Dreams often appear as remarkably coherent narratives. How does the mind
organize the unconscious into the narrative forms exhibited by dreams,
literary inspiration, and neuroses? Although the discovery of the
unconscious is undeniably Freud's most crucial contribution to
psychology, one that forms the cornerstone of psychoanalysis, the
unconscious and its narrative tendencies remain largely a
mystery--despite years of investigation. We still wonder about the
meaning and origin of the stories told in our sleep.
In The Unconscious and Its Narratives, Professor Zvi Giora gives
insight into the narrative elements of the unconscious by applying ideas
gained from recent developments in cognitive psychology. To gain an
understanding of unconscious narratives, Giora carefully considers the
merits and limits, as well as the major achievements and contradictions,
of Freudian theory.