Elizabeth Grau

PSY100-018
Prompt #2
Due Date: 2/4/16
My dreams generally tend to be random in their content with a wide range of
emotions exhibited; however in almost all of my dreams my emotions seem to
become amplified until they ultimately highjack the dream and its outcomes. This is
a dream that I had Monday night:
The dream began with us standing in the streets of Louisville surrounded by
small shops and it was cloudy as though it was about to rain. It was later in the day
and the sun was starting to set so we decided to head back to my houseI am from
Louisville while he is not. I felt nervous because he hadnt met my parents yet and I
hadnt mentioned to them that he was coming with me to Louisville and would be
staying with us for the weekend. Regardless, we continued to my house to meet
what lie ahead.
Im not entirely certain as to how we got to my housethe mode of
transportation was not clear in the dream. Once we arrived, I opened my door only
to be greeted by my entire family. This not just my immediate family my
grandparents and aunts and uncles were there as well, apparently waiting for us to
arrive so they could finally meet the guy I was dating. He clicked with them
immediately. They loved him. The dream became blurred at that point, or perhaps I
simply dont remember it, but I was trying to find him and he was playing a board
game with a few of my family members and I felt surprised. I had been worried over
nothing. They loved him! I was overwhelmed with relief. My older sister came in and
told me once more that I had chosen a good one and that she finally liked one of my
boyfriends. I decided to venture into the sea of people that was my family once
more in an attempt to find him

Elizabeth Grau
PSY100-018
Prompt #2
Due Date: 2/4/16
It was at that point that I was woken up by my alarm clock for class and the dream
ended.
There is a definite relationship between this dream and the thoughts that
have been swirling around my head. My family, primarily my sisters, have been
pestering me without relent for pictures of him and to bring him home for the family
to meet and make their final judgements. I have been mentioning him coming to
Louisville with me, simply so that I could introduce him to the city where I grew up,
but not necessarily to meet the family. My family is difficult to please when it comes
to guys, and typically once they deem a guy unfit to be dating one us (us being
myself and my sisters), the relationship is doomed. Thats a lot of pressure to put on
either party, so it makes sense that this seemingly heavy topic would have started
creeping into my dreams.
As stated above, it makes sense that this topic infiltrated my dreams,
especially with so much pressure recently being placed on the subject. Additionally,
typically my dreams that have pertained to this subject have had a negative
outcomesomeone dislikes someone. However, for there to be a positive outcome
here could have hinted at my optimism with regard to this relationship and how I
think that my family will receive him. Or perhaps its simply my hopefulness that
this one will be different.
Wish fulfillment, as described by Dewall and Myers (2015), was a thought first
conceived by Sigmund Freud. Freud made the argument that our dreams are an
expression of our subconscious which are sexual in nature. Because we cannot
express these desires without scrutiny, they are suppressed and therefore are
expressed subconsciously such as through our dreams. These expressions of sexual

Elizabeth Grau
PSY100-018
Prompt #2
Due Date: 2/4/16
desires, however, are often shrouded such that they appear as everyday items and
may require a considerable amount of deliberating to determine these objects and
their symbolism within the dream. An example of this could include a drill
symbolizing masculinity and sexuality (p.113).
When viewed with this theory in mind, my dream appears to be shone in a
slightly different lighting. It appears less innocent and hopeful. Perhaps through this
dream, my subconscious is pushing for family acceptance of this guy I have chosen
to spend my time with, hoping that he will turn out to be a suitable life partner. By
gaining their acceptance, their lies that underlying desire for a sexual relationship
with him that I would feel less guilty for wanting if I had the acceptance of those
who are closest to me.
Also according to Dewall and Myers (2015), information processing is a theory
that states that the importance of dreaming lies in our ability to remember
information after we have learned or experienced it. Dreaming occurs during REM
sleep and displays the same brain waves as exhibited when remembering or
learning something (p.113).
With this theory taken into account, my dream could simply be a memory
that is being replayed before me as I sleep. This dream is evidence that I
experienced REM sleep at least once that night and therefore boosted my memories
of this event and others from throughout the day (such as information I gained from
classes that day), solidifying their spots within my short-term and/or long-term
memory. Additionally, this dream could also be evidence for this theory as this was
pulling from memories from several days ago, all of which I had slept quite well

Elizabeth Grau
PSY100-018
Prompt #2
Due Date: 2/4/16
during, further assisting this discussion of meeting my parents that occurred
between my boyfriend and myself to become solidified within my memory.
Finally, the theory of neural activation, also explained by Dewall and Myers
(2015), make the conjectures that during sleep, various parts of the brain are still
firing neuron signals which are then received and manifest as dreams as each lobe
fires neurons. Each of the lobes within the brain, though they are still firing neurons,
are not working as they do when a person is awake, supplying further argument for
this theory. For example, because the frontal cortex, which accounts for reason
during thought processes, is not firing neurons as it does when in an awakened
state, the inhibitions and thoughts of reason are diminished, and thus dreams that
do not make sense while we are awake and reflecting go without question when we
are asleep (p.114).
With this theory in mind as I re-analyze my dream, the different parts of the
brain firing neurons can be seen rather clearly. The occipital lobe accounts for the
vision that was experienced during my dream; the memory of the encounter and
the emotions that I would feel could originate from the limbic system of the brain.
Additionally, the decreased neural firings from the frontal lobe is evident when I
analyze the lack of a mode of travel, the presence of my entire family at my house
without my ever telling anyone that I was bringing him with me, and finally, their
sudden approval of him without reason, completely going against historical
experience with my family and boyfriends. While the last experience took me
slightly by surprise, the former two were taken without question and treated as
though their occurrences were logical.

Elizabeth Grau
PSY100-018
Prompt #2
Due Date: 2/4/16
References:
Dewall, C. N., Myers, D. G. (2015). Psychology: Eleventh edition. New York, NY:
Worth Publishers.