Dreams (the Basics)

Dreams: The Basics presents introductory and accessible information about what dreams are, where they come from, what they do, and how to understand and work with them.

Dreams: The Basics presents introductory and accessible information about what dreams are, where they come from, what they do, and how to understand and work with them.

This book demythologises dream interpretation, with each chapter inviting the reader to ask questions about their own dreams and try exercises. Chapters explore social dreaming, how culture impacts dreams, and their use in counselling, therapy, and analysis. They offer suggestions about how to engage with and develop a skill set to work with dreams. This book summarises the latest thinking and research in this subject, as well as exploring key analytic theorists such as Freud, Jung, and their successors. A glossary is included, along with useful diagrams and images.

The book is aimed at high school and A-level students, undergraduate students, and anyone interested in dreams.

1 Introduction

2 Dreams are a bridge

3 Empathy – culture, religion, and politics

4 Dreams, reflections, memories

5 The natural philosophy of sleep and dreams

6 Depth psychology and dreaming

7 Dreams and therapy

8 Creativity

9 Social and cultural dreaming

by Carola Mathers

10 Play and the transcendent function

“This beautifully clear guide to dreams and about dreaming shows both beginners and experts many ways to understand them. The book celebrates the sense of surprise we often feel when encountering the gifts dreams bring from the unconscious to the conscious mind. The latest discoveries in neuroscience are linked to contemporary issues in depth psychology, politics, and religion. An essential read!”

Professor Andrew Samuels, author of Persons, Passions, Psychotherapy, Politics

“We all dream, too few pay attention to their dreams. Despite the countless recipe books for decoding dream symbols, few understand them. Dreams: the Basics is a definitive dream book. It includes a discussion of dream history, theoretical controversies (Freud vs. Jung), neurological hypotheses, and the role of dreams in creativity. Practical techniques for remembering and exploring dreams are included. It is a book which had to be written. A must read for all—clinicians and lay alike.”

Melvin E. Miller, co-editor of Creativity, Spirituality, and Transcendence: Paths to Integrity and Wisdom in the Mature Self. Psychoanalyist, Montpelier, Vermont, USA

Dr Dale Mathers is a psychiatrist, humanistic psychotherapist, and Jungian analyst in the UK.

Dr Carola Mathers is a Jungian analyst and formerly a consultant psychotherapist at the Southwest London and St. George’s NHS trust, UK.