A NARRATIVE APPROACH TO THE PHILOSOPHICAL INTERPRETATION OF DREAMS, MEMORIES, AND REFLECTIONS OF THE UNCONSCIOUS THROUGH THE USE OF AUTOETHNOGRAPHY/BIOGRAPHY A Dissertation by ANTONIO RIVERA ROSADO Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2011 Major Subject: Curriculum and Instruction A NARRATIVE APPROACH TO THE PHILOSOPHICAL INTERPRETATION OF DREAMS, MEMORIES, AND REFLECTIONS OF THE UNCONSCIOUS THROUGH THE USE OF AUTOETHNOGRAPHY/BIOGRAPHY A Dissertation by ANTONIO RIVERA ROSADO Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved by: Co-Chairs of Committee, Stephen Carpenter Patrick Slattery Committee Members, Valerie Hill-Jackson Toby Egan Head of Department, Dennie Smith May 2011 Major Subject: Curriculum and Instruction iii ABSTRACT A Narrative Approach to the Philosophical Interpretation of Dreams, Memories, and Reflections of the Unconscious Through the Use of Autoethnography/Biography. (May 2011) Antonio Rivera Rosado, B.A., Interamerican University of Puerto Rico; M.Ed., The University of Texas at El Paso Co-Chairs of Advisory Committee, Dr. Stephen Carpenter Dr. Patrick Slattery The purpose of the present study aimed to develop a comprehensive model that measures the autoethnographic/biographic relevance of dreams, memories, and reflections as they relate to understanding the self and others. A dream, memory, and reflection (DMR) ten item questionnaire was constructed using aspects of Freudian, Jungian, and Lacanian Theory of Dream Interpretation. Fifteen dreams, five memories, and five reflections were collected from the participant at the waking episode or during a moment of deep thought. The DMR analysis was used as the prime matter for creating a narrative document that uses autoethnography and autobiography to deliver a philosophical story about the unconscious reality of the participant. The results of the dissertation study produced a ten section narrative document titled The Shadow of Joaquin that portrayed the benchmarks of the life of the participant that led him to the completion of a doctoral degree in curriculum and instruction. At the final section of the narrative document the postmodern philosophical theory of Labor Percolation is proposed by the researcher as a direct result of the DMR analysis. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF FIGURES vi LIST OF TABLES vii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW 1 Introduction 1 General Statement of the Study 2 Significance of the Study 2 Purpose of the Study 3 Review of the Literature 6 Summarized Debate Between Howard Gardner and Elliot Eisner 6 Unconscious Interpretation Theory 9 Curriculum Theory 15 Qualitative Research Venues 17 II PROBLEM 21 Research Method 21 Research Design 21 Population Sample 23 Measures 23 Procedure 24 Timeline 25 III SOLUTIONS 26 Dreams, Memories, and Reflections Analysis 26 Dream Analysis 26 Memories Analysis 50 Reflections Analysis 55 The Shadow of Joaquin: A Poem of the Unconscious 63 Song I: Dreaming 63 Song II: The Caribbean Sea 87 Song III: Christian Renewal 113 v CHAPTER Page Song IV: The Plague 137 Song V: Boxing Gloves 161 Song VI: In The Early Morning Rain 167 Song VII: The Colony 210 Song VIII: Moon‟s Mystery 231 Song IX: A Visit To Madam Le Mystique 245 Song X: The Gathering 266 IV CONCLUSIONS 298 REFERENCES 307 APPENDIX A 309 APPENDIX B 310 VITA 313 vi LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1 Lacanian S/s algorithm 309 vii LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1 List of Primary Characters 310 Table 2 List of Secondary Characters 310 Table 3 List of Places and Organizations 312 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION AND REVIEW OF LITERATURE Introduction This dissertation research is composed of an array of philosophical views that relate to understanding the human unconscious, several qualitative research approaches that support the avenues of approach of the study, and the rationalization for utilizing prose and narrative as a form of educational curriculum. From a structuralist perspective, these different methodological and philosophical parts of this formal dissertation research are combined into a cohesive document that functions as a unified entity. While the schools of thought of structuralism, post- structuralism, post-modernism, and educational curriculum serve as the philosophical basis for conceptualizing the knowledge that is drawn from the study of the unconscious, the qualitative research methods for interpreting the data are an amalgamation of Freudian, Jungian, and Lacanian dream interpretation theory, autobiography/ethnography, and narrative inquiry. The final product of the present research utilizes the interpretation of the dreams, memories, and reflections of the participant/researcher as the prime matter for the creation of a narrative document that is presented in an autoethnographical/biographical form and is characterized by the use of prose. In addition, the literary style of magical realism is yoked to the narrative form in order to exemplify, link, and enhance the unconscious nature of the autoethnographic/biographic work. ___________ This dissertation research follows the style of Teaching and Teacher Education. 2 General Statement of the Study This study presents the concept of autoethnography/biography and self narrative in regards to the author (whom in this case is the researcher). In order to accomplish this task, the present study focuses on the broad scope of the historical events, dreams, prior experiences, memories, and cultural discoveries that have lead the researcher to pursue doctoral studies at Texas A&M University, but that began thirty and five years ago at his time of birth. An analysis of dreams, memories, and reflections is juxtaposed with the narrative inquiry as a method to better understand the often unreliable nature of the human psyche. This discussion not only involves the life of the researcher as a single entity (self), but the contextual circumstances (family, personal faith, friends, academia, relationships, and experience) that surround the researcher in his daily walk through life (others). The present document utilizes the fields of autoethnography and autobiography as they directly relate to the “self” and its relationship to “others” as it is conveyed in this creative dissertation. Chang (2008) describes “self” as the starting point for cultural acquisition and transmission in which an individual is center stage and “others” as strangers who operate by different frames of reference. The relationship of the terms above described exemplifies the human factors that have been an influential force in the researcher‟s life. Significance of the Study The significance of the present study is directly linked to the nature of its essence as a philosophical research project. As a philosophical form, the present project deals with the notion of the unconscious side of the human psyche and its influence over human rationalization of itself as single entity and its social environment. The present document contributes to the general 3 research community as a model for distinctive qualitative techniques of research that allow the researcher to utilize personal creativity within the framework of an educational society that is strongly influenced by empirical methods of inquiry. According to Richardson (1997), the knowledge of the social context guides people to understand their own experience through social imagination. More importantly, I make the argument that the postmodern use of an imaginative approach to portray a story deconstructs the assumption that it must be necessary to follow a preconceived, rigid, and totalitarian approach to investigating phenomena. The present project opens the door to allow the creative forces of the psyche to utilize human imagination in order to create new venues of knowledge, power, and intelligent reason. Purpose of the Study Despite the growing interest by school districts, school administrators, researchers, and teachers in regards to qualitative research, teacher classrooms continue to rely on quantitative forms of data to measure student achievement, student behavioral traits, and student socio economic status amongst other important variables. According to Greene (1995), the issues that are found in our schools cannot be simply measured through a set of statistical computations since the educational communities are often combined with economic distress and other realities that are often difficult to define. Those “masked” realities can be brought to light by students through the use of a philosophical interpretation of their inner selves and expressing it in a creative writing form through the use of autoethnographic/biographic work as it brings important personal feelings and emotions into the light of day. I will now provide a list of the reasons as to why I have chosen a doctoral dissertation with a format that involves the philosophical interpretation of dreams, memories, and reflections 4 as the basis for creating a narrative document that uses autoethnography and autobiography with a creative writing (prose) format. Knowledge base: As a philosopher and scholar, this autoethnographic work will greatly enhance my knowledge of various structuralist, post-structuralist, and post-modernist philosophers. I am a believer that educational philosophy should be an integral part of any educational curriculum whether it