Lucid Dream Archetypes and their
Observable Behaviour in Fiction
Clare Johnson is a
doctoral researcher with the University of Leeds, England,
investigating the role of lucid dreaming in the process of
creative writing. Her research is rooted in practice as she is
currently writing a novel which features lucid dreams, and is
exploring ways of drawing on lucid dreams for inspiration at each
stage of the creative process.
Abstract
As a doctoral researcher with the
University of Leeds, England, I am investigating the role of lucid
dreaming in the process of creative writing. My research is rooted
in practice as I am currently writing a novel which features lucid
dreams; dreams in which the dreamer is aware that s/he is
dreaming. I am exploring ways of drawing on lucid dreaming for
inspiration at every stage of the creative process.
This
presentation will examine the ways in which personalised
archetypal images and figures observed in lucid dreams manifest
and develop when incorporated into creative writing. My own
experience has been that lucid dream archetypes (LDAs) acquire
momentum, repetition and character function when used in a novel,
as well as traversing dream/reality boundaries set up within the
fiction. In a comparative study which draws on the work of writers
of lucid dream fiction such as Hoban, Nasir, and Van Eeden, this
paper will seek to answer the following questions:
- What is the role of archetypes
in lucid dream fiction to date?
- Does lucid dreaming create its
own archetypes?
- Can personalised archetypes
viewed in lucid dreams form an active and useful part of the
creative process?
- What happens when LDAs are
incorporated into a fictional plot?
Bibliography
Campbell, J. (1993) The Hero With
A Thousand Faces. London, Fontana Press.
Eeden, F. van.
(1909) Original title De Nachtbruid. Published in 1913 as
The Bride of Dreams. Translator: Mellie von Auw.
New York, London, Mitchell Kennerley.
Epel, N. (ed) (1994) Writers
Dreaming. New York, Vintage Books.
Green, C, and McCreery, C. (1994)
Lucid Dreaming: The paradox of consciousness during sleep. London,
Routledge.
Hoban, R. (2001) Amaryllis Night
and Day. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, London.
Jung, C.G. (1991) The Archetypes
and the Collective Unconscious. (Collected Works of C.G Jung
Vol. 9, Part One) Translator: R.F.C Hull. Routledge, London.
LaBerge, S. (1985) Lucid
Dreaming. New York, Ballantine Books.
Nasir, J. (1999) Tower of Dreams.
New York, Bantam Books.
Vogler, C. (1998) The Writer’s
Journey – Mythic Structure For Writers. California, Michael Wiese
Productions.
