A pamphlet more than a book, these lecture notes provide an interesting introduction, defining different types of dreams (prophetic, prodomic, archetypal) and, at first, appears to discourage people from trying to interpret dreams. There also appears to be a strong emphasis on the theory that people who dream a lot have unbalanced psyches or some sort of personality deficiency.

However, in the latter part of the book, the emphasis shifts to the reasoning behind this: Hall is concerned that people may try to interpret their own and other's dreams from an ego-state rather than a spiritual or visionary state. He makes a good point with this, and also with his final conclusion that any approach to interpreting dreams whether our own or somebody else's should be undertaken with moderation and thoughtfulness.

In the last few pages there are some interesting examples of dream symbols and of people who, in a dream state, act and behave in a manner completely incongruent with their waking persona. ( )