Consciousness

Abstract

For decades Allan Hobson has proclaimed Freud's dream theory as thoroughly mistaken. He has also suggested that Freud's use of the mistaken tenets of 19th-century neurology undermined not just that theory, but also the fundamental psychoanalytic propositions of Freud's (1900/1950b) mental apparatus as conceptualized in Chapter 7 of The Interpretation of Dreams. He is wrong on both accounts! Freud's theory of dreams remains an accurate general framework in which to understand and explore the origins, nature, and meaning of dreams. In addition, embodied within Freud's model of the mental apparatus are inferences about brain processes not just relevant to dreams but also to conscious perception, memory, reality testing, and creativity that are remarkably consonant with modern neuroscientific understanding.

Keywords:

• Dreams
• REM sleep
• hallucination
• wish fulfillment
• theta rhythm
• creativity

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Richard J. Kessler

Richard J. Kessler, D.O., is Chief Medical Officer at Adults and Children with Learning and Developmental Disabilities in Bethpage, New York, and is a faculty member at the Institute for Psychoanalytic Education, which is affiliated with the New York University School of Medicine.