The Lathe of Heaven

by

Ursula K. Le Guin

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Lathe of Heaven makes teaching easy.

Effective Dream Term Analysis

Effective Dream is the term Orr uses to denote the ability of his dreams to change reality. Effective Dreams don’t simply confirm or predict future events—they actually create alternate universes. After Orr has an effective dream, he retains memories of the old reality and the new, dreamed reality, but the new reality is the only reality that exists for everyone else. The exception to this rule is if another person is around Orr while he is dreaming, and that person witnesses the exact moment the change occurs.

Effective Dream Quotes in The Lathe of Heaven

The The Lathe of Heaven quotes below are all either spoken by Effective Dream or refer to Effective Dream. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
).
Chapter 1  Quotes

Current-borne, wave-flung, tugged hugely by the whole might of ocean, the jellyfish drifts in the tidal abyss. The light shines through it, and the dark enters it. Borne, flung, tugged from anywhere to anywhere, for in the deep sea there is no compass but nearer and farther, higher and lower, the jellyfish hangs and sways; pulses move slight and quick within it, as the vast diurnal pulses beat in the moon-driven sea. Hanging, swaying, pulsing, the most vulnerable and insubstantial creature, it has for its defense the violence and power of the whole ocean, to which it has entrusted its being, its going, and its will. But here rise the stubborn continents. The shelves of gravel and the cliffs of rock break from water baldly into air, that dry, terrible outer space of radiance and instability, where there is no support for life. And now, now the currents mislead and the waves betray, breaking their endless circle, to leap up in loud foam against rock and air, breaking… What will the creature made all of sea-drift do on the dry sand of daylight; what will the mind do, each morning, waking?

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Related Symbols: Jellyfish , Water
Page Number: 1-2
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 2  Quotes

“And the events of the mind, believe me, to me are facts. When you see another man’s dream as he dreams it recorded in black and white on the electroencephalograph, as I’ve done ten thousand times, you don’t speak of dreams as ‘unreal.’ They exist; they are events; they leave a mark behind them.”

Related Characters: Dr. William Haber (speaker), George Orr
Page Number: 13-14
Explanation and Analysis:

“Who am I to meddle with the way things go? And it’s my unconscious mind that changes things, without any intelligent control. I tried autohypnosis but it didn’t do any good. Dreams are incoherent, selfish, irrational—immoral, you said a minute ago. They come from the unsocialized part of us, don’t they, at least partly?”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber
Page Number: 14
Explanation and Analysis:

Goddamn but he wished he could afford an office with a window with a view!

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Related Symbols: Mount Hood
Page Number: 25
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 3 Quotes

“I am sure now that your therapy lies in this direction, to use your dreams, not to evade and avoid them. To face your fear and, with my help, see it through. You’re afraid of your own mind, George.”

Related Characters: Dr. William Haber (speaker), George Orr
Related Symbols: Mount Hood
Page Number: 31
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

“I know he means well. It’s just that I want to be cured, not used.”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 49
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5 Quotes

“To a better world!” Dr. Haber said, raising his glass to his creation, and finished his whisky in a lingering, savoring swallow.

Related Characters: Dr. William Haber (speaker), George Orr, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 72
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 6 Quotes

He must act, he had to act. He must refuse to let Haber use him any longer as a tool. He must take his destiny into his own hands.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Page Number: 74
Explanation and Analysis:

“You speak as if that were some kind of general moral imperative.” He looked at Orr with his genial, reflective smile, stroking his beard. “But in fact, isn’t that man’s very purpose on earth—to do things, change things, run things, make a better world?”

Related Characters: Dr. William Haber (speaker), George Orr
Page Number: 82
Explanation and Analysis:

The end justifies the means. But what if there never is an end? All we have is means.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Page Number: 83
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7 Quotes

The infinite possibility, the unlimited and unqualified wholeness of being of the uncommitted, the nonacting, the uncarved: the being who, being nothing but himself, is everything. Briefly she saw him thus, and what struck her most, of that insight, was his strength. He was the strongest person she had ever known, because he could not be moved away from the center. And that was why she liked him.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 96
Explanation and Analysis:

“Things are more complicated than he’s willing to realize. He thinks you can make things come out right. And he tries to use me to make things come out right, but he won’t admit it; he lies because he won’t look straight, he’s not interested in what’s true, in what is, he can’t see anything except his mind—his ideas of what ought to be.”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 100-101
Explanation and Analysis:

She believed him, and denied her belief with fury. “So what? Maybe that’s all it’s ever been! Whatever it is, it’s all right. You don’t suppose you’d be allowed to do anything you weren’t supposed to do, do you? Who the hell do you think you are! There is nothing that doesn’t fit, nothing happens that isn’t supposed to happen. Ever! What does it matter whether you call it real or dreams? It’s all one—isn’t it?”

Related Characters: Heather Lelache (speaker), George Orr
Page Number: 107
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8 Quotes

“I don’t choose,” Orr said. “Don’t you see that yet? I follow.”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 125
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 9 Quotes

During that terrifying day’s journey from the cabin to embattled Portland, when they were bumping over a country road in the wheezing Hertz Steamer, Heather had told him that she had tried to suggest that he dream an improved Haber, as they had agreed. And since then Haber had at least been candid with Orr about his manipulations. Though candid was not the right word; Haber was much too complex a person for candor. Layer after layer might peel off the onion and yet nothing be revealed but more onion. That peeling off of one layer was the only real change in him, and it might not be due to an effective dream, but only to changed circumstances. He was so sure of himself now that he had no need to try to hide his purposes, or deceive Orr; he could simply coerce him.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Page Number: 131
Explanation and Analysis:

“You are afraid of losing your balance. But change need not unbalance you; life’s not a static object, after all. It’s a process. There’s no holding still. Intellectually you know that, but emotionally you refuse it. Nothing remains the same from one moment to the next, you can’t step into the same river twice. Life—evolution—the whole universe of space/time, matter/energy—existence itself—is essentially change.”

“That is one aspect of it,” Orr said. “The other is stillness.”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber (speaker)
Page Number: 139
Explanation and Analysis:

“Volcanoes emit fire.”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber
Related Symbols: Mount Hood
Page Number: 149
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 10 Quotes

“They are of the dream time. I don’t understand it, I can’t say it in words. Everything dreams. The play of form, of being, is the dreaming of substance. Rocks have their dreams, and the earth changes … But when the mind becomes conscious, when the rate of evolution speeds up, then you have to be careful. Careful of the world. You must learn the way. You must learn the skills, the art, the limits. A conscious mind must be part of the whole, intentionally and carefully—as the rock is part of the whole unconsciously. Do you see? Does it mean anything to you?”

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache, Tiua’k Ennbe Ennbe
Related Symbols: Mount Hood
Page Number: 167-168
Explanation and Analysis:

Destruction was not his line; and a machine is more blameless, more sinless even than any animal. It has no intentions whatsoever but our own.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Page Number: 174
Explanation and Analysis:

After a while the big body moved, and presently sat up. It was all slack and loose. The massive, handsome head hung between the shoulders. The mouth was loose. The eyes looked straight forward into the dark, into the void, into the unbeing at the center of William Haber; they were no longer opaque, they were empty.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber
Page Number: 174
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11 Quotes

Orr slept. He dreamed. There was no rub. His dreams, like waves of the deep sea far from any shore, came and went, rose and fell, profound and harmless, breaking nowhere, changing nothing. They danced the dance among all the other waves in the sea of being. Through his sleep the great, green sea turtles dived, swimming with heavy, inexhaustible grace through the depths, in their element.

Related Characters: George Orr, Dr. William Haber, E’nememen Asfah
Related Symbols: Jellyfish , Water
Page Number: 178-179
Explanation and Analysis:

“Take evening,” the Alien said. “There is time. There are returns. To go is to return.”

“Thank you very much,” Orr said, and shook hand with his boss. The big green flipper was cool on his human hand. He went out with Heather into the warm, rainy afternoon of summer. The Alien watched them from within the glass-fronted shop, as a sea creature might watch from an aquarium, seeing them pass and disappear into the mist.

Related Characters: George Orr (speaker), E’nememen Asfah (speaker), Dr. William Haber, Heather Lelache
Related Symbols: Jellyfish , Water
Page Number: 184
Explanation and Analysis:
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Effective Dream Term Timeline in The Lathe of Heaven

The timeline below shows where the term Effective Dream appears in The Lathe of Heaven. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2 
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
Orr worries he won’t “dream effectively” in Haber’s office, since these dreams occur only sporadically. Haber tells Orr not to worry:... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...asleep until Haber says his name three times. While he’s asleep, he’ll have a vivid, “effective” dream about a horse. Haber says “Antwerp,” and the lines on the EEG screen become... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...Mount Hood photo, either. Orr is disappointed, since he thought Haber’s role in prompting the effective dream might’ve given him a “double memory,” too. (full context)
Chapter 3
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...relief, Orr asks Haber if he could give him a “posthypnotic suggestion” not to have effective dreams anymore. Haber refuses, reiterating how important it is for Orr to face his fears.... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Orr leaves Haber’s office knowing his most recent dream was a particularly effective one: the absence of rain and smog in the air are evidence of this. Normally,... (full context)
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...beer than he begins to wonder why Haber chose to hide his knowledge of Orr’s effective dreams. Haber’s deception unsettles Orr, but he tries to be hopeful, imagining how Haber will... (full context)
Chapter 4
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...crazy, but Lelache prompts Orr to continue. Orr tells Lelache about his ability to dream effectively, and his fear that Haber is abusing this ability “for ends of his own, without... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
...cut into lots and leased for over $40,000 per year. Lelache remains skeptical of Orr’s effective dreams and moral anguish, so Orr tries harder to explain how the dreams work and... (full context)
Chapter 5
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...to express his real anxieties about “unfreedom” and intimacy. Haber prompts Orr to have an effective dream about overpopulation. Inwardly, Haber bemoans the way Lelache’s presence is forcing him to deliver... (full context)
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...been its founder. Until this moment, Haber realizes, he’s suppressed his double memory and Orr’s effective dream that willed it into existence. Haber wonders how Lelache will respond to her double... (full context)
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...that they both know: that Orr’s dream wasn’t a nightmare about the Plague—it was the effective dream that willed the Plague into existence. Haber tries to drive Orr to an emotional... (full context)
Chapter 6
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
...on humanity’s quest for knowledge, scientific advancement, and a better life. The idea that Orr’s effective dreams could be refined and repurposed to give back to a world they’ve so harmed... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...lies, evasiveness, and refusal to be candid. Haber will neither own up to using Orr’s effective dreams for personal gain, nor admit that he knows Orr’s effective dreams have the power... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...dream to distort Haber’s logical desire for world peace. Orr wonders if there’s a different effective dreamer who’d be better suited for the job, since he’s no longer willing to assume... (full context)
Chapter 7
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
...but he needed to escape Haber. He wonders if the only way to stop his effective dreams is to kill himself, though he doesn’t want that. (full context)
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
Orr and Heather assess Orr’s options for dealing with Orr’s effective dreams and Haber’s abuse of them. Heather says Orr doesn’t have any legal case against... (full context)
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...a grand idea: she can hypnotize Orr and feed him a hypnosuggestion to have an effective dream about Haber that makes him more invested in curing Orr and less invested in... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
...of his lamp. Once Orr is in a trance, she tells him to have an effective dream in which Haber is honest and no longer power-hungry, and in which the Aliens... (full context)
Chapter 8
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...start. Orr tells Haber that it’s nice to finally talk openly with him about his effective dreams. (full context)
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...thinks Orr has behaved carelessly. Just as Orr is about to explain that his Alien effective dream was no accident, there’s a massive explosion outside. Orr hardly reacts to the noise,... (full context)
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...in the basement, but Haber insists that he and Orr stay behind to induce an effective dream in Orr to end the invasion. Haber orders Heather to run to the basement... (full context)
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...along with Orr’s plan, though he thinks it’s highly illogical, “passive,” and a waste of effective dreaming. While on hold with HEW, Haber asks Orr why he didn’t just call off... (full context)
Chapter 9
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...Orr’s brain activity, compare those with his d-state patterns, and finally find out how Orr’s effective dreams work. Orr repeats his desire to be cured, not used, and Haber criticizes Orr’s... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...the cusp of a breakthrough: he’ll soon be able to use the Augmentor to induce effective dreaming in anyone and will no longer need Orr. Until then, Haber needs Orr’s cooperation,... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...and Orr thinks the worst is yet to come if Haber starts having his own effective dreams. Haber rebuffs Orr’s claim by listing all the humanitarian feats they’ve accomplished together, such... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...as Orr selfishly keeps his power to himself. Haber vows to retrieve the “key” to effective dreaming and gain full control of the world. In Haber’s new world, “nothing will be... (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
Orr tries to convince Haber that undergoing an effective dream by himself will be dangerous, but Haber is too wrapped up in his plans... (full context)
Chapter 10
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...attaching electrodes to Orr. Haber hypnotizes Orr and gives him the hypnosuggestion to dream an effective dream that he’s “completely normal.” When Orr wakes up, Haber instructs, he’ll have a memory... (full context)
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
...be wise to talk to an Alien about dreaming and iahklu’ before he induces any effective dreams in himself, since the Aliens know far more about the dreamworld than any human. (full context)
The Limits of Utilitarianism  Theme Icon
Dreams and the Limitations of Knowledge  Theme Icon
Cosmic Balance  Theme Icon
Power and Selfishness  Theme Icon
...street he’d never been on before. Orr realizes that the “emptiness of Haber’s being, the effective nightmare,” has projected itself onto the city, severing “connections.” Whereas before Orr had been able... (full context)