INTRODUCTORY REMARKS

In attempting a discus-
sion of the Interpretation of Dreams, I
do not believe that I have overstepped the bounds of neuro-
pathological interest. For, on psychological investigation,
the dream proves to be the first link in a chain of abnormal
psychic structures whose other links, the hysterical phobia,
the obsession, and the delusion must, for practical reasons,
claim the interest of the physician. The dream (as will
appear) can lay no claim to a corresponding practical signi-
ficance; its theoretical value as a paradigm is, however, all
the greater, and one who cannot explain the origin of the
dream pictures will strive in vain to understand the phobias,
obsessive and delusional ideas, and likewise their therapeutic
importance.

But this relation, to which our subject owes its importance,
is responsible also for the deficiencies in the work before us.
The surfaces of fracture which will be found so frequently in
this discussion correspond to so many points of contact at
which the problem of the dream formation touches more
comprehensive problems of psychopathology, which cannot be
discussed here, and which will be subjected to future elabora-
tion if there should be sufficient time and energy, and if further
material should be forthcoming.

Peculiarities in the material I have used to elucidate the
interpretation of dreams have rendered this publication diffi-
cult. From the work itself it will appear why all dreams
related in the literature or collected by others had to remain
useless for my purpose; for examples I had to choose between
my own dreams and those of my patients who were under
psychoanalytic treatment. I was restrained from utilising
the latter material by the fact that in it the dream processes
were subjected to an undesirable complication on account
of the intermixture of neurotic characters. On the other

vi

THE INTERPRETATION OF DREAMS

hand, inseparably connected with my own dreams was the cir-
cumstance that I was obliged to expose more of the intimacies
of my psychic life than I should like and than generally falls
to the task of an author who is not a poet but an investigator
of nature. This was painful, but unavoidable; I had to put
up with the inevitable in order not to be obliged to forego
altogether the demonstration of the truth of my psycho-
logical results. To be sure, I could not at best resist the temp-
tation of disguising some of my indiscretions through omissions
and substitutions, and as often as this happened it detracted
materially from the value of the examples which I employed.
I can only express the hope that the reader of this work,
putting himself in my difficult position, will show forbearance,
and also that all persons who are inclined to take offence at
any of the dreams reported will concede freedom of thought
at least to the dream life.