English For Today chapter 6: Dreams

Unit Six: Dreams

Lesson 1

What is a Dream?

A. Work in pairs and discuss the following questions.

• What is a dream?
• Do you have dreams?
• Is a dream real or unreal?
• Is there any relation between dream and action?
• Who is a dreamer? Do you like a dreamer? Why/why not?

B. Read the following words aloud. You may not be familiar with some of them. Look up their meaning in a dictionary. How are they related to dreams?

C. Read the following text and fill in the gaps with the words listed above. You can use a word only once.

All of us know what a dream is. Generally we dream during our sleep. Dreams may appear to be short or long lasting. Sometimes we say, “I dreamt for the whole night!” But do we really dream for the whole night? Some dreams are sweet or (a)…………… . Some are horrible. When we dream something extremely bad, we call it a (b) ………………… This is interesting that dreams have no (c) ……………... They are soft, (d) ……………..…, and (e) ………………… Do you know how the words (f) ………………… and (g) ………………… differ from dream? Do you know any (h) ……….....…………? What do they do? Does dream have any relation with (i) ………………….? Do we always dream during our sleep?

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The happy dream we have about our lives or future while awake is called (j) ………..

Sometimes we long for something so passionately. We call that a dream as well.

D. Now read the article below and see if what you think about dreams– similar or dissimilar to what is said here.

Dreams have fascinated philosophers for thousands of years, but only recently have dreams been subjected to empirical research and scientific study. Chances are that you’ve often found yourself puzzling over the content of a dream, or perhaps you've wondered why you dream at all.

First, let’s start by answering a basic question: What is a dream? A dream can include any of the images, thoughts and emotions that are experienced during sleep. Dreams can be extraordinarily vivid or very vague; filled with joyful emotions or frightening images; focused and understandable or unclear and confusing.

Why do we dream? What purpose do dreams serve? While many theories have been proposed about the reason and function of dreams, no consensus has emerged. Considering the time we spend in a dreaming state, the fact that researchers do not yet understand the purpose of dreams may seem baffling. However, it is important to consider that science is still unraveling the exact purpose and function of sleep itself. Some researchers suggest that dreams serve no real purpose, while others believe that dreaming is essential to mental, emotional and physical well-being.

Figure

Labels: feeling, remember, world, going, peace, sex, able, fun, ing, relaxing, friends, flying, happy, love, family, beach, good, holiday, perfect, life, people, nice, somewhere, just, always, warm, time, really, one, know, day, beautiful, fly, wake, sea, lucid, without, travel, adventure, lottery, around, house, best, relaxed, spending, winning, waking, man, living, husband, peaceful, real, place, loved, sunshine, sunny, things, someone, feel, ones, boyfriend, travelling, meeting, playing, pleasure, great Description: A word cloud made of words related to dreams and everyday life, with the largest words "flying", "happy", "love", "family" and "friends" shown in the centre and the rest of the words in smaller sizes around them.

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Next, let’s learn more about some of the most prominent dream theories.

Consistent with the psychoanalytic perspective, Sigmund Freud's theory of dreams suggests that dreams are a representation of subconscious desires, thoughts and motivations. According to Freud, people are driven by aggressive and sexual instincts that are repressed from conscious awareness. While these thoughts are not consciously expressed, they find their way into our awareness via dreams. In his famous book The Interpretation of Dreams (1899), Freud wrote that dreams are “...disguised fulfillments of repressed wishes.”

Freud’s theory contributed to the popularity of dream interpretation. Following his paths many theorists came up with their own ideas about dreams. The following are just a few of them:

• Some researchers suggest that dreams are a subjective interpretation of signals generated by the brain during sleep. Dreams are not meaningless. Instead, during dreams the cognitive elements in our brain produce new ideas.

• One theory suggests that dreams are the result of our brains trying to interpret external stimuli during sleep. For example, the sound of the radio may be incorporated into the content of a dream.

• Another theory uses a computer metaphor to account for dreams. According to this theory, dreams serve to ‘clean up’ clutter from the mind, much like clean-up operations in a computer, refreshing the mind to prepare for the next day.

• Yet another model proposes that dreams function as a form of psychotherapy. In this theory, the dreamer is able to make connections between different thoughts and emotions in a safe environment.

E. Find out the contexual meaning of the following words and identify their parts of speech. Then make sentences with them.

a. empirical b. vivid c. vague d. frightening e. baffling f. unravel g. psychoanalytic h. perspective i. motivation j. awareness k. repressed l. cognitive m. stimuli n. incorporate o. clutter p. psychotherapy

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F. Read the following statements. Are they true or false? If false, give correct answers.

1. Philosophers had little interest in dreams until very recently.
2. Dreams are always elusive.
3. Scientists differ in their opinions in terms of the reasons or duration of a dream.
4. According to Freud, dreams are conscious memories that we forgot for some time.
5. Modern scientists believe that dreams help generate new ideas.
6. Brain can connect to external stimulus like radio signals.
7. Dreams can work as mind-cleaner.

G. Theorists interpret dreams that we have during our sleep. But we also dream when we are awake. Now give examples of

• a sweet dream while sleeping
• a nightmare
• a dream that you cherish consciously
• a day dream

H. Noted scientist and former President of India, APJ Abdul Kalam says, “Dream is not what you see in sleep, dream is something that does not let you sleep.”

Work in pairs and answer the questions –

• Do you agree with his statement? Why/why not?
• Do you have a dream that does not let you sleep? What is that? What do you do to make it real?

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I. Write a paragraph of 100 words narrating what you will do if you become an elected student leader in your college.

J. Write about a dream that you have and what you have to do to make it real. For example:

I want to be the opening batsman of Bangladesh national cricket team. I know I have to ....

K. Summarise the text on dreams highlighting the following points:

• What is a dream?
• Why do we dream?
• Does a dream have any meaning?
• What are the benefits of dreaming?

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Lesson 2

Dreams in Literature

Introduction:

William Wordsworth (1770-1850), the great Romantic poet, considered poets dreamers because they have the ability to turn "our wish, our power, our thought" into "a deed." Poets give voice to what we desire and strive hard to achieve. They write about the dreams of lovers, men of action, patriots, social reformers, workers and just about anyone given to imagining a better tomorrow for themselves and for others.

In the previous lessons we've learnt about different aspects of dreams. In this lesson, we will read two poems written by two poets from two sides of the Atlantic. While D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930) was an English novelist, poet and essayist, Langston Hughes (1902-1967) was an American poet, novelist and playwright. Hughes was also a leader of the Harlem Renaissance which attempted to bring changes in the lives of the Black people in the 1920s.

A. Find out more about Lawrence and Hughes from the Internet. Lawrence was more famous as a novelist, so write down the names of five of his novels. Then present your findings in a group to the class.

B. Now read the two poems and answer the questions that follow.