Two dreams about Harry Potter came up in a new survey I’ve just begun studying, and they show how deeply the fantasy series of J.K. Rowling has sunk into some people’s minds. The first comes from a 20-year old single Asian woman from California: “About 10 years or less ago…I dreamed of myself being able to fly a broomstick, just like Harry Potter did in his movie. All I could remember was the joy of flying and the cool wind in my face..and all that time, I was indoors..but I didn’t care..I just remember waking up happy because I thought I had just learned how to fly.”
The second comes from a 25-year old white woman in Indiana. She is married, childless, and unemployed: “I was at Hogwarts Castle from the Harry Potter books, and I had just found out that I was pregnant. I knew that I had been virginally impregnated by Voldemort, and I was very conflicted between my love for the baby growing inside me and my hatred for Voldemort. I remember talking with my boyfriend, and double-checking with him that we still hadn’t ever had sex. He assured me that we had not. I remember talking with my dad, reassuring him that I hadn’t given away my virginity, that I was still saving sex for marriage. I was very emotional. Next, I remember talking with Harry Potter. He said, “You cannot go through with this! You have to get rid of that baby!” Then the scene changed abruptly, and I was in a plastic baby pool. I had decided on a water birth and was in labor. Voldemort’s face was a mere two inches from mine, and he was screaming, his face intense and full of evil. “Push!!! Puuushhh!!!” I was in so much pain, emotionally and physically. I didn’t want to have this baby. But I did want it! I loved it! The dream ended in the middle of me pushing through labor.”
I don’t know anything more about these individuals than their basic demographic profiles. The second dream mentions a boyfriend, but on the question about marital status she says she’s married. I don’t have additional information to reconcile that.
I’d be curious to know what readers think about these dreams!
In the online survey, conducted by Harris Interactive, 2045 American adults were asked to describe an especially memorable dream. A total of 1026 people provided answers of more than 20 words. I would not have expected Harry Potter dreams to be especially frequent for a group of adults answering a broad question like this. Soon I’ll have another survey using this same basic question with a group of 8-18-year olds, and I certainly expect to find more HP-themed dreams in that set of data.