Analytic Techniques

Jung developed several techniques aimed at uncovering material hidden in

the unconscious. Like Freud, Jung believed that the content of dreams is indicative

of unconscious attitudes. He believed that dreams have a compensatory

function; that is, they are reflections of the side of personality that is not

displayed during one’s conscious, everyday state. The sophisticated librarian

may have dreams of being an exotic dancer, according to Jung, as a way

of expressing the ignored aspects of personality.

Jung gives an example of the compensatory aspects of dreams when describing

the recollections of a dutiful son. The son dreamed that he and his

father were leaving home, and his father was driving a new automobile. The

father began to drive in an erratic fashion. He swerved the car all over the

road until he finally succeeded in crashing the car and damaging it very

badly. The son was frightened, then became angry and chastised his father

for his behavior. Rather than respond, however, his father began to laugh

until it became apparent that he was very intoxicated, a condition the son

had not previously noticed. Jung interpreted the dream in the context of the

son’s relationship with his father. The son overly idealized the father, while

son’s relationship with his father. The son overly idealized the father, while

refusing to recognize apparent faults. The dream represented the son’s latent

anger at his father and his attempt to reduce him in status. Jung indicated

to the young man that the dream was a cue from his unconscious that

he should evaluate his relationship with his father with a more balanced outlook.