Audiobook · read by volunteers
Dream Psychology
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939)
Read by David Barnes, ML Cohen, ryanaw, Cori Samuel, Gesine, Robin Cotter, J. M. Smallheer · 10 chapters · 6 h 04
About the book
Why do we dream, and what do our dreams mean? Sigmund Freud argued that dreams are not nonsense but disguised expressions of wishes, and that a careful reading of them can tell us a great deal about the mind. Dream Psychology presents his ideas in a short, accessible form, intended for readers who might be put off by the long and detailed account in his major work on the subject.
The book explains the main concepts one by one: the difference between what a dream shows and what it hides, the part played by wishes, and the methods Freud used to interpret them. In ten sections and a little over six hours, the recording makes his argument easy to follow. It is a good way to meet one of the most influential and debated thinkers of the twentieth century on his own ground.
Introduction
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) was an Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis. His book on the interpretation of dreams, published in German at the very end of the nineteenth century, set out his theory that dreams are a kind of fulfilment of wishes, often disguised by the dreaming mind. It is a long and detailed work, and it was not an easy read for the general public.
Dream Psychology, in the English translation by M. D. Eder, appeared in 1920 as a shorter, more approachable account. Its purpose was to win back the many serious readers who had been put off by the great book, with its dense accumulation of detail, and to give the essential ideas in a clearer form. It discusses why dreams can be studied, how they are put together and how their meaning can be uncovered, and it presents Freud’s views in a straightforward style.
Freud’s theories have been debated and revised for more than a century. Many of his specific claims are no longer accepted by modern psychology, and research on sleep and dreaming has moved in new directions. Even so, his influence on culture, literature and ordinary language has been very great, and it is useful to know where such ideas began.
The recording has ten sections and lasts about six hours. It is read by LibriVox volunteers. Why listen today? To understand the history of modern ideas about the mind, and to hear Freud’s thought presented clearly rather than at second hand. Approached as a historical document, and with a critical ear, it remains stimulating and surprisingly readable.
Public domain
Sigmund Freud died in 1939: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text