Marie-Jean-Léon, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint Denys
Encyclopedia
Oneirology
Oneirology is the scientific study of dreams. Current research seeks correlations between dreaming and current knowledge about the functions of the brain, as well as understanding of how the brain works during dreaming as pertains to memory formation and mental disorders...
(specialists in the study of dreams).
Hervey de Saint Denys made an intense study of Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, and in 1851 published his Recherches sur l'agriculture et l'horticulture des Chinois (French: Research on the agriculture and horticulture of the Chinese), in which he dealt with the plants and animals that potentially might be able to be acclimatized to and introduced in Western countries. He translated Chinese texts as well as some Chinese stories not of classical interest but valuable for the light they throw on Chinese culture and customs. He also translated some Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
-language works, and wrote a history of the Spanish drama
Spanish literature
Spanish literature generally refers to literature written in the Spanish language within the territory that presently constitutes the state of Spain...
.
More recently (See the works of Stephen LaBerge, Carolus den Blanken, Paul Tholey e.o.), Hervey de Saint Denys has begun to be known for his introspective studies on dream
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
s. He wrote down his dreams on a daily basis from the age of 13.(On page 4 of his work 'Les Reves et les Moyens de Les Diriger' the anonymous author stated that he was in his fourteenth year when he started his dreamwork). In 1867, he anonymously published Les rêves et les moyens de les diriger; observations pratiques (French: Dreams and the Ways to Direct Them: Practical Observations). In this book, he proposed techniques to control dreams, and he described dreams in which the "dreamer is perfectly aware he is dreaming". This particular state of consciousness later came to be called lucid dreaming
Lucid dreaming
A lucid dream is a dream in which one is aware that one is dreaming. The term was coined by the Dutch psychiatrist and writer Frederik van Eeden . In a lucid dream, the dreamer can actively participate in and manipulate imaginary experiences in the dream environment. Lucid dreams can seem real and...
.
At the Paris Exhibition of 1867, Hervey de Saint Denys acted as commissioner for the Chinese exhibits. In 1874 he succeeded Stanislas Julien
Stanislas Julien
Stanislas Aignan Julien was a French sinologist.-Biography:Born at Orléans, he studied the classics at the Collège de France, and in 1821 was appointed assistant professor of Greek. In the same year he published an edition of The Rape of Helen of Coluthus, with versions in French, Latin, English,...
in the chair of Chinese at the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
, while in 1878 he was elected a member of the Académie des Inscriptions et de Belles-Lettres. He died in Paris on the November 2, 1892.
Sinology
- Hervey de Saint-Denys. Recherches sur l'agriculture et l'horticulture des Chinois (1851)
- Hervey de Saint-Denys. Poésies de l'époque des T'ang (Poems of the Tang EraTang DynastyThe Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
) (1862), translated from the Chinese (full text) - Hervey de Saint-Denys. Ethnographie des peuples étrangers de la Chine, translated from Ma DuanlinMa DuanlinMă Duānlín was a Chinese historical writer and encyclopædist. In 1317 he published the comprehensive Chinese encyclopedia Wenxian Tongkao in 348 volumes....
(Ma-Touan-Lin) (1876–1883) - Hervey de Saint-Denys. Li-SaoLi SaoLi Sao is a Chinese poem dating from the Warring States Period, largely written by Qu Yuan of the Kingdom of Chu. One of the most famous poems of pre-Qin China, it is a representative work of the Chu Ci form of poetry.-Title:The title's meaning has been debated about even in historical times...
(1870), translated from the Chinese - Hervey de Saint-Denys. Mémoires sur les doctrines religieuses; de Confucius et de l'école des lettres (Dissertations on religious doctrines; from Confucius to the school of letters) (1887)
Oneirology
- Hervey de Saint-Denys. Les Rêves et les moyens de les diriger; Observations pratiques. Paris: Librairie d'Amyot, Éditeur, 8, Rue de la Paix (1867). (originally published anonymous)
- Hervey de Saint-Denys. Les Rêves et les Moyens de les diriger; Observations Pratiques. Île Saint-Denis. Oniros (1995). ISBN 2-909318-04-4.
- Hervey de Saint-Denys. Dreams and how to guide them. Translated by N.Fry and edited by Morton Schatzman. London. Gerald Duckworth (1982). ISBN 0-7156-1584-X. (abbreviated version)
Oneirology
- C.M. den Blanken & E.J.G. Meijer. An Historical View of "Dreams and the Ways to Direct Them; Practical Observations" by Marie-Jean-Léon LeCoq, le Marquis d'Hervey-Saint-Denys. Lucidity Letter, December, 1988, Vol.7, No.2,p. 67-78. Revised Edition:Lucidity,1991,Vol.10 No.1&2, p. 311-322.
- Hervey de Saint-Denys-"Dromen: Praktische Observaties"(E-book;2005) Editor and Translator Drs. Carolus M. den Blanken. http://members.casema.nl/carolusdenblanken/vertaling%20denys.htm
Other
- O.de Luppé, A.Pino, R.Ripert & B.Schwartz. (D'Hervey de Saint-Denys 1822-1892; Biography, Family correspondance, oneirological and sinological works; Homages to the author on the centenary of his death and artistic exposition regarding his dreams) (1995) Oniros, BP 30, 93451 Ile Saint-Denis cedex. The homages are by Carolus den Blanken, Celia GreenCelia GreenCelia Elizabeth Green is a British writer on philosophical skepticism, twentieth-century thought, and psychology.- Biography :...
, Roger Ripert and Paul TholeyPaul TholeyPaul Tholey was a German Gestalt psychologist, and a professor of psychology and sports science.Paul Tholey started the study of oneirology in an attempt to prove that dreams occur in color...
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