Fear Is Crucial To Life

Fear is an amazing emotion, in that it has both psychological as well as physiological effects on the human body. In instances of extreme fear, the mind is able to function in a way that is detached and connected to the event simultaneously. In “Feared Drowned,” Sharon Olds presents, in six brief stanzas, this type of instance. Her sparse use of language, rich with metaphors, similes and dark imagery, belies the horror experienced by the speaker. She closes the poem with a philosophical statement about life and the after-effects that these moments of horror can have on our lives and relationships.

Fear: an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat(Websters Dictionary).Fear is something that our lives have adapted to rarely use as our ancient predecessors have.In our day and age the concept of fear comes through the stress of work. We humans no longer fear a cold nor do we fear storms as our houses protect us and on average our life spans are longer as old in the Paleolithic was 33 while currently it is 71.5(Wikipedia Life Expectancy). Why then is our fear so extensive that it can make us freeze up? “The answer is our legacy of ancient fears, the result of having spent millions of years running from predators. Our fear response is more influenced by the ancient species we struggled to escape than any modern challenges.”(The evolutionary legacy of having been prey.By Rob Dunn) This is one of the statements about human life. If this is so how do we develop from terror to finding fear fun?

One of the things we fear the most is the loss of or lack of control. Even if we really don’t have control, we like to think we do, and when we lose that sense of control, fear rushes in. For example, an alcoholic will say " I can quit any time; I’m in control." The fear comes when he realizes for the first time that he is an alcoholic and that he is not in control. We all fear uncertainty and the unknown. We arm ourselves against it with candles in the dark, or faith against the uncertainty of death. Then, when we think we’ve conquered our fear, it comes invading our minds again, let in by a smell or a taste, a sound or a thought Fear is always there, just waiting right under the surface, to awaken those memories which frighten us the most.

The definition of fear is an unpleasant emotion resulting in being afraid of someone or something that is a dangerous threat. However, fear can come in many forms and affect people in several different ways. Fear is evident in all areas of life. Everyone experiences fear whether the outcome is positive or negative. Fear is no doubt inevitable. For example,whenever you have to present a speech, you may fear ridicule or judgement. Or when you are walking to your car late at night by yourself, you fear many dangerous situations that can happen. According to Mary C. Lamia in “The Complexity of Fear” in Psychology Today, fear in terms of psychology is described as the fear of the unknown, fear of death, and catastrophic fear. Mary C. Lamia has found

The idea of fear is a fairly simple concept, yet it carries the power to consume and control lives. Fears have stemmed from an inadvertent psychological response to situations deemed threating to one’s personal safety, but have evolved into a complex web of often illogical misconceptions which are able to cloud a person’s judgment and result in situations often worse than originally intended. Fears can be hard to quell, but it has been shown the best way to overcome fears is often to face them, as author James Baldwin asserted when he wrote, “To defend oneself against fear is simply to insure that one will, one day, be conquered by it; fears must be faced.” Baldwin makes strongly qualified statement, and his idea fears must be faced to

In this TED talk video, the necessity of it is because in general public it is told to ignore fear instead of using it as a tool in life, which prompts us for not being well prepared with having something going on all around us. Additionally, our disposition to accept control and we compose more clear however nonsensical worries as opposed to the more honest yet sensible ones. Karen Thompson Walker uses cases of fear to portray this from standard society today, including critical instances of affairs the world appearances, for instance, moderate ecological change and coronary ailment, getting her point across to her group that she has identified as her audience, which is 21st century Americans.

This was Huxley’s worst fear for the future, a world where conformity causes all individuality to die off and become extinct. This is his reason for writing the book, Brave New World, to inform and warn people of the horrors that could be just around the corner if they continued on the path they were on. He wrote it as a satire regarding the increased consumerism of the roaring 1920’s in America, therefore “in the Brave New World, happiness means having everything under control” (Weber, 1), especially economic and government control. “In his satirical and sinister novel, warfare and poverty have been eliminated, but also family, culture, art, literature, science, religion, and philosophy. In their place, Soma, a powerful drug provided by the

Fear is a major component of everyone's life. It’s an emotional response to something we might find dangerous or life-threatening. Fear is a survival instinct that helps us decide to either flee, hide, or fight during different situations or problems in our life. Without fear we would always be in dangerous situations and risk our lives. Having fear can show how much someone means to you for example in “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy, the man fears losing his boy and he will do anything to keep him safe.

One thing I learned about fear is that it can basically act for us. With fear humans can make critical decisions that they wouldn’t dare make without fear edging them on. A story that particularly shocked me was the story of a young woman named Kelly. She followed her

In “The Certainty of Fear” by Audra Kendall, the author chronicles the fears we have throughout our lifetime. Starting with the fears of childhood and then adolescence, progressing to a mid-life crisis and concluding with the fears of our senior years; I can relate to these fears but I don’t remember much of my younger years. For me, my greatest fears started as an adolescent and continue now into the mid years of my life and further into the future of my senior years.

In the article, fear was portrayed through the protests in Charlottesville. White supremacists violently attack those who opposed their views. Facts were obtained in the news conference held on Tuesday by president Donald Trump. The groups that this article is intended for, are those who were protesting (both sides) and those who have kept themselves informed on the topic for the past weeks. The fear in this article is similar to the fear displayed in my article, in the way that people dealing with the situation face to face are being exposed to a deal of injustice. However, this article is solely based on the protesters of Charlottesville, whereas the other concentrates on those being detained, facing deportation. The topic of fear was illuminated through stating information that was said from presidents in the past, yet can be seen relevant in today’s society because of the unjust actions that occur.

Things you fear can become a part of who you are, even in your everyday life. “He knew that fear was the only weapon he had left to save my life and if I didn’t fear the threat of the plague, then dammit, I was going to fear him!” (Brooks 46) People can do anything to save themselves or others in a panic of fear. Seeing others in desperate situation of saving themselves sparks fear in

I slowly opened my eyes to see pale faces staring down at me, while my body ached with pain. The air had an undertone of bleach a suffocating smell, my head was spinning from the overwhelming brightness, with no idea where I was. I slowly lifted my hand above my face, as I saw the vault of heaven, the eye of God. I was staring into a new world where my past had been left behind and a new life had begun. Though something was holding me back like I was chained to my past with no way of escaping. One of those pale faces pushed my hand back down and I suddenly returned to the world I wanted to escape from.

Liebman describes that fear has been the driving force behind the progress of human kind. Some of these fears include “death and oblivion” as well as fear of “aloneness” (102). Additionally, adult fears stem from childhood trauma(87). Looking back at Dorothy Day and

Fear of the unknown can be a fear of the dark or fear of what happens after we die. Children often experience fear of the dark typically because they imagined a danger like a monster that may be in the room but they cannot see inside to assure them that their perceived danger is absent. This fear of the unknown could result in the child hiding under his/her blankets or running to another family member’s room for safety. Similarly, people fear what happens when they die because there is no certainty other than someone’s faith or belief. Even being a person who experienced near death, I could not relieve someone’s fear by explaining that my experience was mind-blowing and amazing. Not only could their experience be different, but I do not know anything about what would have happened next.