Do we mostly dream to escape or be imprisoned

[Philosophy Explorer]

Those two scenarios are likely, another that comes to mind is problem solving.

Do you regard dreaming as a a part of the mind? Is it you or something else? These are some of my thoughts on the subject.

PhilX

[Hobbes' Choice]

If you mean the thing we do whilst we sleep; literally dream...

We do not dream "TO DO" anything. Dreaming is not voluntary anymore than sleeping or breathing is voluntary, so we do not have a reason for it.

[Philosophy Explorer]

If you mean the thing we do whilst we sleep; literally dream...

We do not dream "TO DO" anything. Dreaming is not voluntary anymore than sleeping or breathing is voluntary, so we do not have a reason for it.

When you say that dreaming is involuntary, is it due to the fact we do it all the time while sleeping?

Also I question that we do not have a reason for dreaming. Using Kekule for example, he dreamed up the structure of benzene while he was sleeping, a problem he was occupied with while awake. I also have a hypothesis that dreaming helps to clear the brain of memories.

PhilX

[Obvious Leo]

Dreaming is one of the most fascinating subjects in cognitive neuroscience. There are many theories about it and most of them are probably mostly right. Sleep and dreaming are both seen as critical to our processes of cognition because it lets the brain try and sort itself out without any interference from our higher order cognitive functions or from our less than perfect bodies. I tend to think of it as I would de-fragging the hard drive on a computer. The brain just gets busy putting all of its information in order by comparing it with information it has previously stored. However, unlike a computer, the brain tries new ways of codifying itself which often means information is placed in the wrong pigeon-hole, just to see what happens. This is why dreams are so fucking weird.

[Skip]

Yes, and also, because various social and emotional problems arise during each day, the sleeping brain (unburdened by the exigencies of life) tries to match the anxieties with recently-acquired information and archived material.
This is why we so often dream an answer to a perplexing science, technical or art problem: while awake, we have no access memories we don't consciously know about.

[Obvious Leo]

This is why we so often dream an answer to a perplexing science, technical or art problem:

We can even dream up an answer without ever realising that it originated in a dream. The brain is forever rewiring its neural pathways so every time we revisit a perplexing problem we're actually thinking about it slightly differently.

[Hobbes' Choice]

If you mean the thing we do whilst we sleep; literally dream...

We do not dream "TO DO" anything. Dreaming is not voluntary anymore than sleeping or breathing is voluntary, so we do not have a reason for it.

When you say that dreaming is involuntary, is it due to the fact we do it all the time while sleeping?

Also I question that we do not have a reason for dreaming. Using Kekule for example, he dreamed up the structure of benzene while he was sleeping, a problem he was occupied with while awake. I also have a hypothesis that dreaming helps to clear the brain of memories.

PhilX

1) It is unknown if we do it all the time whilst we sleep, though we probably have some period of dreaming during each night. And NO, that could not be a reason for it not being voluntary. It is not voluntary because we do not choose to do it, obviously.
2) One example does not make a reason. Its obvious enough that dreams are composed of what we do in the day.
It's likely that dreaming is some sort of activity of the brain that is trying to organise, collect and reject stuff we learn in the day.
That's not WHY is do it. Like I said I do not choose it, so have no reason to 'do' it. It just happens.
It's likely that we would be crazy were we not to have this facility, so if you want a facile "reason", then there is your answer.

[Skip]

One of the functions of dreaming is to reinforce whatever we have learned. When I learn a new manual skill - how to use a tool - I do that task all night long, it seems. When I've been injured, I dream about avoiding or preventing the accident. I assume this is like rehearsals, for the next time in waking life one has to face the same challenge. (I've heard deliberate visualization serves the same function.)