Tony Crisp Interpretation:
Once you understand a dream, its images can be seen as a clear expression of personal information. For instance, a woman dreamt she was standing alone on a plateau and she could see two worlds hanging in the sky. In talking about the dream she said her husband had died and she had met another man. This new man was very different to herself and her past husband. The world he lived in was new to her and she was cautious. This helped her to see she had the choice between two worlds, and her dream was simply illustrating her situation—she was alone, on a plateau, facing choices. From this point of view, dreams are not strange or coded. They are not trying to hide information, but express it in much the same way we use imagery in everyday speech. In the above example “worlds” is the imagery used. But the words might also be “that was a close shave,” “barking up the wrong tree,” “got the sack” etc. Dreams also use other things that we take for granted as everyday parts of mental life. Wordplay and puns, for example, and the drama we understand so easily in films and plays but are mystified by in dreams. Such dream statements as “I was in a dark and lonely house,” “The dark water moved slowly between the stones,” “It was a beautiful bright sunny day and I was in a children’s playground” are immediately understandable as expressions of mood.