The hidden meaning of dreams played an important role inSigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory.
He also believed that bringing the hidden meaning of a dream into conscious awareness could relieve psychological distress.
At a Glance
The latent content of a dream is the underlying hidden meaning.
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Dream interpretation seeks to understand the latent content of dreams and to bring these unconscious feelings into awareness.
One of the goals ofpsychoanalysisis to analyze these symbols to understand unconscious wishes and needs.
By bringing this information into conscious awareness, people can find ways to cope.
Freud believed that the mind was like an iceberg.
Only a very small part of the iceberg is visible above the waterthis visible part represents theconscious mind.
Unseen under the surface of the water lies the enormous bulk of the iceberg, representing the unconscious mind.
Dreams, therefore, are one way of glimpsing what is hidden from awareness in theunconscious mind.
For example, imagine that you have a dream that you are naked in public.
This hidden meaning represents the latent content of the dream.
Dream Interpretation Focuses on Latent Content
Dream interpretation has grown in popularity since Freud’s time.
Freud believed that the contents of the unconscious could lead to problems and dysfunction.
In Freud’s psychoanalytic interpretation, dreams center on wish fulfillment.
People dream about the things that they secretly wish and desire.
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Displacement
Displacementinvolves replacing one thing with something else.
Freud would suggest that this object is simply a stand-in for the thing that is truly bothering you.
Projection
Projectioninvolves placing your unacceptable feelings on someone else.
Symbolization
The symbolization process involves acting out the repressed urge in a symbolic act.
Condensation
Condensation involves minimizing the representation of your hidden urges during the dream.
Multiple dream elements might be combined into one single image that serves to disguise the real meaning.
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