These examples serve to illustrate that which Freud treats conclusively in his "Traumdeutung," namely, that repressed thoughts disguise themselves in similarities, be it in speech similarities (sound), or similarities of optical pictures. For the latter forms of displacement dreams afford the best examples.
Those who reject Freud's analysis of dreams can discover rich substitutes in melody automatisms. At a merry entertainment some one remarked that if a person marries he should marry a proud lady. A gentleman present who recently married a woman noted for her pride began to softly whistle to himself the melody of a familiar street song. I immediately asked this gentleman whom I knew well to tell me the text of this melody. I received the following answer: "What I whistled just now? Oh that's nothing, I believe I heard it often in the streets but I do not know the words." I insisted that he should recall the words which I knew well, but he was unable to do so; on the contrary he assured me that he never heard these words. The text reads as follows:
"Meine Mutter hat gesagt: Nimm dir keine Bauernmagd." ("My mother has said do not take a peasant maid.")
During an excursion, a young lady accompanied by a gentleman whose proposal she soon hoped for quietly sang the Wedding March of Lohengrin.
A young colleague who just finished his doctor's thesis had to whistle for half a day Handel's "Lo the conquering hero comes crowned with glory," etc.
An acquaintance who was happy over a new and lucrative position betrayed himself by the following melody which obsessed him: "Are we not born for glory?"
A colleague meeting a nurse during his rounds, who was supposed to be pregnant, immediately afterwards finds himself whistling: "There were once two royal children who loved each other so much."
I do not wish to increase unnecessarily this collection of melody automatisms, every person can daily make the same observation. We learn from this another method of disguise of the repressed thought. It is well known that whistling or singing is a frequent accompaniment in those occupations where the full attention is not required (Freud), the rest of the attention can therefore
