Having a person name the first thing which comes to mind when given a word or image is called the process of association. This was the main method used by Freud. Associations are used to get at personal memories. There are many experiences stored in our personal unconscious. These past experiences and the emotional connections to them have a lot to do with how we meet and react to our present situations and people.

One way to do associations as a method of dream interpretation is to go through the written record of the dream and underline each symbol. Below the dream an association, or two, is written in response to each symbol. Here is an example:

Mrs. L. is sewing me a dress. It is black and white. I say, "Let me know the cost of the material and I'll pay you. Also, I owe you for the material in the black and white dress you made me before. I'll pay you for the patterns." I have a feeling of guilt and really want to get paid up.

Associations: Mrs. L.—a materialist, values material things most; sewing—creating, making, sowing; dress—outer covering, or attitude, personality displayed; black and white— opposites, conflict, two extremes; cost of the material—the price of putting too much value on material things; I'll pay—the price to be paid; I owe—an unpaid debt from before; black and white dress—a too extreme attitude which led to conflict; patterns— habits, repetition; guilt, wants to get paid up—desire to improve.

Next, rewrite the dream with the associations in place of the original symbols: "Materialistic attitude is creating a personality which causes conflict. I'll have to pay. I owe for the same materialistic attitude from before and there was conflict then also. I'll pay for this habit! I want to improve."

All dreams need to be related to the dreamer's life. This dream came to a woman who was creating conflicts with her husband because she kept wanting to buy furniture which they didn't need and couldn't afford. The biggest motive for wanting the furniture was to "keep up with the Joneses," in this case Mrs. L. The dream points out that if she doesn't improve, she'll have to pay for this bad habit.

Rendering is a way to integrate the energy of dream images. If the psyche is saying, "I want to be like, and express the