A brief history of dream consciousness
Otto M. Rheinschmiedt
March 29, 2018 DOI: 10.4324/9780429481789-7 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that prehistoric cave paintings, such as the Lascaux mural, are early depictions of dreams, reflecting both internal states and social life. Proposes that animal images in dreams represent instinctual nature, linking ancient and modern dream interpretation. |
Abstract
One of the oldest depictions of a dream state is a mural in the complex of caves at Lascaux in southwest France, painted some 18,000 years ago by our European early modern human ancestors. The prehistoric cave paintings of the Perigord area of France, going back to 30,000 BC, are considered the cradle of art in human history but are also a celebration of the state of dreaming. Dreams not only describe internal states of mind but also represent the social world in which we live. They also produce histories, as we can see in seemingly primitive cultures that based their entire social life around the sharing and interpreting of dreams. In modern dream interpretation we take it that animal images in dreams represent our instinctual nature, cave man and cave woman never being that far beneath the surface of refined emotional display.