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You
awake to the sight of a cloudy undefined autumn morning. The unwelcome sensation of a coldsweated fever is the next to reach your consciousness. Your flu has far from subsided. As you
drift through your morning routine every aspect seems somehow strange and alien. Are you still
asleep? Or, has your continued flu twisted your consciousness to near delirium?
The above scenario constitutes the frequent occurrence of mistaking a waking state with a dream
state. Below I will show that in order to delineate a dream state from a waking state one must
hold a clear conception of what a dream state and waking state are.
For the sake of clarity the terms waking and dreaming state will be initially defined here. A
waking state is categorized as having a cohesive series of events leading up to and succeeding
the moment in question. That is, to attempt a distinction of a waking state, one needs to recall the
events prior to and after the moment in question. This is the case due to dreams occurring, as it
were, with no introduction or conclusion, mere fragments of perception. By contrast, a dream
state is defined here as having no recollection of prior events either during the time in question or
afterwards. This loss of an introduction and conclusion is accompanied by altered perception and
unusual patterns of thought.
These definitions undoubtedly raise several problematic scenarios, such as the one above, where
there is, in essence, a state in between waking and sleeping. Having a feverish illness is just one
of the paradigms that presents problems to the current definitions of waking and dream states.
Others include; ingesting mind altering substances, sleep deprivation (or under-sleeping),
oversleeping, meditation, and hypnosis. A less obvious problem that these definitions raise is that
the human brain processes sensory information in the dream state the same way it processes
sensory information in the waking state. So given that the two separate states use the same
method of processing information, where does the line lie that separates the two?
In an attempt to come to more suitable definitions of both a waking and a dream state the
aforementioned problems will be addressed here. The first is the problem of ingesting mind
altering substances; this includes everything from NyQuil to Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD).
The problem here lies in that, through ingesting these substances a state recognized by our
current definition of a waking state could be altered to fit our current definition of a dream state.
These substances can cause altered perception, unusual thought patterns, and the absence of
memory of prior events. Sleep deprivation, oversleeping, meditation, and hypnosis have all been
reported to induce similar effects that mirror our definition of a dream state. So since these
scenarios produce problems with our current definition of waking and dreaming states, can we
produce problem-free definitions?
After much consideration the answer to whether more apt definitions can be given is no. Every
conceivable way of defining the two states presents contradictions. Though, there is one set of
definitions that presents the most combatable contradictions. This is, that the waking state is
defined as periods when consciousness is utilized, and the dreaming state is defined by periods
when consciousness is not utilized. Undoubtedly these definitions, too, raise suspicions in your
mind. Like that of a man working on a mundane task while awake but allowing for his mind to
drift in and out of the task at hand. Is he dreaming? Or of a women that is enthralled in the most
vivid, mind opening dream. Is she in a waking state? My answer to both of these questions is
unwaveringly yes. The reason for this seemingly puzzling answer will be examined soon. First
we will examine how the common man, and consequently everyone, defines these states.
In its most basic form a dream state can be defined as a state that occurs while asleep. Likewise,
a waking state in its most basic form can be described as occurring while awake. I, though, refute
these definitions that differentiate being in a waking or a dream state by whether ones eyes are
open or closed. I, most likely as yourself, have witnessed a college campus in the morning hours
and have seen the dreamy demeanors of the multitudes of young adults. Perhaps they are
dreaming of a warm bed, a cup of coffee, or their perceived life after college. Are these students
dreaming? Yes. Are these students more awake then their peers, who remain bed-side
discovering meanings of life through their interpretations of the distorted representations of
unconsciousness? No.
The supposition here is that levels of available consciousness cannot delineate waking and
dreaming states. Only through the utilization of available consciousness can one be determined
to be in in either a waking or a dream state. If it became the general consensus that one must do
more than open their eyes to be in a waking state. Maybe I wouldnt be constantly confronted
with the feeling, George Orwell so eloquently described in the novel Coming up for Air, as if
I was the only person awake in a city of sleep-walkers.