Essay/Term paper: Dreams

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Philosophy Essays

Dreams


Since the dawn of mankind, man has been searching for the answer to just
one question: Why do we dream? I believe strongly that the reason is not clear-
cut and as easy to answer as it might seem. I think that dreams range in
meaning and importance.

When someone has a dream, there are many possible types of dreams they
could have. First of these possibilities is for a dream that involves
absolutely no meaning whatsoever. The dream is meaningless and involves a chain
or series of events that are unrelated to one another and may be of people or
places familiar or not. These dreams are most likely created because of the
flash and mixture of chemicals that occurs during sleep. Many times these
dreams are actually so bazaar that they have no meaning even to the dreamer. So
these dreams are mostly just passed over and ignored.

The second type of dream is one in which the dreamer can comprehend
everything that is going on but things seem to have no meaning as before. But
in some of these dreams, there are symbols that come into play. When you look
at these dreams sometimes they can represent real life events. Often these are
predictions about what could happen in the future or are an interpretation of
things that have passed. These, like almost all other dreams have significance
as a result of bodily rejuvenation processes. This type of dream has a
significance I believe in helping the person have the feeling of a good sleep,
where things have, if not in some bazaar way, been resolved.

The third type of dream is one which makes great and perfect sense to
the dreamer but doesn't have any real meaning. An example of this is dreaming
that you are flying. Although you know what you are doing, and are
comprehending this, it really doesn't have meaning in your life. Dreams like
this can be quite mentally satisfying to the dreamer. Many times a dream like
this can be almost a form of entertainment to the dreamer, especially if the
dreamer realizes they are dreaming. When this happens sometimes the dreamer
will take control of their dream and can do things they would not normally be
able to do in real life.

Another type of dream is one where the dream has full meaning and the
dreamer can fully realize everything that happens. Dreams like this can show
exactly the way things could happen in the future, or ways of dealing with
problems that will occur or have occurred. Many people believe that a dream of
this kind could be an actual depiction of the way things will happen. Many
people swear to this belief. I personally do believe in this possibility.

Basically, I believe that people have not even begun to realize the
potential of the human mind. I think that even with as much as we know about
technology, it cannot even compare to the power and unlimited ability of the
human mind. I believe that many times, our dreams can actually be predictions
about the future. Also, I personally believe that the mind can actually solve
problems while in a sleep state. I know that sometimes I have gone to sleep
with a problem planted in my mind, and would awaken having dreamt of an answer.
Many times this would help me to more clearly confront the problem and resolve
it.

I don't really believe in any one of the theories about dreaming myself,
but rather think that a mixture of all of them is true. What it comes down to
is that dreaming is a chemical process that at the same time generates a side-
effect that we call dreaming. But the brain itself actually will control this
so that it sometimes has meaning to us. I believe that subconsciously we have
areas of the brain that are in-tune to things beyond normal comprehension.
These areas develop the real meaning of dreams and their significance in our
lives.