Social Dreaming in the 21st Century

The world and its people are in a precarious situation. After the loss and carnage of the twentieth century there is prevailing mood of uncertainty and paranoia, yet at the same time a denial of tragedy, a salvation fantasy, an illusion that we will be saved. Since dreams often reflect the social environment of the dreamer, they thus prove to be a useful tool when examining the group dynamics. Social Dreaming is the method of working with dreams that are shared and associated within a gathering of people, coming together for this purpose. Its focus is on the dream and not the dreamer. How can this method help with today s zeitgeist? Can it be used to not only help soothe individual souls but to also come up with new ways of going forward? This work is a collaboration between two different analytic traditions, produced in the spirit of shared ideas, acknowledged differences and a mutual belief in free association and the primacy of the dream. It will help explain the ricochet of dreams and associations, recalled and echoed in the spontaneity of the dream-telling."