Freud introduces a distinction between the ‘manifest content of the dream’ – the

dream as the dreamer reports it – and the ‘latent content of the dream’, the

meaning of which emerges only through the work of dream interpretation.

Student: Alan Cummins Student ID: 1165236

Course: BA Psychology

Module: Formations of the Psyche PS182

Lecturer: Ms. Terry Ball

In order to investigate and discuss the distinction between the manifest and latent

content of a dream we must first give an explanation of the two terms, manifest and

latent. In doing so we will be forced to elucidate the formation of dreams, how the dream

is triggered and its underlying source in the psyche. Once which agencies are involved in

the formation of the dream has been determined we can look at the dream-work that is

carried out to transform the latent content into the manifest dream that we recall. During

this discussion we will make reference to the main theoretical and practical implications

of dreams, namely: Censorship of the dream including dream distortion, condensation,

displacement and compromise formation, as well as explaining what lies behind dreams,

their primary source as it were. This will be tempered with constant reference to how the

analyst should enable the dreamer to make their way back from the manifest to the latent

content and in doing so attempt to highlight and interpret repressed wishes that are highly

psychically charged.

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 1 of 10

 Firstly we must give a definition of manifest and latent content. Manifest content

is the text of the dream as remembered by the dreamer. It is the recalled dream described

in the proceeding evening. This text is not the complete picture. There is more to a dream

than pure nonsensical and absurd imagery. There is latent content lying behind the

manifest content which holds the true meaning of the dream or rather the true source of

the dream. As Freud puts it

“What has been called the dream we shall describe as the text of the dream or the

manifest dream, and what we are looking for, what we suspect, so to say, of lying behind

the dream, we shall describe as the latent dream thoughts” [FS1932, pp9-10]

There have obviously been some agencies at work making a transformation of the latent

into the manifest content – dream-work has been carried out. These agencies are not, as

Freud alludes to easily classifiable and distinct entities within one’s psyche.

“as severe as a little manikin or a spirit living in a closet.. or think of a brain

centre” [FS1915, pp172]

So the dream-work is the means by which the latent is transformed into the manifest.

“The work which transforms the latent dream into the manifest one is called the

dream work. The work which proceeds in the contrary direction which endeavours to

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 2 of 10

arrive at the latent dream from the manifest one is our work of interpretation” [FS1915,

pp204]

So the analyst and patient must work together to interpret the manifest content and make

a journey towards the latent.

“We have to transform the manifest dream into the latent one, and to explain how,

in the dreamer’s mind , the latter has become the former. The first portion is a practical

task, for which dream interpretation is responsible; it calls for a technique” [FS1932,

pp10]

This technique of interpretation makes use of free association. The dream should not be

taken as a logical whole but rather as a set of individual allusions and references that need

to be worked through piecemeal to arrive at the latent content of the dream, the analyst

avoids concerning themselves with the manifest content but rather concerns themselves

with the associations of the manifest content.

“We ask the dreamer too, to free himself from the impression of the manifest

dream, to divert his attention from the dream as a whole on to the separate portions of its

content and to report to us in succession everything that occurs to him in relation to him

if he focuses on each of them separately” [FS1932, pp10-11]

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 3 of 10

However these associations to the dream are not the latent content. Associations will

often come to a stop before they can arrive at the genuine dream thought. It is up to the

analyst to draw conclusions and make sense of the associations in relation to the patient.

This interpretation work of transforming the manifest into the latent is not a simple

process. Resistance is always at work within the patient in regard to psycho-analysis. The

manifest dream hides a highly charged psychical thought that is distressing to the

dreamer.

“Resistance.. is responsible for the gaps, obscurities and confusions which may

interrupt the continuity of even the finest of dreams” [FS1932, pp14]

In interpreting the manifest dream the analyst makes use of symbols in two forms, those

of the dream-book category where common symbols have common meaning across many

dreams and those relating specifically to the dreamer themselves. By carefully following

the text of the dream, stopping to allow fee association the analyst can bring forth a

pathway to the latent.

We shall briefly now discuss how the dream is formed, what its purpose is and

make further reference to the dream-work that is carried out to form the manifest from

the latent content. Most often dreams are concerned with indifferent sources from the

previous day. As Freud’s Irma dream description and analysis suggests he dreamt of what

he had been focused on the previous day that of writing a patient’s medical history

[FS1899, pp85] Freud makes use of a good metaphor.

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 4 of 10

 “in construction of dreams the part of the capitalist is always played by the

unconscious wish alone; it provides the psychical energy for the construction of the

dream. The entrepreneur is the day’s residues which decide how this outlay is to be

employed” [FS1915, pp264]

Essentially the day’s residues are triggers for the dream itself but they do not form the

source of the dream. The source of the dream lies in powerful but repressed wishful

impulses belonging to the dreamer. The dream is a defence against disturbance from

sleep as opposed to one that would wish to awaken the dreamer from slumber. A

compromise formation must occur between the unconscious and conscious to ensure the

dreamer is undisturbed.

“Dreams are things which get rid of (psychical) stimuli disturbing sleep, by the

method of hallucinatory satisfaction”, [FS1915, pp168]

Moreover the dream elements are substitutes for something else that is unknown to the

dreamer’s conscious thought. The unconscious has played a part in hiding this meaning,

obscuring it to keep the dreamer from harm. The dream-work has taken the affects of the

unconscious ideas or wishes and displaced them onto a less psychically charged element.

“Latent dream thoughts.. most powerful element is the repressed instinctual

impulse which as created in them an expression for itself on the basis of the presence of

chance stimuli and by transference on to the days residues” [FS1932, pp19]

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 5 of 10

 So on to the main tools that the psyche has at hand to aid resistance of the latent

content. Distortion is carried out on latent thoughts, allusions, rebus, and puzzles to resist

the latent. A compromise is formed during dream construction allowing the manifest

content to contain a condensed or over-determined genuine dream thought. Importantly

though the dream thought has been transformed into a softened down, unrecognised form

or at least one that requires an amount of interpretation and association to unravel.

“dream displacement and dream condensation are the two foremen in charge of

the dream –work”, [FS1915, pp235]

A transference of the highly charged psychical energy must be carried out by the dream-

work to produce the manifest content of the dream. Displacement must occur to take this

energy and push it on to a less highly charged residue.

“in dream formation these essential elements charged though they are with

intense interest are dealt with as if they were of little value, and instead their place is

taken in the dream by other elements which certainly had little value in the dream

thoughts” [FS1915, pp233-234]

The displacement occurs so long as the dream content makes reference to recent

experiences and what initiates the dream is psychically valuable. Condensation (as

exampled in ‘Botanical Monograph’ and ‘Yellow Beard’ [FS1899]) is a form of

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 6 of 10

censorship. The censorship distorts the underlying wish of the dream. The censor wishes

to keep hidden the latent content, to keep the dreamer from disappointment, by

attempting to fulfil the dreamer’s unconscious wish. The dream thoughts are stripped of

their affect, this affect being transformed into the visual images of the dream.

“The political writer who has unpleasant truths to tell.. the writer has censorship

to fear and so he moderates and distorts the expression of his opinion”, [FS1899,

pp112]

This censorship takes place via condensation. Many latent thoughts can be condensed

into one manifest concept, a composite figure or image so that compression of thoughts

or wishes can occur. This condensation is clearly seen as the analyst works via

interpretation back through the manifest content of the dream free associating to the

individual images of the dream. Omission of fragments and fusing of others to transform

the latent into the manifest allow the censor to act at its fullest.

“With condensation, a compression of two or more ideas occurs, so that a

composite figure is formed.. an image in a dream is able to represent many different

wishes or thoughts through compression.. displacement, the significant unconscious wish

is able to transfer its intensity or meaning to an indifferent term, .. act as a delegate, thus

disguising it”. [GE1990, pp97]

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 7 of 10

However during sleep the censor, that in waking consciousness has a steady and strong

resistant repression, slips and allows puzzle pieces of the underlying repressed wish to

come through piggybacking on the indifferent residues of the previous day. Upon waking

the censor tries to resist further movement towards the latent content by means of

secondary revision; by reforming, forgetting,

Wishes are what are behind the manifest content of dreams; they are the primal

sources, the latent content.

“dreams are first and foremost manifestations of unbridled and ruthless egoism..

freed from all ethical bonds.. the demands of sexual desire.. desire for pleasure – the

libido.. hatred too, rages without restraint, wishes for revenge, death..” [FS1915, pp175]

These wishes are linked to sexual libido and at their earliest to infantile sexuality but

shall be left outside of our discussion.

In conclusion there is a distinction between manifest and latent content of the

dream in that the manifest is a censored version of the latent content distorted via

displacement, condensation by the dream-work but also by the pure fact that the dream

thoughts must regress to their primal agencies in order to express the logical statements

of language.

“their first material and their preliminary stages were sense impressions.. only

later were words attached to them and the words in turn linked up to thoughts. The

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 8 of 10

dream work thus submits thoughts to a regressive treatment and undoes their

development”, [FS1915, pp215]

However this distinction does not imply an unconnected manifest from latent, while the

work of interpretation may be long and arduous

“Manifest content and latent content are closely connected by reason of the secret

meaning which links the one to the other, a meaning which can be revealed only by

analysis” [QJM2004, pp39]

It must be remembered that the manifest dream is not a genuine dream-thought. It has

been subjected to dream-work which has distorted it and made inaccurate. This distortion

though is for a reason, resistance has been enforced to allow the dreamer to repress and

distil psychical energy.

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 9 of 10

References:

[FS1899] Freud Sigmund, Translation by Joyce Crick, (1899), “The Interpretation of

Dreams”, Oxford University Press

[FS1915] Freud Sigmund, Edited by James Strachley (1915-1917), “Introductory

Lectures on Psychoanalysis Volume I”, The Penguin Freud Library

[FS1932] Freud Sigmund, Translated by James Strachley, (1932 – 1936), “The Standard

Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freund. Volume XXII -

New Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis and Other Works”, Vintage. The

Hogarth Press

[GE1990] Grozs Elizabeth, (1990), “Jacques Lacan A Feminist Introduction”, Routledge

Publishing

[QJM2004] Quinodoz Jean-Michel, (2004), “Reading Freud A Chronological

Exploration of Freud’s Writings”, Presses Universitaires de france

Alan Cummins 1165236 Pages 10 of 10