Dream Travelers: Sleep Experiences and Culture in the Western Pacific

by R. Lohmann (Editor), Jane Goodale, Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania, Meetings Staff (Contribution by)

In dreams, part of the self seems to wander off to undertake both mundane tasks and marvellous adventures. Anthropologists have found that many peoples take this experience of dreaming at face value, assuming that their spirits literally leave the body to travel, meet other spirits, and acquire valuable knowledge - with dramatic consequence for relationships, social organization, and religions. Dream Travellers is about Melanesian, Aboriginal Australian, and Indonesian peoples who hold this assumption. Several leading anthropologists contribute theoretically and ethnographically rich chapters, showing that attention to these peoples' dream lives deeply enhances our understanding of their cultures and waking lives as well.

246 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003