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It is a daring enterprise to 'reinterpret' Freud's dreams which he published in his Interpretation of Dreams. It would be unjust, however, to compare Velikovsky with other authors who failed entirely in such an undertaking. He does not claim to analyze Freud but limits himself to an attempt to read a certain preconscious latent dream-thought into several of Freud's dreams. 'An important, possibly the most important determination of almost all dreams mentioned by Freud is his inner struggle for unhampered advancement. In order to get ahead he would have to conclude a Faust-pact; he would have to sell his soul to the Church.'
Regarding Freud's ambition and a certain connection of this ambition with his Jewishness, Freud himself always admitted and stressed this point. Velikovsky's interpretations seem possible at certain points concerning the statement of Freud's struggle about baptism, but at others his interpretation seems rather arbitrary and unjustified. Velikovsky is of the peculiar opinion that a stranger is more capable of uncovering the hidden elements in the unconscious play on words in dreams than the dreamer himself, and he makes much use of this opinion. Freud dreams about a 'herbarium', and Velikovsky says this word 'suggests the sound association to "Hebrew"'; he dreams about 'Cyklamen', and Velikovsky adds, 'This word contains "Amen"'; the figure of 'Count Taaffe' according to Velikovsky stands for 'Taufe' ('baptism'); 'hotel' 'may be Hotel de Dieu'; 'three' 'is a Christian symbol'; 'three steps at one time'='with the Trinity one can climb well'; 'pelvis' 'recalls the receptacle which is used in the ritual of conversion—the baptismal font (pelvis=Becken=Taufbecken)'; Freud dreams of Professor Bruecke, 'Bruecke in Latin=pons, pontis, reminiscent of Pontificus'; 'breakfast ship' 'may be a reversal of the Last Supper'.