The activity that we did in class with the Kafka stories helped enlighten me on how we are going to project what we have learned regarding dream theory onto literature.
I haven't had the opportunity to read any Kafka, besides this assignment, but it seems to me that the stories are strange, unpredictable, and perhaps a little difficult to unfold. Using Hartmann's theory that dreams are centered around an emotion I was able to come closer to an understanding of "The Judgment," even though my analysis only centered around Georg undressing his father and bringing him to bed. The underlying guilt in the story became obvious to me only after I let go of what seemed to be the main point, (Georg's problem with sending the letter). It was fun to unravel the story as I would my own dream, and to get a glimpse into the mind of the character, or dreamer, George.
It was interesting when it wass bought up in class that perhaps Georg and his father are imagos of eachother. Before this I was a little confused as to what exactly Jung was trying to portray with his idea of 'imago' but applying the idea to literature gave me a new understanding of it through example.
It has been mentioned a few times throughout the readings that usually dreams in literature are straightforward and portray the exact thoughts/actions of characters, but in the case of Kafka I think he does a magnificent job of holding on to the confusion and anxiety of the dream world as well.