Dream character

Character in a person's dream

A scene from The Odd Couple television series where a dream character meets another in heaven

A dream character, sometimes abbreviated as DC, is an interactable human-like entity in the person's dream, especially while the person is REM-sleeping. The topic has been profoundly addressed in the lucid dreaming community, since while experiencing a lucid dream, the person can consciously interact with dream characters.

A specific dream character may reappear from dream to dream.[1]

## Capabilities

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Dream characters may agree or disagree if asked to perform specific tasks. If they agree, they can solve tasks such as rhyming or drawing, although they have relatively poor arithmetical skills.[2]

Furthermore, dream characters have the ability to come up with ways to outwit the dreamer, like switching off the light to avoid his or her gaze. Recurring dream characters can learn from previous dreams and adapt their behaviour accordingly.[2]

## Nature

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The nature of dream characters is subject to debate amongst dream researchers. Some psychotherapists suggest that they represent parts of the dreamer's self.[3]

The hypothesis that dream characters may have a consciousness of their own has been brought forth by some researchers, such as Paul Tholey. Although this hypothesis is impossible to prove, experiments have shown them to have capabilities which suggest that they may have independent points of view and behave like conscious beings.[2]

## References

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1. ^ Zadra, Antonio (28 June 2021). "What dream characters reveal about the astonishing dreaming brain". Psyche. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
2. ^ a b c Tholey, P. (1989). "Consciousness and abilities of dream characters observed during lucid dreaming". Perceptual and Motor Skills. 68 (2): 567–578\. doi:10.2466/pms.1989.68.2.567. PMID 2717365. S2CID 20433695.
3. ^ Stumbrys, Tadas; Erlacher, Daniel; Schmidt, Steffen (2011-05-23). "Lucid dream mathematics: An explorative online study of arithmetic abilities of dream characters". International Journal of Dream Research: 35–40\. doi:10.11588/ijodr.2011.1.9079. ISSN 1866-7953.

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Dreams and oneirology

Phenomena|

| Dream|

* Oneiros
* Dream speech
* Recurring dream
* False awakening
* Dream character

|

Lucid dream|

* Pre-lucid dream

Nightmare|

* Epiales
* Dreamcatcher
* Night terrors
* Anxiety dream
* Nightmare disorder
* Sleepwalking
* Sleepdriving

Sleep|

* Hypnagogia
* PGO waves
* Rapid eye movement sleep
* Hypnopompia

Therapy and
interpretation|

| Oneiromancy|

* Spirit spouse
* Dream guide
* Oneironautics
* Psychonautics
* Yoga nidra / Dream yoga

|

Dream interpretation|

* Psychoanalytic dream interpretation
* Embodied imagination
* Guided imagery
* Dream dictionary

Cognitive neuroscience of dreams|

* Thought recording and reproduction device
* Activation-synthesis hypothesis
* Sleep medicine

Dreamwork|

* Dream art
* Dream diary
* Dream incubation
* Dream sharing

Sleep induction|

* Lullaby
* Hypnosis
* Oneirogen

Ancient books|

* On Dreams
* Oneirocritica
* Interpretation of Dreams

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