The dream in the middle high German epic

A comprehensive investigation into the nature, source, function and meaning of the dream passages to be found in the Middle High German epics up to, and including, those by Gottfried von Strassburg and Wolfram von Eschenbach, is undertaken here for the first time. By applying to the literary dream both the dream classifications of Macrobius - undisputed authority on dreams and dreaming for the Middle Ages - and the dream divinations catalogued in the highly popular dreambook genre known as the «Somnia Danielis», the author permits new insights into the poetic exploitation of the dream as a literary device and into the medieval attitude toward the experience with its very real significance in everday life. Textual passages are annotated exhaustively with respect to literary precedents and contemporary source material; a general summary of the dream's poetic functions and salient characteristics within each given genre concludes the study.