The argument regarding the issues related to dream can be dated back to the time of Plato. This is in relation to the fact that Plato used this argument to develop a refutation about the view of knowledge and perception. According to the information from the research study conducted by Papachristou (2014, p.1212), it can be justifiably noted that most of the dreamers are often believing in false things. This is can be purely based on the perception and theory presented by Theaetetus about dreaming process in human beings. Metzinger (2013, p.749) on the other hand indicated that the ability of human beings to believe in their dreams can be a misleading process. This is based on the example that if people dream that they have wings, they will develop a feeling of flying on those wings while in real sense such wings are not there to seen. Despite the fact that most people have the feeling that they are dreaming at the moment, it is important to note that there is a small probability for such incidences to happen (Thompson 2014, p.28). This paper will discuss the arguments about the occurrence of dream.
Dream Argument
Based on the argument presented by Theaetetus regarding the nature of dreaming among the human beings, it can be noted that they are sets of activities and hallucinations that take place in the human mind while they are asleep or talking to another person in a waking state (Windt 2015, p.73). Windt, Nielsen and Thompson (2016, p.874) on the other hand indicated that Socrates was able to agree with the conclusions presented by Theaetetus about dreaming. This is with reference to the assumption that the human beings are inability to become certain that they are not dreaming. Because I have been able to read through the philosophical works that were done by Plato, can justifiably note that he did not refute this claim at any point. To add more information on the perception about dreaming, Zippel (2016, p.182) highlighted the thoughts of Tzu, who was the great Chinese Taoist, that indicated that the human minds are developed in a manner that they cannot be certain that they are awake. For that matter, there are higher chances that every person is in a dreaming process as long as they are alive.
Even though people are always dreaming while they are asleep, I can justifiably note that they are unable to know that they are actually dreaming. This is with reference to the thoughts presented by Tzu about dreaming which indicated that “perhaps you and I are dreaming and we have not wakened but we do not know that we are dreaming” (Thompson 2014, p.32). Despite the fact that human beings can dream that they are dreaming, such activities in the human minds can be referred to as pure hallucinations and cannot be justified. I can support this assumption by using the incidence that Chuang Tzu was able to dream that he was a butterfly but only woke up later to find himself to be the same Tzu that he was before starting to sleep. “I did not know whether it was Chuo dreaming that he was a butterfly or the butterfly dreaming that it was Chuo” (Windt 2015, p.84). Such confusions make it very difficult to some extent to determine the truth about the existence of dream as well as the ability of the incidences taking place in the dream to occur in the real life situation of the human beings. Nevertheless, the use of these examples is a clear indication that the dream argument is not a modern society issue but an argument that started long in the ancient times.
Descartes' version about the dream analogy is considered to be one of the most famous philosophical perspective of this argument. Most importantly, Descartes was concerned with the availability of the philosophical reasons behind the development of perception development. For that matter, he was not able to trust such judgments in a situation whereby the so and so is “hardly perceptible or very far away” (Shaw 2016, p.46). This is with reference to the fact that there were some incidences where his senses were able to adversely deceive him about such incidences. Through this presentation of ideas, I can note that there were some points when Descartes was able to respond in the manner of Moore when he stated that “Surely these hands and this body are mine and I am here seated by the fire, attired in a dressing gown, with these papers before me” (Lin 2017, p.264). Even though people have different ways presenting their psychological understanding of various issues that take place in their minds, Moore believed that an individual who is able to doubt the existence and importance of dreaming process in the human life must be insane.
Contrasting with the argument presented by Moore, I believe that Descartes was able to effectively reduce the temptation to agree that the perceptual judgements about the objects that are close to the human bodies are unquestionable. With reference to the information from the research study conducted by Metzinger (2013, p.747), after successful presentation of the perceptual judgment was when Descartes was able to speak about the dream argument through the application of metaphysical rigor. According to Descartes, the possibility that he was dreaming can be perceived by the fire which is attired in a dressing gown and the like. To add more information to this point, Descartes believed that such incidences do not only happen to the other human beings but that he was able to be in the same situation and had a firsthand experience. “On many occasions I have in sleep been deceived by similar illusions” (Descartes 2017, p.13). Based on the arguments presented by both Descartes and Moore, I can defensibly note that there are no certain indications which can be used to justify the truth behind the dreaming process among the human beings.
With the assumption that the lives of the human beings are made up of finite number of moments of perception, being able to sleep for eight hours in a day will mean that we will be left with only sixteen hours of that very day to participate in waking. According to the information from the research works performed by Windt, Nielsen and Thompson (2016, p.876) to determine the logic behind dreaming at night when humans are asleep, it can be noted that we can hardly understand the consciousness with reference to the contemporary discussion as something which can be observed through the application of different forms of strengths. For that matter, dream can be determined to be composed of various forms of consciousness. This is based on the fact that the human beings are able see the occurrence of different activities through dreaming. I believe that providing the answer about the available relationship between the dream time and waking time might be very challenging.
According to Zippel (2016, p.193), developing such explanations are difficult based on the fact that the events that often take days to occur or to be accomplished in the waking time are often completed within a flash in a dream. On the other hand, I am of the opinion that we should note that despite the fact that the development of a proper relationship between the dream time and waking time might be challenging, the events taking place within these two times often have the ability of running at the same speed. This relationship was effectively tested in the research study conducted by Windt (2016, p.960) that involved the lucid dreamers being asked to signal the start and the end of the determined period of time by moving their eyes to different directions.
Papachristou (2014, p.1219) further indicated that such signals were perfectly tracked in the sleep laboratory and the average time estimated during dreaming was ten seconds while that for the waking time was determined to be thirteen seconds. For that matter, it can be noted that there are higher chances that significant percentage of the waking time is often occupied by dream. Based on this development, it is not a must that a person falls asleep id when he or she will be able to dream. Dreaming is an important process in the life of the human beings even though being largely characterized with high percentage of hallucinations. Dreaming has been determined to play an important role in the emotional psychological development and can also be a means of solving a problem. According to Descartes (2017, p.25) dreaming that you have found a solution to an issue that often worries you can make you develop the right skills or open up the door for help that can be used in the actual solving of the problem at hand.
Even though most of us can say that we are awake during the waking time because of the belief they have on their senses, Shaw (2016, p.48) indicated that there might be higher chances that senses that we trust and believe in might be fooling use. Descartes at one time highlighted that the information that gets into the senses of the human being must not always be accurate. For that matter, there is no justifiable experience that can be used to distinguish between the dream time and waking time. Nevertheless, there should not be a confusion between dream and reality (Thompson 2014, p.35). This is based on the fact that when a person is asked about what he or she remembers in a dream, there are the occurrence of noticeable symmetries that can be easily differentiated from the uniformities of sense in the waking time, and that the lucid dreaming can only help in exacerbating such distinctions. For that matter, I believe that even if a person is right now dreaming, there are two main types of realities that often come into action despite the time taken by such individuals in the dreaming process.
According to (Lin 2017, p.257), Wittgenstein’s Private Language Argument is another important viewpoint that can be used in the explanation of the need to dream. In this argument, it was indicated that there are impossibilities for the occurrence of language that can only be used in the demonstration of private and inner sensations. For that matter, there is nothing that can be counted as misapplying word in order to refer to the internal state of the mind. Furthermore, the correct and incorrect states often depend on the external frames of references within which the reflections developed from the responses of others are established. Windt (2016, p.968) added more information on Wittgenstein’s Private Language Argument by indicated that it is purely based on the empiricism theory. Nevertheless, it can only be applied in the case of skeptic who was involved in the dreaming process. Semantic externalism is another important theory that can be used to provide comprehensive explanation regarding dreaming. This is based on the fact that it is an important part of the language which is not purely an internal psychological state hence it is depended on the shared external world.
Conclusion
Based on the arguments presented by different philosophers regarding the perception of dreaming, I can note that it is not wrong to be unaware of recognizing that I am dreaming. This is will reference to the fact that it is very difficult differentiate between the dream time and waking time. Even if a person is awake, his or her mind will still be involved in the development of various forms of illusions that are similar to those which occurrence during the dreaming time. Therefore, being unable to know when the dreaming process is taking place for an individual is very correct based on the assumption that there a very thin line between the mind that is in its dream time and that which is in its wake time.
References
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