HowMetaphorStructuresDreams:

TheTheoryofConceptualMetaphorAppliedtoDreamAnalysis

GeorgeLakoff

LinguisticsDepartment

UniversityofCaliforniaatBerkeley

ToAppearinDreaming

January29,1993

WhatIsMetaphor

Itwasdiscoveredinthelate1970'sthatthemindcontainsanenormoussystemof
generalconceptualmetaphorswaysofunderstandingrelativelyabstract
conceptsintermsofthosethataremoreconcrete.Muchofoureverydaylanguage
andthoughtmakesuseofsuchconceptualmetaphors.Thispaperclaims,first,that
thesystemofconceptualmetaphorthatfunctionsinordinarythoughtandlanguage
isalsoused,first,toprovideplausibleinterpretationsofdreamsand,second,to
generatedreams.

ButbeforeIturntothediscussionofdreams,Ishouldspendabitoftime
explicatingindetailwhatImeanby``conceptualmetaphor.''

ConceptualMetaphor

Imaginealoverelationshipdescribedasfollows:

Ourrelationshiphashitadeadendstreet.

Hereloveisbeingconceptualizedasajourney,withtheimplicationthatthe
relationshipisstalled,thattheloverscannotkeepgoingthewaythey'vebeen
going,thattheymustturnback,orabandontherelationshipaltogether.Thisisnot
anisolatedcase.Englishhasmanyeverydayexpressionsthatarebasedona
conceptualizationofloveasajourney,andtheyareusednotjustfortalkingabout
love,butforreasoningaboutitaswell.Somearenecessarilyaboutlove;others
canbeunderstoodthatway:

Lookhowfarwe'vecome.It'sbeenalong,bumpyroad.Wecan'tturnbacknow.
We'reatacrossroads.Wemayhavetogoourseparateways.Therelationshipisn't
goinganywhere.We'respinningourwheels.Ourrelationshipisoffthetrack.The
marriageisontherocks.Wemayhavetobailoutofthisrelationship.

Theseareordinary,everydayEnglishexpressions.Theyarenotpoetic,norare
theynecessarilyusedforspecialrhetoricaleffect.ThoselikeLookhowfarwe've
come,whicharen'tnecessarilyaboutlove,canreadilybeunderstoodasbeing
aboutlove.

Asalinguistandacognitivescientist,Iasktwocommonplacequestions:

Isthereageneralprinciplegoverninghowtheselinguisticexpressionsabout
journeysareusedtocharacterizelove?

Isthereageneralprinciplegoverninghowourpatternsofinferenceabout
journeysareusedtoreasonaboutlovewhenexpressionssuchastheseareused?

Theanswertobothisyes.Indeed,thereisasinglegeneralprinciplethatanswers
bothquestions.Butitisageneralprinciplethatisneitherpartofthegrammarof
English,northeEnglishlexicon.Rather,itispartoftheconceptualsystem
underlyingEnglish:Itisaprincipleforunderstandingthedomainofloveinterms
ofthedomainofjourneys.

Theprinciplecanbestatedinformallyasametaphoricalscenario:

Theloversaretravelersonajourneytogether,
withtheircommonlifegoalsseenasdestinations
tobereached.Therelationshipistheirvehicle,
anditallowsthemtopursuethosecommongoals
together.Therelationshipisseenasfulfilling
itspurposeaslongasitallowsthemtomakepro
gresstowardtheircommongoals.Thejourney
isn'teasy.Thereareimpediments,andthereare
places(crossroads)whereadecisionhastobe
madeaboutwhichdirectiontogoinandwhetherto
keeptravelingtogether.

Themetaphorinvolvesunderstandingonedomainof

experience,love,intermsofaverydifferentdomainofexperience,journeys.
Moretechnically,themetaphorcanbeunderstoodasamapping(inthe
mathematicalsense)fromasourcedomain(inthiscase,journeys)toatarget
domain(inthiscase,love).Themappingistightlystructured.Thereare
ontologicalcorrespondences,accordingtowhichentitiesinthedomainoflove
(e.g.,thelovers,theircommongoals,theirdifficulties,theloverelationship,etc.)
correspondsystematicallytoentitiesinthedomainofajourney(thetravelers,the
vehicle,destinations,etc.).

Tomakeiteasiertorememberwhatmappingsthereareintheconceptualsystem,
JohnsonandI(LakoffandJohnson,1980)adoptedastrategyfornamingsuch
mappings,usingmnemonicswhichsuggestthemapping.Mnemonicnames
typicallyhavetheform:XISY,whereXisthenameofthetargetdomainandY
isthenameofthesourcedomain.Inthiscase,thenameofthemappingisLOVE
ISAJOURNEY.WhenIspeakoftheLOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphor,Iam
usingamnemonicforasetofontologicalcorrespondencesthatcharacterizea
mapping,namely:THELOVEASJOURNEYMAPPING

Theloverscorrespondtotravelers.
Theloverelationshipcorrespondstothevehicle.Thelovers'commongoals
correspondtotheircommondestinationsonthejourney.
Difficultiesintherelationshipcorrespondtoimpedimentstotravel.

Itisacommonmistaketoconfusethenameofthemapping,LOVEISA
JOURNEY,forthemappingitself.Themappingisthesetofcorrespondences.
Thus,wheneverIrefertoametaphorbyamnemoniclikeLOVEISAJOURNEY,
Iwillbereferringtosuchasetofcorrespondences.

TheLOVEASJOURNEYmappingisasetofontologicalcorrespondencesthat
mapknowledgeaboutjourneysontoknowledgeaboutlove.Suchcorrespondences
permitustoreasonaboutloveusingtheknowledgeweusetoreasonabout
journeys.Letustakeanexample.Considertheexpression,``We'restuck,''saidby
onelovertoanotherabouttheirrelationship.Howisthisexpressionabouttravelto
beunderstoodasbeingabouttheirrelationship?
``We'restuck''canbeusedoftravel,andwhenitis,itevokesknowledgeabout
travel.Theexactknowledgemayvaryfrompersontoperson,buthereisatypical
exampleofthekindofknowledgeevoked.Thecapitalizedexpressionsrepresent
entitiesintheontologyoftravel,thatis,inthesourcedomainoftheLOVEISA
JOURNEYmappinggivenabove.

TwoTRAVELERSareinaVEHICLE,TRAVELINGWITH
COMMONDESTINATIONS.TheVEHICLEencounterssome
IMPEDIMENTandgetsstuck,thatis,becomesnon
functional.Iftheydonothing,theywillnot
REACHTHEIRDESTINATIONS.Therearealimited
numberofalternativesforaction:
>Theycantrytogetitmovingagain,eitherby
fixingitorgettingitpasttheIMPEDIMENTthat
stoppedit.
>TheycanremaininthenonfunctionalVEHICLEand
giveuponREACHINGTHEIRDESTINATIONS.
>TheycanabandontheVEHICLE.
>Thealternativeofremaininginthenonfunctional
VEHICLEtakestheleasteffort,butdoesnot
satisfythedesiretoREACHTHEIRDESTINATIONS.

Theontologicalcorrespondencesthatconstitutethe

LOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphormaptheontologyoftravelontotheontologyof
love.Insodoingtheymapthisscenarioabouttravelontoacorrespondinglove
scenarioinwhichthecorrespondingalternativesforactionareseen.Hereisthe
correspondinglovescenariothatresultsfromapplyingthecorrespondencestothis
knowledgestructure.Thetargetdomainentitiesthataremappedbythe
correspondencesarecapitalized:

TwoLOVERSareinaLOVERELATIONSHIP,PURSUING
COMMONLIFEGOALS.TheRELATIONSHIPencounters
someDIFFICULTY,whichmakesitnonfunctional.If
theydonothing,theywillnotbeabletoACHIEVE
THEIRLIFEGOALS.Therearealimitednumberof
alternativesforaction:
>Theycantrytogetitmovingagain,eitherby
fixingitorgettingitpasttheDIFFICULTY.

>TheycanremaininthenonfunctionalRELATION
SHIP,andgiveuponACHIEVINGTHEIRLIFEGOALS.
>TheycanabandontheRELATIONSHIP.
>Thealternativeofremaininginthenonfunctional
RELATIONSHIPtakestheleasteffort,butdoesnot
satisfythedesiretoACHIEVELIFEGOALS.

Thisisanexampleofaninferencepatternthatismappedfromonedomainto
another.Itisviasuchmappingsthatweapplyknowledgeabouttraveltolove
relationships.

Metaphorsarenotmerewords

WhatconstitutestheLOVEASJOURNEYmetaphorisnotanyparticularwordor
expression.Itistheontologicalmappingacrossconceptualdomains,fromthe
sourcedomainofjourneystothetargetdomainoflove.Themetaphorisnotjusta
matteroflanguage,butofthoughtandreason.Thelanguageissecondary.The
mappingisprimary,inthatitsanctionstheuseofsourcedomainlanguageand
inferencepatternsfortargetdomainconcepts.Themappingisconventional,that
is,itisafixedpartofourconceptualsystem,oneofourconventionalwaysof
conceptualizingloverelationships.

Thisviewofmetaphoristhoroughlyatoddswiththetraditionalviewofmetaphor.
Thetraditionalviewincludesthefollowingclaims:

(1)Metaphorsarelinguisticexpressions(asopposedtoconceptualmappings).

(2)Metaphorsusewordsfromoneliteraldomaintoexpressconceptsinanother
literaldomain,butthereisnosuchthingasmetaphoricalthoughtormetaphorical
reasoningwhereinferencepatternsfromonedomainareappliedtoanother
domain.

(3)Metaphorsarebasedonsimilarity:wordsfromonedomainexpresssimilar
conceptsinotherdomains.
(4)Metaphoricallanguageisnotpartofordinary,everyday,conventional
language,butratherpartofpoeticorespeciallyrhetoricallanguage.

Alltheseclaimsarefalse.Forexample,ifmetaphorsweremerelylinguistic
expressions,wewouldexpectdifferentlinguisticexpressionstobedifferent
metaphors.Thus,"We'vehitadeadendstreet"wouldconstituteonemetaphor.
"Wecan'tturnbacknow"wouldconstituteanother,entirelydifferentmetaphor.
"Theirmarriageisontherocks"wouldinvolvestilladifferentmetaphor.Andso
onfordozensofexamples.Yetwedon'tseemtohavedozensofdifferent
metaphorshere.Wehaveonemetaphor,inwhichloveisconceptualizedasa
journey.Themappingtellsuspreciselyhowloveisbeingconceptualizedasa
journey.Andthisunifiedwayofconceptualizinglovemetaphoricallyisrealizedin
manydifferentlinguisticexpressions.

Inaddition,wesawabovethatinferencepatternsfromthetraveldomaincanbe
usedtoreasonaboutlove.Hence,metaphoricalreasoningdoesexist.Asto
similarity,thereisnothinginherentlysimilarbetweenloveandjourneys,yetthey
arelinkedmetaphorically.Finally,allofthemetaphoricalexpressionswelooked
atintheLOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphorareordinary,everydayexpressions,
ratherthanpoeticorespeciallyrhetoricalexpressions.

Itshouldbenotedthatcontemporarymetaphortheoristscommonlyusetheterm
``metaphor''torefertotheconceptualmapping,andtheterm``metaphorical
expression''torefertoanindividuallinguisticexpression(likedeadendstreet)
thatissanctionedbyamapping.Wehaveadoptedthisterminologyforthe
followingreason:Metaphor,asaphenomenon,involvesbothconceptual
mappingsandindividuallinguisticexpressions.Itisimportanttokeepthem
distinct.Sinceitisthemappingsthatareprimaryandthatstatethegeneralizations
thatareourprincipalconcern,wehavereservedtheterm``metaphor''forthe
mappings,ratherthanforthelinguisticexpressions.

Intheliteratureofthefield,smallcapitalslikeLOVEISAJOURNEYareusedas
mnemonicstonamemappings.Thus,whenwerefertotheLOVEISA
JOURNEYmetaphor,wearereferingtothesetofcorrespondencesdiscussed
above.TheEnglishsentence``Loveisajourney,''ontheotherhand,isa
metaphoricalexpressionthatisunderstoodviathatsetofcorrespondences.

Generalizations
TheLOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphorisaconceptualmappingthatcharacterizes
ageneralizationoftwokinds:

Polysemygeneralization:Ageneralizationover
relatedsensesoflinguisticexpressions,e.g.,
deadendstreet,crossroads,stuck,spinningone's
wheels,notgoinganywhere,andsoon.

Inferentialgeneralization:Ageneralizationover
inferencesacrossdifferentconceptualdomains.

Thatis,theexistenceofthemappingprovidesageneral
answertotwoquestions:

Whyarewordsfortravelusedtodescribelove
relationships?

Whyareinferencepatternsusedtoreasonabout
travelalsousedtoreasonaboutloverelation
ships.

Correspondingly,fromtheperspectiveofthelinguisticanalyst,theexistenceof
suchcrossdomainpairingsofwordsandofinferencepatternsprovidesevidence
fortheexistenceofsuchmappings.

Novelextensionsofconventionalmetaphors

ThefactthattheLOVEISAJOURNEYmappingisafixedpartofourconceptual
systemexplainswhynewandimaginativeusesofthemappingcanbeunderstood
instantly,giventheontologicalcorrespondencesandotherknowledgeabout
journeys.Takethesonglyric,

We'redrivinginthefastlaneonthefreewayoflove.

Thetravelingknowledgecalleduponisthis:Whenyoudriveinthefastlane,you
goalongwayinashorttimeanditcanbeexcitinganddangerous.Thegeneral
metaphoricalmappingmapsthisknowledgeaboutdrivingintoknowledgeabout
loverelationships.Thedangermaybetothevehicle(therelationshipmaynotlast)
orthepassengers(theloversmaybehurt,emotionally).Theexcitementofthe
lovejourneyissexual.Ourunderstandingofthesonglyricisaconsequenceofthe
preexistingmetaphoricalcorrespondencesoftheLOVEASJOURNEY
metaphor.ThesonglyricisinstantlycomprehensibletospeakersofEnglish
becausethosemetaphoricalcorrespondencesarealreadypartofourconceptual
system.

Motivation

Eachconventionalmetaphor,thatis,eachmapping,isafixedpatternof
conceptualcorrespondencesacrossconceptualdomains.Assuch,eachmapping
definesanopenendedclassofpotentialcorrespondencesacrossinference
patterns.Whenactivated,amappingmayapplytoanovelsourcedomain
knowledgestructureandcharacterizeacorrespondingtargetdomainknowledge
structure.

Mappingsshouldnotbethoughtofasprocesses,orasalgorithmsthat
mechanicallytakesourcedomaininputsandproducetargetdomainoutputs.Each
mappingshouldbeseeninsteadasafixedpatternofontologicalcorrespondences
acrossdomainsthatmay,ormaynot,beappliedtoasourcedomainknowledge
structureorasourcedomainlexicalitem.Thus,lexicalitemsthatareconventional
inthesourcedomainarenotalwaysconventionalinthetargetdomain.Instead,
eachsourcedomainlexicalitemmayormaynotmakeuseofthestaticmapping
pattern.Ifitdoes,ithasanextendedlexicalizedsenseinthetargetdomain,where
thatsenseischaracterizedbythemapping.Ifnot,thesourcedomainlexicalitem
willnothaveaconventionalsenseinthetargetdomain,butmaystillbeactively
mappedinthecaseofnovelmetaphor.Thus,thewordsfreewayandfastlaneare
notconventionallyusedoflove,buttheknowledgestructuresassociatedwith
themaremappedbytheLOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphorinthecaseof``We're
drivinginthefastlaneonthefreewayoflove.''

ImageableIdioms

Manyofthemetaphoricalexpressionsdiscussedintheliteratureonconventional
metaphorareidioms.Onclassicalviews,idiomshavearbitrarymeanings.But
withincognitivelinguistics,thepossibilityexiststhattheyarenotarbitrary,but
rathermotivated.Thatis,theydoariseautomaticallybyproductiverules,butthey
fitoneormorepatternspresentintheconceptualsystem.Letuslookalittlemore
closelyatidioms.
Anidiomlike``spinningone'swheels''comeswithaconventionalmentalimage,
thatofthewheelsofacarstuckinsomesubstanceeitherinmud,sand,snow,or
onice,sothatthecarcannotmovewhenthemotorisengagedandthewheelsturn.
Partofourknowledgeaboutthatimageisthatalotofenergyisbeingusedup(in
spinningthewheels)withoutanyprogressbeingmade,thatthesituationwillnot
readilychangeofitsownaccord,thatitwilltakealotofeffortonthepartofthe
occupantstogetthevehiclemovingagainandthatmaynotevenbepossible.

TheLOVEASJOURNEYmetaphorappliestothisknowledgeabouttheimage.It
mapsthisknowledgeontoknowledgeaboutloverelationships:Alotofenergyis
beingspentwithoutanyprogresstowardfulfillingcommongoals,thesituation
willnotchangeofitsownaccord,itwilltakealotofeffortonthepartofthe
loverstomakemoreprogress,andsoon.Inshort,whenidiomsthathave
associatedconventionalimages,itiscommonforanindependentlymotivated
conceptualmetaphortomapthatknowledgefromthesourcetothetargetdomain.
Forasurveyofexperimentsverifyingtheexistenceofsuchimagesandsuch
mappings,seeGibbs1990.

Mappingsatthesuperordinatelevel

IntheLOVEISAJOURNEYmapping,aloverelationshipcorrespondstoa
vehicle.Avehicleisasuperordinatecategorythatincludessuchbasiclevel
categoriesascar,train,boat,andplane.Indeed,theexamplesofvehiclesare
typicallydrawnfromthisrangeofbasiclevelcategories:car(longbumpyroad,
spinningourwheels),train(offthetrack),boat(ontherocks,foundering),plane
(justtakingoff,bailingout).Thisisnotanaccident:ingeneral,wehavefoundthat
mappingsareatthesuperordinateratherthanthebasiclevel.Thus,wedonotfind
fullygeneralsubmappingslikeALOVERELATIONSHIPISACAR;whenwe
findaloverelationshipconceptualizedasacar,wealsotendtofindit
conceptualizedasaboat,atrain,aplane,etc.Itisthesuperordinatecategory
VEHICLEnotthebasiclevelcategoryCARthatisinthegeneralmapping.

Itshouldbenosurprisethatthegeneralizationisatthesuperordinatelevel,while
thespecialcasesareatthebasiclevel.Afterall,thebasiclevelisthelevelofrich
mentalimagesandrichknowledgestructure.(Foradiscussionofthepropertiesof
basiclevelcategories,seeLakoff,1987,pp.3150.)Amappingatthe
superordinatelevelmaximizesthepossibilitiesformappingrichconceptual
structureinthesourcedomainontothetargetdomain,sinceitpermitsmanybasic
levelinstances,eachofwhichisinformationrich.
Thus,apredictionismadeaboutconventionalmappings:thecategoriesmapped
willtendtobeatthesuperordinateratherthanbasiclevel.Thus,onetendsnotto
findmappingslikeALOVERELATIONSHIPISACARorALOVE
RELATIONSHIPISABOAT.Instead,onetendstofindbothbasiclevelcases
(e.g.,bothcarsandboats),whichindicatesthatthegeneralizationisonelevel
higher,atthesuperordinatelevelofthevehicle.Inmostofthehundredsofcases
ofconventionalmappingsstudiedsofar,ithasbeenborneoutthatsuperordinate
categoriesthatareusedinmappings.

Thereare,however,occasionalcaseswherebasiclevelcategoriesseemtoshow
upinmappings,orwhereitisnotclearwhetheracategoryshouldbeconsidered
basiclevel.Forexample,angerisabasicemotion.Shoulditbeconsidereda
basiclevelconcept?Thereisnoshortageofconceptualmetaphorsforanger:
ANGERISAHOTFLUIDINACONTAINER,ANGERISMADNESS,andso
on.Itisnotclearwhetherangershouldnotbeconsideredabasiclevelcategoryor
acasewhereabasiclevelcategoryoccursinamapping.Anothercasewillbe
discussedbelow:IntheIMPOTENCEISBLINDNESSmetaphor(observedby
Freud),thereisasubmappingthatTESTICLESAREEYES.Thiscertainly
involvesbasiclevelconcepts.Itisnotclearwhatsignificancethishas,ifany,for
thetheoryofmetaphor.Thereisnothinginthegeneraltheorythatrequires
mappingstobeonthesuperordinatelevel.Itissimplyanempiricalfactthatthey
tendtooccurthatway.Thistendencymayjustfollowfromthefactthatmappings
atthesuperordinateleveldomoreconceptualworkthanmappingsatlowerlevels.
Itcouldbethatmappingstendtobeoptimizedforinformationcontent,butthat
occasionalmappingsatthebasicleveloccurforotherreasons,forexample,when
thereisanexperientialbasisforamappingatthebasiclevelbutnotatthe
superordinatelevel.

Intheremainderofthispaper,whenIspeakofa``metaphor''ora``conceptual
metaphor,''Ishallbereferringtoamappingofthesortwehavejustdiscussed.
Withthisexampleofaconceptualmetaphorinplace,letusturntotherelationship
betweenconceptualmetaphoranddreams.

MetaphorandDreams

WhatIhavetosayaboutdreamsisnotentirelynew.Thebasicpointgoesbackto
aremarkofFreud'sinTheInterpretationofDreams,inadiscussionofdream
symbolism(Stracheytranslation,NewYork:AvonBooks,1965,sectionVI.E.,p.
386):
...thissymbolismisnotpeculiartodreams,
butischaracteristicofunconsciousideation..
.anditistobefoundinfolklore,andinpopu
larmyths,legends,linguisticidioms,proverbial
wisdomandcurrentjokes,toamorecomplete
extentthanindreams.

Itismyjob,asalinguistandacognitivescientist,tostudysystematicallywhat
Freudcalled``unconsciousideation''ofasymbolicnature.Ispecializeinthestudy
ofconceptualsystemsthelargelyunconscioussystemsofthoughtintermsof
whichwethink,andonwhichordinaryeverydaylanguageisbased.Idothis
largelyonthebasisofthesystematicstudyofwhatFreudcalled``linguistic
idioms.''

WhatIandmycolleagueshavefound,inadecadeandahalfofstudy,isthat,as
Freudsuggested,wehavesystemsof``unconsciousideation''ofasymbolicnature.
Partofthisisaverylargesystemofconceptualmetaphorandmetonymy,andI
andmycolleaguesandstudentshavebeentracingoutthissysteminextensive
detail.Freudwasrightwhenhesuggestedthatthissystemisevenmore
elaboratelyusedinordinary``linguisticidioms''thanindreams.

HavingworkedoutaverylargepartofthissystemforEnglish,Iwouldliketo
showinsomedetailhowitfunctionsindreams.Interestinglyenough,Freudand
otherdreamanalystshavenotalreadydonethis.NeitherFreudnorother
psychoanalystshavebeeninterestedinworkingoutthedetailsofthesystemof
mundanemetaphoricthought,thoughtheyimplicitlyrecognizedtheexistenceof
suchamodeofthoughtandhavemadeuseofitimplicitlyaspartofdream
interpretation.Thejobofworkingoutthedetailsofthemetaphorsystemhas
fallentolinguistsandcognitivescientists.Freudandmanyofhisfollowerswere
interestedmoreinsexualsymbolismmetaphorsofatabooednature.Butwhat
wefindthroughthestudyofeverydaylanguageisthatunconscioussymbolic
thoughtis,forthemostpart,notsexualortabooed.Tabooedthoughtonlyrarely
showsupinordinaryeverydayconventionallanguage.WhatIwillbedoingisthus
somethingthatotherdreamanalystshavenotalreadydone.Itis,ifanything,the
tamepartofdreamanalysisthestudyofhowunconscioussymbolicthoughtof
themostordinarynontabooedkindshowsupindreams.

Thepurposeofthispaperistoprovideasetofexamplesofcommonplacedreams
inwhichourordinarysystemofmetaphormediatesbetweentheovertcontentof
thedreamandthewayweunderstanddreamsasapplyingtooureverydaylives.In
theexamplesofdreaminterpretationsthatIwillbediscussing,conceptual
metaphorplaysthefollowingrole:

LetD=theovertcontentofthedream.LetM=acollectionofconceptual
metaphorsfromourconceptualsystemLetK=knowledgeaboutthedreamer's
historyandeverydaylifeLetI=aninterpretationofthedreamintermsofthe
dreamer'slife

Thatis,Iistheinterpretedmeaningofthedream,whichtheinterpreterhopeshe
hasaccuratelyportrayed.Therelationshipbetweenthedreamanditsinterpretation
is:

DM>I,givenK

Metaphorsmapthedreamontothemeaningofthe
dream,givenrelevantknowledgeofthedreamer's
life.

DiswhatFreudcalledthe``manifestcontent''ofthedreamandIiswhathecalled
the``latentcontent.''

Ifthisiscorrect,thenthesystemofconceptualmetaphorplaysacriticalroleinthe
interpretationofdreams.However,itcannotbeusedinisolation,without
knowledgeofthedreamer'severydaylifetoyieldameaningfulinterpretation.
Thiswillbecomeclearinthecasestobediscussedbelow.

I,theinterpretationofthedream,canbeunderstoodintwoways.

TheWeakInterpretation:Iisthemeaningascribedtothedreambyaninterpreter
eitheranotherpartyorthedreameronconsciousreflection.

TheStrongInterpretation:Iisthehiddenmeaningofthedreamtothedreamer.

Theweakclaimofthispaperisthattheoureverydaysystemofconventional
metaphorisemployedwheneveraninterpreterinterpretsadream.Itispartofwhat
definesaplausibleinterpretation.IbelieveIcandemonstratethisbeyonddoubt.
Butthestrongerclaimismoreinteresting:Themetaphorsystemplaysagenerative
roleindreamingmediatingbetweenthemeaningofthedreamtothedreamer
andwhatisseen,heard,andotherwiseexperienceddynamicallyintheactof
dreaming.Givenameaningtobeexpressed,themetaphorsystemprovidesa
meansofexpressingitconcretelyinwaysthatcanbeseenandheard.Thatis,
themetaphorsystem,whichisinplaceforwakingthoughtandexpression,isalso
availableduringsleep,andprovidesanaturalmechanismforrelatingconcrete
imagestoabstractmeanings.Thedreamermaywell,ofcourse,notbeaware,upon
waking,ofthemeaningofthedreamsincehedidnotconsciouslydirectthechoice
ofdreamimagerytometaphoricallyexpressthemeaningofthedream.

Thestrongerclaimishardertodemonstrate,andIcannotdemonstrateitbythe
methodsofthelinguist.AtbestIcanmakeaplausiblecaseforitbyproviding
plausibleinterpretationsinterpretationsofwhatthedreamcanplausiblyhave
meanttothedreamer,giventheconcernsofhiseverydaylife.

Beforeweproceed,thereareseveralpointsthatneedtobemade.First,itis
importanttoclarifywhatImeanby``unconscious''intheexpression
``unconsciousconceptualsystem.''Freudusedthetermtomeanthoughtsthatwere
repressed,butmightinsomecasesbebroughttoconsciousness.Buttheterm
``unconscious''isusedverydifferentlythecognitivesciences.Mostofthekindsof
thoughtdiscussedinthecognitivesciencesoperates,liketherulesofgrammarand
phonology,belowalevelthatwecouldpossiblyhaveconsciousaccesstoor
controlover.

Itispossible,throughlinguisticanalysis,todiscoverwhatmetaphorsoneusesin
unconsciousthought,andtodiscussthemovertly.Forexample,youmight
discoverthatyouthinkintermsoftheLOVEISAJOURNEYmetaphor,andthen
haveadiscussionaboutthewayyou'veusedthemetaphor.Butthereisnowayto
getconsciouscontroloverallunconscioususesofthatmetaphorandother
metaphorsinyourconceptualsystem.Itislikediscussingaruleofgrammaror
phonologyconsciously,withoutbeingabletocontrolalltherulesofyour
grammarandphonologyineverysentenceyouspeak.Thesystemofmetaphors,
althoughunconscious,isnot``repressed''justasthesystemofgrammatical
phonologicalrulesthatstructureone'slanguageisunconsciousbutnotrepressed.
TheunconsciousdiscoveredbycognitivescienceisjustnotliketheFreudian
unconscious.

Second,theinterpretationsIwillbeofferingmaywellseemobviousorpedestrian.
Indeed,thatistheirpoint.Theeverydaymetaphorsystemcharacterizesthemost
normalandnaturalofinterpretations.Mypurposeistosayexactlywhythereare
normal,naturalinterpretationsofdreams.Asaconsequence,Iwillbestarting
wheremostdreamanalystsend.Mostdreamanalystsaresatisfiedwhenthey
arriveatanintuitivelyplausibleinterpretationofadream.Iwillbestartingwith
intuitivelyplausibleanalysesandtryingtoshowexactlywhatmakesthem
intuitivelyplausible.

Third,asIsaidabove,IcannotprovethattheanalysesIwillbegivingarethe
``right''ones,noraretheytheonlyones.WhatIclaimtoshowisthattheyare
yieldedbythemetaphorsystemgivenachoiceofK,aselectedportionof
knowledgeofthedreamer'severydaylife.Adifferentchoiceofrelevant
knowledge,K',couldproduceacompletelydifferentinterpretation.

Fourth,Iassumethatdreamingisaformofthought.Powerfuldreamsareformsof
thoughtthatexpressemotionallypowerfulcontent.Twoofthemainresultsof
cognitivesciencearethatmostthoughtisunconsciousandmostthoughtmakes
useofconceptualmetaphor.Dreamsarealsoaformofunconsciousthoughtthat
makesuseofconceptualmetaphor.Asaformofthought,dreamscanexpress
content:desires,fears,solutionstoproblems,fantasies,andsoon.IfFreudwas
rightinsuggestingthatsomethinglikerepressionexists,thattherearesome
thoughtsthatwedon'twanttobeawarethatwearethinking,thentheuseofthe
consciousmetaphorsystemindreamsisaperfectwayfortheunconsciousmindto
hidethoughtsfromtheconsciousmindwhilenonethelessthinkingthem.

Fifth,sincedreamsareaformofthought,dreamsmakeuseofmetaphorbecause
thoughttypicallymakesuseofmetaphor.Sincedreamsarenotconsciously
monitored,theydonotmakeconsciouslymonitoreduseofmetaphor.Thus,the
useofmetaphorindreamsmayseemtotheconsciousmindwildandincoherent.

Sixth,theimageryusedindreamsisnotarbitrary.Itisconstrainedbythegeneral
metaphorsusedbythedreamer.Thegeneralmetaphorsaresetsofcorrelations
betweensourceandtargetdomainsatthesuperordinatelevel.Dreamimageryis
chosenfromthebasic(andsubordinate)levelthatis,fromspecialcasesof
superordinatecategoriescharacterizedbythegeneralmetaphors.

Forexample,supposethedreamisaboutlove.Oneofthemetaphorsforlovewill
beusedinthedream.IfitisLOVEISAJOURNEY,thenthedreamimagerywill
beaboutaparticularkindofjourney,sayacartrip.Thenthedreamimagesmight
includeacar,roads,bridges,badweather,etc.Becausemetaphoricalthoughtis
natural,theuseofimagesindreamthoughtisalsonatural.
Seventh,Ithereforeclaimthatdreamsarenotjusttheweirdandmeaningless
productofrandomneuralfirings,butratheranaturalwaybywhichemotionally
chargedfears,desiresanddescriptionsareexpressed.

Incidentally,whatIamclaimingisconsistentwiththeclaimthatdreamsareset
offbyrandomneuralfiringsinthebrainstem.Itispossiblethatafixed,
conventionalmetaphorsystemcouldchannelrandomneuralfiringsintoa
meaningfuldream.Inotherwords,ifdreamsturnouttobetriggeredbyrandom
neuralfirings,itwouldnotfollowthatthecontentofdreamsisrandom.

Eighth,dreamingisaprocesswithopenendedpossibilitiesformetaphorical
expression.Whatthosepossibilitiesareisdeterminedbythefixed,general
metaphorsintheconceptualsystem.Thefixedmetaphorsarefixed
correspondencesacrossconceptualdomainsatthesuperordinatelevel.Thosefixed
correspondencesmakeitpossibleforbasiclevelimagerytohavesystematic
meaning.Sincethepossibilitiesforbasicandsubordinatelevelimageryisopen
ended,thefixedmetaphoricalcorrespondencesallowforanopenendedrangeof
possibilitiesinparticulardream.Dreamconstructionisadynamicprocessthat
makesuseofthefixedmetaphoricalcorrespondencestoconstructtheimage
sequencesthatoccurindreams.

Thus,thereisasenseinwhichdreamingislikespeaking.Wehavefixedrulesof
grammarandphonologythatconstrainwhatsentenceswecanconstructandwhat
theycanmean.Buttherules,beinggeneral,permitanopenendedrangeofspecial
casesthatfittherules.Similarly,ourmetaphorsystemmightbeseenaspartofa
`grammaroftheunconscious'asetoffixed,generalprinciplesthatpermitan
openendedrangeofpossibledreamsthatareconstructeddynamicallyin
accordancewithfixedprinciples.Tounderstandthesystemofmetaphoristo
understandthoseprinciples.

Ninth,Iclaimthatdeepandextensiveknowledgeofthedreamer'slifeisessential
topinpointingthemeaningsofdreams.Doesthatmeanthatdreamscannothave
interpretationsontheirown,independentofwhatweknowaboutthedreamer?

Well,yesandno.Thereisacertainwelldemarcatedrangeoftypicalemotional
concernsinthisculture:love,work,death,family,etc.Itisagoodbetthat
powerfuldreamswillbeaboutoneofthosedomains.Thatputsaconstrainton
whatthetargetdomainsofmetaphorsarelikelytobe.Supposeeachinterpretation
ofadreamisaboutoneofthosedomains.Thatmeansonecanfixasingledomain
tobethetargetdomainforallthemetaphoricalimagesusedinthedream.The
metaphorsystemallowseachindividualmetaphoricalimagetohaveawiderange
ofinterpretations.Butifthedreamisalongsequenceofmetaphoricalimages,
thenthechoiceofasingletargetdomainlimitsthepossibilitiesforinterpretation
ofthewholecollectionofimages.Thus,itmightbepossibletonarrowtherange
ofpossibleinterpretationsforagivendreamwithoutknowledgeofthedreamer.

Butevensuchanarrowedrangeofpossibilitiesmightbeextremelylargeso
largethatonecouldnotevencomeclosetoimaginingtherangeofpossibilities.
Twomechanismsmakeevensuchanarrowedrangeofpossibilitiesverylarge.
First,thereistherangeofspecificinstancesofageneralmetaphor.Thatcouldbe
anextremelylargerange.Second,thereiswhatTurnerandI(1989)havecalled
theGENERICISSPECIFICmetaphorschema.Thisisaschemathatallowsforan
openendedrangeofmetaphoricalcorrespondencesacrossdomains.Theuseof
thatschemawilldescribedbelow.Itsveryusedependsondetailedknowledge.
Thesetwomechanismsallowforsuchabroadrangeofpossibilitiesthatonly
detailedknowledgeofthelifeofthedreamercanlimitthatrangeofpossibilitiesto
whatthedreammeanstothatdreamer.

Itshouldbesaid,however,thatthewiderangeofpossibilitiespermitanindividual
dreamtohavemultiplemeaningsforadreamer,andIclaimthatespecially
powerfuldreamshavecommonlyhavemultiplemeanings.

Inaddition,becauseofthelargerangeofpossibilitiespermittedbythemetaphor
system,oneperson'sdreamscanhavepowerfulmeaningsforotherpeople.Other
people'sdreamsholdforusthesamefascinationasmythandliteraturea
possibilityforfindingmeaninginourownlives.Itistheoperationofour
metaphorsystemsthatmakesthatpossible.

Thedreamanalysestofollowstresstheimportanceofdeepandextensive
knowledgeaboutthelifeofthedreamer.Ineachcase,Ihaveusedadreamof
someoneIknowverywell,anditisonlybecauseIknowthedreamerwellthatI
feelconfidentoftheinterpretations.

TheBlindnessDream

AmanIwillcallStevehadtherecurringdreamthathehadbecomeblind:He
wouldawakenhiswifeinthemiddleofnightscreamingout``I'mblind,I'mblind''
hysterically,untilhiswifecouldwakehimup,turnonthelight,andshowhimthat
hecouldsee.
Steveisascrupulous,meticulous,andcautiousacademicwhoisalwaysafraidthat
hedoesn'tknowenough.Inoureverydayconceptualsystem,thereisametaphor
thatKNOWINGISSEEING,whichappearsineverydayexpressionslike:

Iseewhatyourgettingat.Hismeaningwasclear.Youcan'tpullthewoolovermy
eyes.Thisparagraphisabitmurky.Whatisyourviewpoint?

Viathismetaphor,``Ican'tsee''mapsonto``Idon'tknowandcan'tfindout.''
Steve,inhisdreamisexpressinghisconstantfear:I'mignorant,I'mignorant.

ButSteve'sdream,asapowerfulrecurrentdream,isricherthanthat.Freud,inhis
interpretationoftheOedipusmyth,observedthatOedipus'cuttingoutofhiseyes
wasmetaphoricalcastration,ametaphorthatTESTICLESAREEYES,and
IMPOTENCEISBLINDNESS.Byvirtueofthismetaphor,beingblindedisajust
punishmentforasexualtransgression,Itisbecausethismetaphorisinour
conceptualsystemthatweunderstandOedipus'punishmentasbeingjust.
Incidentally,contemporarypopularculturealsohasamanifestationofthis
metaphorinthefolktheorythatifyoumasturbate,you'llgoblind.

OneofthebanesofSteve'sexistenceisthefeelingthathelackspowerand
influence,andisthereforeunabletogetthingsforhimselfandothers.Steve's
recurringdreamoccurredseveraltimesjustbeforehetookonhisfirstimportance
administrativeposition,aboutwhichhefearedthathewouldspendalotofeffort
andnotaccomplishanythingsignificant.Wehaveacommonculturalmetaphor
thatWORLDLYPOWERISSEXUALPOTENCY,andPOWERLESSNESSIS
IMPOTENCE.

Linguisticexamplesofthismetaphoraboundineverydaylife.Oneofthemost
celebratedwasLyndonJohnson'sremarkaboutapoliticalenemywhohehadthe
powertoblackmail:``I'vegothispeckerinmypocket.''Menthreateningtoget
backatanenemybyrenderinghimpowerlesshavebeenheardtosay``I'llcuthis
ballsoff''or``I'llcastratehim.''Womenwhoexertworldlypowerovermenare
regularlycalled``castratingbitches.''

Viathismetaphor,``I'mblind''inthedreamexpressesanotherofSteve'srecurrent
fears:``I'mpowerless.''

Inaddition,thedreamhasstillfurthersignificanceforSteve'slife.Stevecannot
havechildrenbecauseofalowspermcount.Afteryearsoftryingtohavechildren,
Steveandhiswifefinallyadoptedchildren,andarehappyandlovingparents.
Still,itwasatraumaticexperienceinSteve'slifenottobeabletohavebiological
children.ViathemetaphorofIMPOTENCEISBLINDNESS,whenStevecries
out``I'mblind''heisexpressingthattrauma.Metaphorically,heiscryingout``I'm
impotent.''

Steve'srecurrentdreamispowerfulbecausesitexpressesthreeofthemajorfears
andregretsinSteve'slife.Metaphoristhemechanismthatlinksthedreamtowhat
itmeans.Whatmakesthisdreamextremelypowerfulisthatithasnotone
metaphoricalmeaning,butthreesimultaneousones,viathreedifferentmetaphors.
Twoofthesemetaphorsareexpressedineverydaylanguage:BothKNOWINGIS
SEEINGandWORLDLYPOWERISSEXUALPOTENCYarepartofthe
largelyunconscioussystemofmetaphoricalthoughtthatunderliesmuchofour
everydaylanguage.GENITALSAREEYESandIMPOTENCEISBLINDNESS
hasaverydifferentstatus.Itisanunconsciousconceptualmetaphorthatis
widespreadinourculture,butistaboo.Thus,thereisnolargesetofeveryday
linguisticexpressionsthatarecomprehendedviathismetaphor.Forexample,''My
eyeshurt,''doesnotmean''Mytesticleshurt''and''He'sblind''doesnotmean''
He'simpotent.''

Yetthemetaphorseemstobepresentnonetheless,andthereisagoodreasonwhy
itshouldbeithastherightkindofexperientialbasistoformametaphor,
namely,testiclesarethesameshapeaseyesandlosingone'seyesightrendersone
relativelypowerless.Theexistenceofsuchanexperientialbasisforthemetaphor
makesthemetaphornatural.Apparently,theIMPOTENCEISBLINDNESS
metaphor,thoughtabooandunrealizedineverydaylanguage,ispartofour
conceptualsystems.Ifitweren't,theOedipusmythwouldseemsenselesssince
blindness,intheabsenceofsuchametaphor,wouldnotseemajustpunishment
forincest.

Thereareseveraltheoreticalmoralsthatarisefromthissetofinterpretationsofthe
BlindnessDream:

First,Freudiansymbolism(aswhentheeyessymbolizegenitals)canhavethe
statusofatabooedmetaphor,whichhasnoreflectionineverydaylinguistic
expressions,butisjustaspsychicallyrealasotherconceptualmetaphors.

Second,tabooedmetaphors(withnoreflectioninlanguage)suchasEYESARE
GENITALSandIMPOTENCEISBLINDNESSmaycombinewithnontabooed
metaphorssuchasWORDLYPOWERISSEXUALPOTENCYtojointlyprovide
aninterpretationofadream.Inshort,muchofFreud'ssymbolismisintheformof
tabooedmetaphorsthatarenotsegregatedoffbythemselves,butwhichinstead
cancombinewitheverydaymetaphors.
Third,therecanbemultipleinterpretationsofdreams,whicharesimultaneousand
allofwhichareequallynatural.Itisnaturalforapowerfulrecurrentdreamto
havesuchmultiplemeanings.

AtthispointIwouldliketoturntoperhapsthemostfamousexampleofdream
interpretationintheWesternworld,Joseph'sinterpretationofPharoah'sdream
fromGenesis.

Pharoah'sDream

Inhisdream,Pharoahisstandingontheriver
bank,whensevenfatcowscomeoutoftheriver,
followedbysevenleancowsthateatthesevenfat
onesandstillremainlean.ThenPharoahdreams
again.Thistimeheseesseven``fullandgood''
earsofcorngrowing,andthensevenwitheredears
growingafterthem.Thewitheredearsdevourthe
goodears.Josephinterpretsthetwodreamsasa
singledream.Thesevenfatcowsandfullears
aregoodyearsandthesevenleancowsandwith
eredearsarefamineyearsthatfollowthegood
years.Thefamineyears``devour''whatthegood
yearsproduce.

Millionsofpeople,bothJewsandChristians,havereadthispassageand
understoodJoseph'sinterpretationasmakingsense,thatis,asbeinganaturaland
reasonabledreaminterpretation.ThequestionIamraisingiswhatmakesJoseph's
interpretationmakesenseandseemnaturalsonaturalthatnofurtherdiscussion
seemsnecessary.EvenFreud,whocitesthedreamseveraltimesinThe
InterpretationofDreams,seesnotneedtointerpretitfurther.

Itismyclaimthatthisinterpretationmakessensetousbecauseofacollectionof
conceptualmetaphorsinourconceptualsystemmetaphorsthathavebeenwith
ussinceBiblicaltimes.Thefirstmetaphorusedis:TIMESAREMOVING
ENTITIES.Inthismetaphor,thereisanobserverdefiningthepresenttime
standing,withthefutureinfrontandthepastbehind.Futuretimesmovetoward
himfromthefront;pasttimesareintherearmovingaway.Examplesare:
Thetimeforactionishere.Thetimeforwaitinghaspassed.Therevolutionis
coming.Timesflies.Timeflowsby.

Thismetaphorcharacterizesthe``flow''oftime,andariverisanappropriate
specialcaseofsomethingthatflowsandthatextendsasfarastheeyecansee.
Hence,ariverisacommonmetaphorfortheflowoftime.Thecowsemerging
fromtheriverareindividualentities(blocksoftimeinthiscase,years)
emergingfromtheflowoftimeandmovingpasttheobserver;theearsofcornare
alsoentitiesthatcomeintothescene.

ThesecondmetaphorusedisACHIEVINGAPURPOSEISEATING,where
beingfatindicatessuccessandbeingleanindicatesfailure.Examplesinclude:

Theleagueleadersfatteneduponthelastplaceteam.He'sstarvedforawin.Ican
tastevictory....thesweetsmellofsuccess.Heenjoyedthefruitsofhislabor.He's
gotalotonhisplate.

Thismetaphoriscombinedwiththemostcommonofmetonymies:APART
STANDSFORTHEWHOLE,asin:

Weneedastrongarminrightfield.We'vegotagoodgloveathirdbase.Lookat
hisnewwheels.

Sincecowsandcornweretypicalofmeatandgraineaten,eachsinglecowstands
forallthecowsraisedinayearandeachearofcornforallthecorngrownina
year.Thefatcowsandcornstandforfoodingeneral,whichinturn
metaphoricallysymbolizessuccessviaACHIEVINGAPURPOSEISEATING.
Thefatcowsandcornalsosymbolizeyears,viaTIMEISAMOVINGOBJECT.
Thus,theyjointlysymbolizegoodyears.

Thefinalmetaphorusedis:RESOURCESAREFOOD,whereusingupresources
iseatingfood.Examplesinclude:

I'vegotagasguzzler.They'vegobbledupallthewoodavailabletothebuilding
trades.

Thedevouringofthegoodyearsbythefamineyearsisinterpretedasindicating
thatallthesurplusresourcesofthegoodyearswillbeusedupbythefamine
years.Theinterpretationofthebothdreamsisacompositionofthesamefour
parts:threeconventionalmetaphorsandonemetonymy.Thecowdreamandthe
corndreamarebothspecialcasesofasinglemoregeneraldream,wherecowsand
cornarekindsoffood.

WhatisofnotehereisthattheanalysisthatIhavegivenbeginswhereJoseph's
dreaminterpretationends.Thereasonisthatmyanalysisisananalysisofthe
interpretation,notofthedream.Mypurposeistoshowwhyagivenanalysisofa
dreammakessensetous.Theansweristhatmetaphorsandmetonymiesinour
everydayconceptualsystemprovidethelinkbetweenthedreamcontentandthe
interpretation.

LetusnowreturntoanalysesofdreamsbypeopleIknowwell.

TheBridgeDream

AmanIwillcallHerbfellinloveandmovedinwithhisgirlfriend.Movingin
turnedouttobeadisaster.Theysimplycouldnotlivetogetherwithoutfighting.
Withgreatsadness,theydecidedtosplitup.Thatnighthedreamedthatthey
startedoutonatripfromBerkeley,whenafiercestormblewup,andasthey
reachedtheRichmondSanRaphaelBridge(acrossSanFranciscoBay),thebridge
blewawayintothebay.

Thisdreamusestwocommonconventionalmetaphors.ThefirstistheEmotional
Climatemetaphor,inwhichinterioremotionsareexteriorweatherconditions.
Thus,ahappypersonhasasunnydisposition,happinessislight,whilesadness
anddepressionaredark.AspecialcaseofthisisthatEMOTIONALDISCORDIS
ASTORM.Viathismetaphor,thestormsymbolizedtheemotionaldiscordofthe
fightinginvolvedinthelovers'breakup.

TheothermetaphorinvolvedisLOVEISAJOURNEY.Settingoutonthe
journeycorrespondstothelongtermcommitmentmadebytheloverswhenthey
movedintogether.Thewashingoutofthebridge,whichmadeitimpossibleto
continuethejourney,correspondstotheendingoftheloverelationship.Without
thebridgethejourneycouldnotcontinue.

Thewashingoutofthebridgehasasecondmeaningviaanothercommon
metaphor,inwhichRELATIONSHIPSARELINKSBETWEENPEOPLE.Here
thefallingawayofthebridgeindicatestheendoftherelationshiplinkbetween
thelovers.

TheFlyingDreams
AmanIwillcallDavidalwaysdoesthingstoextremes,whetherworkingor
havingfun.Hetriestoliveasjoyousandfulfillingalifeaspossible.Heworksas
alawyer,primarilyoncasesthathebelievesin,andspendsverylonghours,often
formonthsatatimewearinghimselfout.Heisalsoamusicianwholikestoplay
farintothenight,orgotolatenightconcertsandpartyforlonghours.Heloves
theoutdoors,andwilldriveformanyhourseachwaytogoskiingforthe
weekend.Hetakeslongvigorouswalksandbikerides.Heisgenerallyhappy,but
whenheexhaustshimself,hegetsgauntandsickanddepressed.

Davidhaslonghadrecurringdreamsinwhichhewasflying.Inhisearlytwenties,
hewouldflytoohighorfastorfarinhisdreams,andgetterrified.Thenhetooka
chanceanddidsomethinghehadalwayswantedtodo.HewenttoParis,worked
asastreetsinger,madealotoffriendsandhadawonderfultime.Atthispointhe
hadaflyingdreaminwhichheflewespeciallyhighandfast,gotscared,feared
crashing,landedontheshouldersofafriend,didabackflipintheairandlanded
onhisfeet.Thereafter,hisdreamsofflyingwerepleasurable.Hehasbeen
confidenteversincethathewouldlandonhisfeet.

Thecommonmetaphorsinvolvedarethese:

ACTIONISSELFPROPELLEDMOTION
FREEDOMISLACKOFCONSTRAINT.
INTENSEACTIONISFASTMOTION.

Flying,inthismetaphor,isaformoffastmotionwithnoconstraints,butwiththe
dangeroffallingandcrashing,whichsignifiesresultingharm.Metaphorically,
flyingisintenseactionwithasenseoffreedomwhatDavidprizesmost.The
flyingdreamsaccompaniedperiodsofsuchintenseactionintheserviceof
freedomdrivingataxicabinBostonaftercollege,streetsinginginParis,
workingasalawyerforidealisticcauses,puttingtogetherabandandmakingtapes
andavideo,goingoffonvigorousandexcitingvacationtrips.

InParis,wherehefoundthehelpoffriends,theflyingdreamwasextendedbythe
metaphorofHELPISSUPPORThelandedonafriend'sshoulders.Thenhedid
abackflip(aformofplayfulshowingoff)andlandedonhisfeet(signifyingasafe
result).Indeed,wehavetheidiom``tolandonone'sfeet''inEnglish,whichworks
bythesamemetaphors.

TheClassroomDream
AwomanIwillcallKarendreamtthatshewasin
theclassofherfavoriteprofessorincollege.He
cameovertoherandsaidthatshewasn'tworking
andwouldfailtheclass.

Karenhadrecentlymarriedaprofessorwhowasacolleagueoftheprofessorin
thedream.Whenshegotmarriedshequitajobshehadhatedandwasnotthen
working.Shefearedthathernotworkingwouldleadtofinancialpressuresthat
wouldcausethemarriagetofail.

Themetaphoricalmechanismthatlinksthedreamandtheknowledgetoan
interpretationiscalledtheGENERICISSPECIFICmetaphorschema.Itisa
schemabywhichageneralsituationisunderstoodintermsofonespecific
situation.ThusaGeneralCaseisunderstoodintermsofwhatwewillcallSpecial
Case1.BecausetheGeneralCasecoversotherspecialcases,anotherspecialcase,
callitSpecialCase2,canalsobeunderstoodintermsofSpecialCase1.The
resultisametaphoricalanalogybetweenSpecialCase1andSpecialCase2.

SpecialCase1inthedreamisapositiverelationshipwithaprofessorinacourse.
TheGeneralCaseisapositiverelationshipwithaprofessor.SpecialCase2isa
positiverelationshipwithaprofessorinhermarriage.Themetaphoricalanalogy
setsupametaphoricalcorrespondence:

Karen'sfavoriteprofessorinthedreamishercurrentfavoriteprofessorher
husband.

Workingtoassuresuccessinclassisworkingtoassuresuccessinthemarriage.

Failingintheclassisfailinginthemarriage.

ThedreamexpressesKaren'sfearthathermarriagewillfailbecauseshequither
job.

TheTimeBombDream

AwomanIwillcallEileendreamtthatshewas
observingamulehavingbrainsurgery.Themule's
headwascutopenandatimebombwasplaced
inside.Themulewasthenstitchedupandranoff,
becomingabeautiful,gracefulhorse.Eileen
watchesinterrorasthehorseprancesgracefully
withatimebombinitshead.

Tocomprehendthisdream,thefollowinginformationisnecessary.

Ourculturalstereotypeofthemuleisthatitis(1)stubborn,(2)sterileand(3)
clumsybycomparisonwithahorse.

Eileenisinlovewithamanthatshewantstomarry.Shehasagrownchildbya
formermarriage,andatherage,withherbiologicalclockticking,sheisnotlikely
tohaveanychildreninhersecondmarriage.Thisupsetsher.

Sheisalsoverydeterminedabouthowshewantstoliveherlife.Shewantsto
pursueaparticularcareer,andatherpointinlifeshefeelstheclockisrunningout
onher.Shewillhavetostartsoon.

Moreover,thewayshehadalwaysassumedshewouldpursueacareerconflicts
withherplansformarriage.Indeed,anumberofherplansanddesiresconflict
withthemarriagethatsheverymuchwants.Thussheispursuinginconsistent
desires.

Eileenisaworrier,somuchsothatshehasahistoryofanxietyattacks.Forsome
yearsshewasonmedicationtopreventsuchattacks,buthadbeenoffthe
medicineforseveralmonthsatthetimeofthedream.Justbeforethedream,she
hadananxietyattackandwoundupinanargumentwithherprospectivehusband
aboutherconflictingdesires.Shefearsfurtheranxietyattacks.

Eileenwentintotherapyfouryearsbeforethedream,atatimewhenshewas
barelyfunctioningbecauseoftheanxietyattacks.Whenshewentintotherapyshe
hadjustbrokenoffadamaginglongtermrelationship,andhaddifficultydealing
withmen,aswellasfunctioningprofessionally.Throughtherapy,shereacheda
pointwhereshecouldfunctionwellagain.Sheestablishedagoodrelationship
withthemanshewantstomarryandwasabletoreturntoherprofessionalgoals.

Eileenisalsoaformerdancer,whotakesjoyinphysicalactivity,especiallyinher
regularaerobicsclass.Shecountsonphysicalactivitytokeepherhealthyand
stable.Andherexcellentphysicalshapemakesherconstantlyawarethatsheis
stillcapableofhavingchildren.

ThemechanismsrelatingEileen'sdreamtoherlifearetheGreatChainofBeing
MetaphorSchema(LakoffandTurner,1989)andoneofthemajormetaphorsfor
ideasIDEASAREOBJECTSINTHEMIND.

AccordingtotheIDEASAREOBJECTSmetaphor,ideasmoveinthedirectionof
theirconsequences.Thus,followinganideaentailsbeingledtoitsconsequences.
Ideaswithinconsistentconsequences,arethusmovinginoppositedirections.
Theyexertforceoneachother,andarethusseenasinconflict.

TheGreatChainmetaphorschemamakesuseofafolkversionoftheGreatChain
ofBeing,inwhichthereisahierarchyofbeings,withhumansatthetop,higher
animalsbelowthem,andloweranimals,plants,andinanimateobjectsfurther
down.Themetaphorschemaisamechanismbywhichhumanbehavioris
understoodintermsofthebehaviorofformsofbeingloweronthechain.The
metaphorworksbymetaphoricallyattributingtohumansthedistinguishing
propertiesofbeingsloweronthechain.ThebeinglowerontheGreatChainisthe
mule;itsdistinguishingpropertiesarestubbornness,sterility,andclumsiness
(relativetohorses).

Eileenwasmetaphoricallyamulebeforetherapy(anoperationonherhead),
whichenabledhertofunctionwell,totransformfromamuletoagracefully
prancinghorse.Butsheretainstheinherentpropertiesofofamule:stubbornness
andsterility.Sheisstubbornabouthowshewantstoliveherlife;sterile,inthat
shewillnotbehavinganychildreninherfuturemarriage.Theconflictingdesires
herdesireformarriageandhercareeraspirationswererestoredtoherthrough
therapy,theoperationonherhead.Butthedesiresconflicttheyexertforceon
oneanotherinsideherhead,andhaveapotentialtometaphoricallyexplode.They
constitutethetimebombinherhead.Thetimebombalsosymbolizesher
biologicalclockandhercareerclock,andthepossibilityofexplosionsymbolizes
thedestructionofherhopesofhavingmorechildrenandofpursuingacareer.The
possiblereturnofanxietyattackssymbolizesanotherkindofmetaphorical
explosion.Meanwhile,injoyfulphysicalactivity,functioninginagood
relationshipandpursuinghercareer,sheisthegracefulhorsewithatimebomb
inherhead!

ThePuzzleDream
AwomanIwillcallJanedreamtthatshewas
invitedtothehomeofanolderJewishcoupleof
heracquaintancewhowelcomedherwarmly.Aftera
whileshewentintoanadjoiningroomand,with
heryoungersister,beganpullingpiecesofapuz
zleoutofaplasticsheetandassemblingthem.
Thepieceswereintheformofcupsandsaucers
andkitchenutensils.Thenshewentintothe
kitchenwiththeolderJewishcouple,andhersis
terwentintheotherdirectionandoutofthe
dream.

JaneishalfCatholicandhalfJewish.HerJewishfatherhadconvertedto
CatholicismandshewasraisedCatholic.Shedidnothaveahappychildhood;her
parentsweredistantfromherandhadlittleunderstandingofherorsympathyfor
her.Shefeltherparentsneveracceptedher.Janehasalwayswantedherparentsto
beunderstandingandsupportive.Shebelieves,fromcasesshehasobserved,that
Jewishparentsaremoreunderstandingandsupportiveoftheirchildrenthan
Catholicparents.

Janerejectedthechurchinherlateteens.Heryoungersisterhoweverbecamea
wholeheartedCatholic:Sheisactiveinthechurch,shemarriedaCatholicman,
andsheisraisingherchildreninCatholicschools.

Janehasalwaysfeltconfusedaboutherethnicidentity.Shehasrecentlygotten
involvedwithaJewishmanwhosheisseriousaboutmarrying,andshehasbegun
toexperiencethepartofherthatisJewishinapositiveway.Sheisstillsortingout
herethnicidentity.Sheisalsotryingtosortoutherrelationshiptohersister.

Inthedream,theolderJewishcouplesymbolizesanalternativesetofparentswith
theotherhalfofherethnicityacceptingJewishparents,ratherthancritical
Catholicparents.Shehasregressedtochildhood,playingwithtoyswithhersister.
Sheisputtingtogetherthepiecesofthepuzzleofheridentity.Thepiecesarecups
andsaucersandotherkitchenutensils,whichstandmetonymicallyforthehome.
IngoingintothekitchenwiththeolderJewishcouple,sheischoosingaJewish
home.Hersistergoesintheotherdirection,choosingaCatholichome.

Themechanismsofthisdreaminterpretationare(1)theGENERICISSPECIFIC
metaphorschema,(2)thePROBLEMSAREPUZZLESmetaphor,(3)the
INSTRUMENTSSTANDFORACTIVITYmetonymy,and(4)themetaphor
CHOOSINGSOMETHINGISGOINGTOIT.

TheGENERICISSPECIFICanalysisworkslikethis:

Firstspecificcase:theoldercouple
Generalcase:Oldercouples
Secondspecificcase:Jane'sparents

Analogy:Jane'sparentsaretheoldercouple.

SincetheoldercoupleareJewishandacceptingofJane,theyrepresentparents
whoareJewishandacceptingofJane.

Inthedream,Janeisputtingtogetherthepiecesofthepuzzle.BythePROBLEMS
AREPUZZLESmetaphor,sheistryingtosolveaproblem.Thepuzzlepiecesare
domesticimplementscupsandsaucersandkitchenutensils.Bythe
INSTRUMENTSFORACTIVITYmetonymy,domesticimplementsstandfor
domesticlifeingeneral.Inherlife,sheisobsessedwiththeproblemoffiguring
outheridentityassomeonewhosehomelifegrowingupfailedherandwhohas
rejectedherparents'religion.Puttingtogetherthepiecesofthehomelifepuzzle
correspondstoworkingoutthisconsumingproblem.

ThefinalmetaphoratworkherisCHOOSINGSOMETHINGISGOINGTOIT;
REJECTINGSOMETHINGISMOVINGAWAYFROMIT,asinexpressions
like:

I'llgofortheHonda.Healmostboughtthathouse,butthenhebackedoff.I
wouldn'ttouchitwithatenfootpole.

Jane'sgoingintotheroomwiththeolderJewishcouplesymbolizesthechoiceofa
Jewishdomesticlife,lifewithherprospectivehusband.Hersister'sgoinginthe
oppositedirectionsymbolizeshersister'schoiceofaCatholicfamilylife.

Conclusion

Ourconceptualsystemscontainanextensivesystemofconceptualmetaphors,
whichdefinecorrespondencesacrossconceptualdomains,typicallyfromconcrete
spatialdomainstomoreabstractdomains.Theseconventionalmetaphorshavethe
potentialtolinkconcreteimagery,especiallyvisualimagery,tomoreabstract
concepts.

Sincethemetaphorsystemisafixedpartofourunconscioussystemofconcepts,
conventionalmetaphorsarealwaysavailabletolinkconcreteimagerytoabstract
meanings.Andgivenabstractmeanings,themetaphorsystemcanacttoconstrain
thechoiceofconcreteimageryappropriatetoexpressthosemeanings.Asaresult,
theconcernsofeverydaylifecanbeexpressedviaconcreteimageryplus
metaphors.Oursystemofconceptualmetaphormakesitpossibletoexpress
desires,fears,anddescriptionsofemotionallychargedsituations.

ThemetaphorsystemofEnglishisnowbeingstudiedsystematicallyand
scientifically.Theresultisakindofdictionaryofunconsciousthought,the
spellingoutindetailofalargepartofwhatItakeLacantohavemeantby``the
languageoftheunconscious.''

Themetaphorsystemofmembersofaculturecanbethoughtofashavingtwo
parts:Theeverydayconventionalmetaphors,which,thoughunconscious,have
reflexesineverydaylanguage;andthetabooedmetaphors,which,becauseoftheir
tabooednature,arenotexpressedinconventionallanguage.Freud,becauseofhis
concernwithsexualityandrepression,waslargelyconcernedwithtabooed
metaphors.I,becauseIamalinguistbyprofession,amlargelyconcernedwiththe
everydaymetaphorsthatshowupinordinarylanguage.

Becausedreaminterpretationhaslargelybedonebypsychotherapists,thekindsof
analysesIhavediscussed,thoughcertainlynoticed,haveneverbeenthesubjectof
systematicandrigorousstudy.Butnowthatlinguisticsandcognitivesciencehave
yieldedanunderstandingofoureverydaymetaphorsystems,ithasbecome
possibletoapplythatknowledgetodreaminterpretationinasystematicway.

Theeveryday,nontabooedmetaphorsareeverybitasimportanttothe
understandingofdreamsasthetabooedones.Sometherapistshaveaninstinctive
understandingofhowoureverydaymetaphorsystemoperatesindreams.But
manydonot.WhenIreadbooksondreamanalysisbypsychotherapists,Irarely
findmuchattentiongivenovertothoseaspectsofthemeaningsofdreamsthat
dependontheeverydaymetaphorsystem.

Themetaphorsystemisfarfromobvious.Thosewhowanttomakeuseofitin
dreaminterpretationshouldprobablygetsometraininginhowthesystemworks.
Afterall,ifyouareusingthelanguageoftheunconscious,itmightbeusefultoget
afewgrammarlessonsandhaveadictionaryhandy.
IwouldliketoconcludebydiscussingwhatIamnotclaiming.Iamnot,for
example,promotinganewformofdreamtherapy.Iamcertainlynotclaimingthat
metaphoranalysisreplacesotherformsofdreamworkintherapy.Themetaphor
systemwillinevitablybeusedinanyformofdreamwork,simplybecauseweuse
thatsystemwheneverwethink.Butthemetaphorsystemdoesnotdeterminewhat
formthedreamworkshouldtake.Forexample,FritzPerlsintroducedintogestalt
therapythetechniqueofhavingthedreamertakeontheroleofeverypersonand
thinginthedream.Indoingso,dreamerswillalmostwithoutexceptionmake
someuseorotheroftheireverydaymetaphorsystems,butthepowerofthe
therapeutictechniqueisnotintheuseofthemetaphorsystemperse.Aswith
poetryinaforeignlanguage,youwillneedtouseadictionary,butthepoetryisfar
morethanwhatisinthedictionary.

January29,1993

References

Freud,Sigmund.1962.TheInterpretationofDreams(trans.JamesStrachey)New
York:AvonBooks.

Kramer,Milton.1991.DreamTranslation:ANonassociative

MethodforUnderstandingtheDream.Dreaming,Vol1,
No.2.

Lacan,Jacques.1977.Ecrits.NewYork:Norton.

Lakoff,GeorgeandMarkJohnson.1980.MetaphorsWeLiveBy.Chicago:U.of
ChicagoPress.

Lakoff,George.1987.Women,Fire,andDangerousThings.Chicago:University
ofChicagoPress.

Lakoff,GeorgeandMarkTurner.1989.MoreThanCoolReason.Chicago:
UniversityofChicagoPress.

January29,1993