Mathieu’s Dream

The dream Mathieu recounted to the Bureau;

He had been sent on a hunting trip by his employer in order to increase his aggressive instinct (something he didn’t possess & had little interest in). After two weeks failing to shoot anything (scared of the dangerous animals & too squeamish to kill the easy targets}  his guide told him of a story about a monstrous crocodile that had plagued a nearby village for years, attacking & killing the inhabitants and their livestock. Then on one Sunday morning three years ago it had crawled out of the river & walked into the village and just stopped moving. The villagers ran around screaming, sure that the monster had come to kill them all. But it just laid there, perfectly still in the center of their village. After some time the elders of the village grabbed some drums & whatever weapons they could find and crept out of their houses to confront the beast. Yelling & banging their drums they attempted to move the monster, but it just lie there, even when a brave villager prodded it with his spear there was no movement and it has laid there motionless ever since. Now the children decorate it with garlands to celebrates special occasions.

That provided him with an idea – as he was unable to kill anything maybe he should have his photo taken with the crocodile as his triumphant trophy.

He went to the village & exactly as his gu ide had described there was the massive crocodile, motionless in the center of the village – the women were using it’s rough skin to scrub there laundry.

Mathieu cautiously approached the beast & posed for a photo, he was soon joined by many of the villagers giving him courage to pose more aggressively.So happy with his prize he took hundreds of photos as proof of his hunting prowess – & spent the rest of his life bragging to his friends of his bravery & cunning.

The dream was recorded & can still be found in the Surrealist notebook.