Question

Which of these ideas is best supported by the passage below (paragraph 21)?

I could draw closer the threads of the web which analysis has disclosed, and would then be able to show how they all run together into a single knot; I am debarred from making this work public by considerations of a private, not of a scientific, nature. After having cleared up many things which I do not willingly acknowledge as mine, I should have much to reveal which had better remain my secret. Why, then, do not I choose another dream whose analysis would be more suitable for publication, so that I could awaken a fairer conviction of the sense and cohesion of the results disclosed by analysis? The answer is, because every dream which I investigate leads to the same difficulties and places me under the same need of discretion; nor should I forgo this difficulty any the more were I to analyze the dream of someone else. That could only be done when opportunity allowed all concealment to be dropped without injury to those who trusted me.
Answer choices for the above question

A. Freud does not complete the analysis because he is worried that competitors will steal his method.

B. Freud protects his patients’ privacy, but does not care much about his own privacy.

C. Freud believes that close analysis of any dream will eventually lead to sensitive personal topics.

D. Freud chose a particularly personal dream to increase the readers’ interest.

Answer 1

The passage most strongly supports the idea that Freud believes analysis of any dream leads to sensitive personal topics, requiring discretion. This aligns with his broader theories on dream analysis as a means to access the unconscious mind and its buried thoughts and feelings. The correct answer is option: C. Freud believes that close analysis of any dream will eventually lead to sensitive personal topics.

Step-by-step explanation:

The idea best supported by the passage is that Sigmund Freud believed close analysis of any dream would inevitably lead to sensitive personal topics. In the provided paragraph (paragraph 21), Freud discusses the inherent difficulties and the need for discretion during dream analysis. He indicates that whether examining his own dreams or someone else's, he would encounter the same challenges that require him to maintain privacy, suggesting the invariable path to uncovering deeply personal issues.

Freud's assertions about dreams reveal his theory that dreams are a window into the subconscious mind, often touching upon repressed memories and desires which contribute to inner conflicts and neuroses. As dreams often delve into the latent content, or hidden meanings, they tend to reveal parts of ourselves that are sensitive and private, therefore necessitating careful handling and confidentiality.

Therefore, option C, which states that Freud believes that close analysis of any dream will eventually lead to sensitive personal topics, is the one most aligned with the essence of the passage and Freud's views on dream analysis.