| C.G. Jung stated that big dreams are distinguished from little or everyday dreams primarily by their archetypal content and emotionally charged images. Big dreams have occurred throughout history with relative frequency based on evidence provided by studies of the central image of emotionally powerful dreams, reports of dreams by patients exhibiting schizophrenic-like symptoms, significant dreams of religious and spiritual figures, and dreams of potential shamans from traditional cultures. An example of a big dream is presented from a personal lived dream experience, using phenomenological hermeneutical methodology with commentary and interpretation primarily from a Jungian point of view. I developed a nine-scheme categorization system for this study to determine if this dream example supports Jung's ideas about the differences between little dreams and big dreams, the compensatory function of the psyche, the differences between the personal and the collective unconscious, and the importance of recognizing the archetypal content of significant dreams in order to further psychological development, what Jung referred to as the process of individuation. Since the dream occurred after a viewing of the horror film The Exorcist (1973), cinematic neurosis as a factor in the creation of big dreams plays a crucial part in the study. The results indicate trauma as a key factor in the formulation of big dreams, as well as the necessity for investigating significant dreams from a qualitative rather than quantitative methodology. Based upon a four decade-long experience with the dream under study, strategies are offered for illuminating archetypal dream content, along with suggestions for modifying the nine-scheme categorization system to allow for documenting the long-term effects of big dreams on the process of individuation. |
