Dreaming as observer only (not as a participant)

I sometimes have dreams in which I am only an observer of the activities of the dream. It is as if watching the TV or a movie. No one in the dream interacts with me in any way.

I am assuming this is happens to others as well.

I wonder if this is a phenomenon that has only occurred since the advent of visual media (i.e., movies and TV). And if it is becoming more common as so many people are spending so much waking time only as observers... not just watching TV and movies, but staring at video content on their "smart" phone for hours on end.

I don't think this phenomenon of dreaming being only an observer and not a participant has only occurred since screens were invented.

Before the 20th century, this concept of being an observer of an activity while not being a participant was important in a wide variety of situations. It was necessary to keep this concept to follow the rule of observing certain things without disturbing it, such as a play, parade, opera, musical performance, sporting event, ect. Concepts such as this that are important in a wide variety of situations were almost certainly dreamed about at some point.

If this phenomenon is becoming more common to dream about, then it must be easier to imagine now then it was then due to the concept being applied to a wider variety of situations. I could see how this is the case, given screens give us access to a greater variety of things to observe without participating in.

It would be interesting to read some recorded dreams from before the 20th century.