It is a scientifically proven fact that everybody dreams. Why people have dreams however remains an unresolved topic. Some theorists suggest that people dreams because they need to release and cleanse negative emotions hold back during the day. To others, the effect of dreaming is correlated to the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep, where the brain remains active just like when an individual’s body is awake. This paper thus highlights why people dream about things/people.
Sigmund Freud's Theory on Dreams suggests that people dream because of the activities that people do throughout the day together with their wishes. For this reason, everything that an individual dreams is a result of experiences and instincts in life. Additionally, the theory of "id", ‘ego’ and ‘super ego’, the elements of personality explains why people dream. In reaction to an extreme pressure from super ego and id, ego collapses. The failure of the ego to balance both super ego and id makes the mind trigger a defense mechanism usually referred to as dreams. In addition, dreams are simply spy holes into people’s unconscious. Sigmund Freud's Theory on Dreams adds that people dream basically to relieve sexual nuisance resulting from repressed desire, letting them to act on prohibited impulses. Desires, fears and emotions that an individual is unaware of in effect manifest themselves in form of dreams. As a result, people dream fundamentally to fulfill wishes.
On a different perspective, people’s dreaming about things or people they have recently seen is caused by their perception. They dream because of having diverse imagination guides. It is the imagination that results in bio-physical logic of consciousness. Besides, a dream results not only from an individual’s personal experience but is also linked to collective conscious that is part of an individual’s mind. This consists of impressions of processes that occur in the world. In effect, people dream simply to accomplish unattained world’s impressions.
People as well have bad dreams because of stress and anxiety. People experience lots of troubles. Be it paying tax in or trying to meet a deadline, an individual’s body is put under a sudden pressure. In effect, the mind gradually feed off the stress by engaging in Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep, where the brain remains active just like when an individual’s body is awake.
People also dream because of their desires, quite often sexual in nature, that are suppliant to be articulated. People therefore dream because of their emotions. Usually, when an individual have a repressed desire, he or she dreams intensely. During a sleep, a person’s id needs offer a way to release all unaccepted social desires and urges. For this reason, an individual’s emotional arousals not expressed whilst awake are likely to make him/her have dreams.
As well, people’s dreaming may be attributed to physical causes. For this reason, dreams are production of Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. REM is a sleep cycle where the eye moves randomly. It is believed that during this state, people are completely unaware of their physical surrounding. However, the brain forms a pseudo environment that puts an individual to feel like it is real life. It is this state that results in dreaming so that the body is regenerated and any damage is repaired throughout sleep cycle. A dream is thus a result of a mere reflection of an individual’s aroused state during the REM sleep.
Lastly, illnesses and medication can make one fall prey to dreams/ or nightmares. Also, people who withdraw from medication may suffer from fevers that are believed to causes nightmares.
Works cited
Griffin, J. and Tyrrell, I. Why do we dream? Human Givens Publishing Ltd. 2007. Web. 27 Feb. 2012. < http://why-we-dream.com/othertheories.htm>
Lanzer, R. Are Dreams An Extension Of Physical Reality? Web. 27 Feb. 2012.
Eddy, S. Dreams part 1: Sigmund Freud’s theory and dream interpretation. 2010. Web. 27 Feb. 2012.
