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Freud's general formulation of dream genesis, upon which he appears to hinge his theory of dreams, is his assertion that a dream is the product of the “disguised fulfillment of a suppressed or repressed wish” (1900, p. 160). This formulation is the cornerstone of his clinical theory. The clinical theory assumes that psychological conflict is at the basis of neurosis, and that psychological conflict is exactly modeled in the dream. That is, the dream is the laboratory of neurosis.
In a general review of Freud's theory of dream interpretation, it is useful to distinguish a theory of genesis and a theory of translation. The theory of genesis addresses the source and the motivational foundation of dreams. The theory of translation deals with the mechanics of dream interpretation, much in the same way as grammars and dictionaries provide rules and referents for the translation of languages. In the general literature on Freud's theory, the theory of genesis and the theory of translation are treated as interdependent and overlapping. Nevertheless, the theories may be disentangled, just as what is written and the question of why it was written may be distinguished.
The problem with a wish fulfillment theory is that it constrains. In the limits it imposes, the dream is permitted only a self-oriented, affect-laden aim that tends toward discharge. If the imagistic language of dreams is understood as a general language that may express any variety of meaning, Freud's constraint is analogous to a constraint on the writing of English that it should only concern topics that suggest or lead to sensual release.
The contention that a dream, including Freud's dream of Irma's Injection, represents more than the fulfillment of a wish is furthered by investigation