INTRODUCTION

Hervey de Saint-Denys, in Part 3 of Dreams and how to Direct them, argues dream-transitions only look illogical by the standards of waking stories; assume they're embodied thoughts, freely associating, even punning, and they make sense. He gives the following examples out of his own dream-journals of wordplay and word-associations manifesting physically and literally in dreams.

Whether you find his idea of scene-changes based on word-associations convincing or not, they have a definite charm. Especially for dreams collected long before Freud or Jung!

THE COMET

I think of a comet; the expression comet with hair comes to mind, and I see a star with real hair.
[Latin coma, hair.]

ROSALIE

A maid named Rosalie appears before me. My mind sets in motion a horrible and detestable play on words. I see, in a dream, a four-poster bed with roses on the curtains and bedspread!
[Roses à lit, pronounced Roz a li, 'roses in bed']

A BEAUTIFUL HAND

I admire a manuscript of magnificent calligraphy. I tell myself it was written by a beautiful hand, and extravagant as it is, I dream that the characters are drawn on a beautiful hand, cut and pasted.

SYLVIA

I think I am in the Tuileries. I see a charming young woman to whom I am attracted with that enthusiasm which is the hallmark of dreams, and in whom I find a natural conformity of feeling, for it is my imagination alone that makes her speak and act. I ask her what her name is. "Sylvia," she replies.
[Latin silva, forest.]

I do not know by what association this name was produced, but no sooner do I utter it than I find myself in a dense forest, and the girl herself has become a little sky-blue bird, perched on my shoulder, not far from my ear, and also quite close to my lips...

In the last dream I have related, the main idea of the girl had impressed me too much for the aspirations it had awakened in me to vanish so quickly as mere visions. So I continued to speak to her, which I did very gently for fear of frightening her into flight. I even thanked her that she had changed her appearance in this way, which allowed us to stay together longer, without arousing unwelcome attention. And when the bird's beak came close to my lips, I had the measure of the enormous part that imagination plays in our liveliest pleasures, for I was as much impressed as I could have been in reality by the most sensual kiss.

Source: Dreams and how to direct them, 2022, pp 175-6; Daniel Bernardo's translation of Les rêves et les moyens de les diriger by Hervey de Saint-Denys, 1867. Dreams untitled in original.

World Dream Bank homepage - Art gallery - New stuff - Introductory sampler, best dreams, best art - On dreamwork - Books
Indexes: Subject - Author - Date - Names - Places - Art media/styles
Titles: A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - IJ - KL - M - NO - PQ - R - Sa-Sh - Si-Sz - T - UV - WXYZ
Email: wdreamb@yahoo.com - Catalog of art, books, CDs - Behind the Curtain: FAQs, bio, site map - Kindred sites