", and in the movie, Ralphie's mother often says that Ralphie will "shoot his eye out." Both of these hurt the ambition of the child. And when Ralphie dreams of fighting off these intruders and saving his family in the process it shows that Ralphie believes he is capable of handling a gun, proving his mother wrong. Also, it makes Ralphie to be a hero in the process, again showing how strong Ralphie's belief in himself is despite others telling him he can't do something. 

Dreaming Reality

The three readings regarding dreams all hint at the same idea: dreams are a way to give insight into a character’s true character. Freud used dreams to make assumptions and inferences concerning him and others, while Lemaster worked to show the development of Chaplin’s character through his various dreams. Walden and Poch, too, analyze the makeup and subsequent inferences based on dream depictions. Thus, it appears that dreams have become a way for producers and creators to build characters via their dreams.

In the second episode, “Lawnmower Dog”, in season one of Rick and Morty, Rick and Morty embark on an Inception-esque journey through several dreams in order to implant in his math teacher’s mind that Morty should get an A. Rick has created a device that slows you to enter someone’s dream once you put the device in their ear, then yours. The two sneak into Goldenfold’s house (Morty’s teacher) and go into his dream once he is asleep. Here is where the viewer has insight into this character.

Goldenfold’s dream shows him as a guy who can win all the ladies, which is quite contrary to his life: a single, middle-aged man, teaching middle school. The two dive further into another dream to avoid death and here Goldenfold has theoretically hidden his repressed feelings into the woman he was trying to flirt with in his dream. Freud “was convinced that ‘the subconscious’ (the part of the mind hidden from humans) is greatly influenced by libidinal thoughts since birth” (Walden & Poch, 1). In this second-level dream, there is an intergalactic party with a very sexualized theme, this jokes about the theories Freud is so famous for expounding upon – mostly revolving around sex. However, it also gives further insight into Goldenfold and how his divorce has made his sexually deprived – thus developing his character even further.

The deepest dream Rick and Morty reach is the dream of a Freddy Kreuger type character, Scary Terry, whose job is to roam the lands of dream purgatory. As seen in the video, his dream catalogs his childhood fears in school where he is embarrassed in class. Scary Terry is a, “character whom audiences can look down on while observing their own faults. Like all of us, [Scary T] struggles against the day-to-day pressures of life” (Lemaster, 7). Through the dream of Scary Terry, we see that he isn’t a maniac like he is originally thought to be after all. His dream allows the viewer, as well as Rick and Morty, to see his true colors and thus ultimately this saves R & M.

Dreams are mysterious and seemingly impossible phenomena to research thoroughly. However, the use of dreams in today’s culture and media gives us an idea of how we interpret our dreams. A common thread appears to be the use of dreams as means to paint a character’s true identity. This may be the idea many have when dreaming in reality, that somehow by analyzing their own dreams they can make sense of themselves.

Why the Daydreamer Dreams

The readings this week, Freud's Dream Theory, Charlie Chaplin & Dreams and Psychoanalysis of Dreams: Dream Theory and Its Relationship to Literature and Popular Culture, discuss what dreams reveal about the dreamer's desires and character.

In movies, dreams often hold a deeper meaning. This is especially true in the children's movie The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl. Thus, we can use psychoanalytic concepts from the readings to analyze Max the Daydreamer's dreams in the movie.

The protagonist of the movie, Max, is an imaginative kid whose dreams -- and nightmares -- come to life. His two greatest dreams are Sharkboy and Lavagirl. Because they are his greatest creations, they also reveal the most about Max himself.

Psychoanalysts like Freud and Carl Jung would say that dreams reveal a person's desires and fears. The existence of Sharkboy and Lavagirl reveal Max's desire to have friends, as well as his fear of being rejected by his classmates, which occurs at the beginning.

Furthermore, one thing that Sharkboy, Lavagirl, and Max all have in common is parental issues. Sharkboy was abandoned as a baby and raised by sharks. Lavagirl does not know her origins. In real life, Max's parents are constantly fighting and on the verge of a divorce. Max's dreams reflect the problems of his reality. As LeMaster put it in his article about Charlie Chaplin, the dream universe "becomes an extension of reality and demonstrates... inner conflict."

An important dream scene in the movie is when Sharkboy and Lavagirl coax Max to sleep so that he can dream up a solution to save them from Mr. Electric. Although the dream starts out well, it soon turns into a nightmare.

The key to understanding how this dream turned into a nightmare lies in the article Freud's Dream Theory. While asleep, Max's subconscious is triggered by words that Sharkboy and Lavagirl say around him. Sharkboy's violent lullaby includes phrases such as "My first will put you out" and "There is darkness in the air" and Lavagirl mentions "destuction." These dark words, coupled with Max's anxiety about escaping Mr. Electric, are responsible for his nightmare.

Max's dream is also a "predictive" dream. According to Psychoanalysis of Dreams, dream scholars believe that dreams, especially ones that repeat themselves, are predictors of the future. In this case, the futuristic scenes Max foresees are Sharkboy's close scrape with death and the Ice Princess's crystal necklace, which holds the key to saving his dreamworld.

Ultimately, The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl is a movie about how Max grows up. He starts out as "Max the Daydreamer." Based on the Charlie Chaplin article, daydreaming is about "overcoming immediate obstacles instead of long-range ones." Throughout the movie, Max learns to face his nightmares instead of running away. The turning point is when Max realizes that he should not dream just for himself; instead, he dreams an unselfish dream and ends up saving Sharkboy.

In the end, Max's reality also improves. His parents are once again on good terms. His classmates stop making fun of him. Max, having realized the power of dreams, advises his peers to "dream a better dream and work to make it real." 

A Post Inside a Post

In the reading this week, it talks about dreams and their part in media. There is no doubt that there are several books and movies that depict dreams, and a dream state. However, there is none better (in my mind) than that dipicted in the movie Inception.

Inception stars Leonardo DiCaprio and the movie looks into the future, with the use of technology, and lets one control dreams. In the reading it mentions the signs of dreams and what one's dream might mean. In contrast, the movie Inception concentrates on controlling your own dream, a place that is imaginable and very dangerous.

Also in this movie, it allows one to enter into another’s dream. This is what is desirable about the dream state that can be recreated in the movie. Another desirable idea that is covered in the movie is the ability to go back in time and in a sense, live in the past. For example, near the end of the movie, DiCaprio sees his family and feels the love that he is now lacking in “real life.”

The catch to this dream state is that one can get stuck in this and never wake up. The temptation is something that everyone can relate to if they have ever woken up from a dream that was greater than life. So this movie plot introduces an interesting idea… Is it possible to control dreams?

While we don’t have the answers to this yet, this week’s reading focuses on dream theory and the importance of dreams in our life. On pg. 114 it reads, “nighttime thoughts are a product of the need to escape reality.” An example of this can be seen in the Harry Potter movies, one of which is displayed below.

There are several times when Harry goes back in time and visits his parents, or vice versa. Other times he is escaping a bad situation at Hogwarts or discovering the solution to a trying issue. Nonetheless, this dream state always seems to add importance to the movie, just as it does to people in real life. Because the readings say that dreams are indeed a product of the human mind, each dream is personalized and should be utilized, just as in Harry Potter.

It is also important to note that a dream can carry over to reality. This idea is depicted in the movie Up. The old man, who acts as the main character, has a dream to travel with his wife. However, his wife dies before this dream can be lived out. The old man decides that he will, by himself, live out this dream they had together in memory of his wife. This journey taken by the old man results in a new adventure that brings him happiness and adventure, all because of his decision to live out his dream.

Examples lie these are endless in media, it allows for a different aspect that we can all relate and can bring to life things that otherwise would not be understood. The dream state is one that nearly anything can happen and “arms us with terrible freedom” as the reading says. Media takes this freedom from dream theory and pushes it to its limits as displayed in movies such as Inception, Harry Potter, and Up.