What is the Difference Between Dream and Waking Experience in the Perception of 'Reality'?
  • Jack Cummins
    5.7k
    I am interested in this topic as an aspect of understanding the nature of the subconscious, and its role in human understanding. Dreams were perceived by Freud as being a form of psychosis in sleeping experience. He saw dreams as being an important part of understanding the subconscious but was probably not an idealist philosopher, as seeing mind as more 'real' than conscious understanding, in the form of reason.

    Dreams as an 'ultimate reality' could give rise to the philosophy of skepticism and the abandonment of the perspective of philosophical realism. This would be a dubious perspective. Dreams are a source of imagination but different from waking reality. This is an area touched upon by Freud and Jung, but it has questionable metaphysics. What is the difference between metaphysical and psychological thinking of the nature of 'reality'?
    Jack Cummins Options
  • jorndoe
    4.2k
    One significant difference is the "dreamt about".
    I'm not "the me in your dream".
    jorndoe Options
  • Jack Cummins
    5.7k
    ↪jorndoe

    I wonder about the nature of personal identity in dreams. The 'me' in dreams may be different from waking aspects of meaning. It may be about a more wider perspective of 'self', or a more fragmentary experience of understanding. Dreams may contain fragments of conscious memory and reflection. On the other hand, they could be seen as having a wider understanding of the basics of human consciousness and personal identity.
    Jack Cummins Options
  • jorndoe
    4.2k
    ↪Jack Cummins
    , oh.

    I just meant to note that in dreams (and hallucinations and such), the perception and the perceived are the same, which isn't the case for anything extra-self.

    For example, I'm not (identical to) your dream-me. (No need to apologize if you slap me in a dream, I wasn't harmed. :smile:)

    Actually, I think you already noted that:

    but different from — Jack Cummins

    If we were to deny the difference, then we'd converge on solipsism.
    jorndoe Options
  • Jack Cummins
    5.7k
    ↪jorndoe

    There is the question of what is a hallucination. It may seem obvious to some but not necessarily. In particular, I do have some retinal problems which lead me to see differently. For example, I see images when asleep and in dark. These may be related to qualia and the limitations of the human body and nervous system. On the other hand it may point to the limita of sensory experiences and the nervous system as a definitive guide to human perception and knowledge.
    Jack Cummins Options
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