In 'Twin Peaks' David Lynch Asks – Who Is the Dreamer?

 

* This article contains many spoilers. 

The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a

knowledge of the unconscious activities of the mind.

-Sigmund Freud

In thinking about the late David Lynch's surreal masterpiece Twin Peaks, I'm reminded of a question that's asked in season 3: "Who is the dreamer?" This salient question encompasses the original Twin Peaks (1990-1991), the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), and the magnificent third season Twin Peaks: The Return (2017).  After binge watching 48 episodes and the film, I realize that Lynch continually provides dream-like sequences where the line between reality and supernatural zones of experience remains porous.

Laura Palmer's Death

Laura Palmer's (Sheryl Lee) death becomes the catalyst for the citizens of the town Twin Peaks to start answering uncomfortable questions about the place where they live and Laura died. A killer is suspected to live among them, so who could this maniac be?

FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper comes to town to help Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean) in the murder investigation, and he brings with him an upbeat personality and a love of damn good coffee. He has some of his own idiosyncrasies like constantly speaking to someone named Diane on a small tape recorder. 

The forest that surrounds the town has supernatural aspects that waver the lines between asleep and awake. Dreams have a way of slithering their way through the storyline, but in season 3 Lynch emphasizes his point about dreams being a key factor. Can understanding the unconscious activities of the killer’s mind help find him?

A Café in Paris

FBI Direct Gordon Cole (played superbly by Lynch) tells about a dream he had where he meets actress Monica Belluci at a café in Paris. Some would argue that having coffee with Ms. Belluci would be really a dream come true, but it is what she says that matters most. 

Ms. Belluci says, "We are like the dreamer who dreams, and then lives inside the dream." Lynch is referencing  the sacred Hindu text The Upshanishads that tells us that we are living an illusion. But Lynch takes it even further, when Ms. Belluci whispers, "But, who is the dreamer?"

The Llama Moment

Those familiar with the series can remember early on when Dale dreams about Laura in season one. He has been reading her diary, but does that text really exist? Does reading it cause him to dream of her? Is this really Laura in the dream? Or is it a doppelganger? Dale also dreams of the Red Room which we assume is not reality – although one can also question whether the town is reality. Anyplace where a conversation can be interrupted by a llama seems to be a little off the beaten path if not even there at all. 

Even in the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, Lynch was bringing in the idea of the dream and its importance to the overall storyline. In a fascinating scene with the late, great David Bowie, who plays FBI Special Agent Phillip Jeffries, he has been missing for two years. Cole introduces him to Dale, but Jeffries is not there to tell a tale about his investigation. He says of his absence, "It was a dream. We live inside a dream." Phillip is obviously in distress, and as the lights go on and off and the intercom does not work, Phillip disappears, leaving many more questions than answers. 

Who is the Dreamer?

This brings me back to the question – who is the dreamer? I have followed the thread that Lynch wove into magic through the first two seasons, back to the prequel, and then bouncing forward to season three. I have come to the conclusion that Dale is the dreamer. Watch this scene from the pilot episode, when Dale is driving into town for the very first time. He is talking to Diane on the recorder, and we are right there with him like a passenger in the car. Dale passes the sign welcoming him to Twin Peaks, and thus the dream is about to begin.

Of course, this is all my opinion. I believe I have connected enough dots to be certain of my claim. Why was Dale missing for 25 years? The answer is that he was not missing – he was languishing in the Red Room where the dream continues as BOB (the late Frank Silva) leaves the room and takes Dale's place. The dream is ongoing and everyone else is living within it. If you want to take this one step further, call it a simulation. In this case it is Dale's dream/simulation. 

As the late, great Rod Serling might have said to you, I submit it for your approval. The last piece of evidence is in the final scene of season three episode 18. Dale has brought Laura home. In the dream that started with Laura's death, Dale is in the right place and time and has spared her from being murdered. This is the ultimate wish fulfillment that would end the dream perfectly for Dale – he has saved the girl he wished had never died.

No Happy Endings

However, there is a complication. There is no fairytale ending here. It would have been nice for Dale to ring her mother's doorbell and witness a happy reunion. However, changing the past comes with consequences. Her mother does not live there anymore; in fact, she has never lived there. As you watch the scene, Dale does not even know what year it is. Laura realizes that she has nothing and releases a gut-wrenching scream, and then the power goes out in the house and the screen fades to black. Dale's dream is over, and there are no happy endings. 

I hope that you have a chance to watch Twin Peaks from the very beginning. The first two seasons are available on Pluto TV. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is available on Max and many other places, and Twin Peaks: The Return can be found on Paramount+ and in other places. 

It is a rewarding if sometimes exhausting experience as you try to solve Lynch's puzzle. But after all, solving a puzzle is more than half the fun, and when you are done the dream is over.  

Rest in peace, David Lynch!