Montaigne On Fear

Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain or a threat. Our own emotions, especially fear, make us do the things we never saw ourselves doing. In the play “The Crucible” many of the characters actions are driven by fear. President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. This emotion doesn’t have to control our actions.

Throughout the history of civilization, there have been many great thinkers and philosophers who lay claim and offer their theory of the world around them. Michel de Montaigne, a prominent philosopher of the French Renaissance, argued in his essays of the habitual inconsistency of man and how it is nearly impossible for man to correct these everyday irregularities and contradictions. To say that man is flawed and utterly irregular are statements not particularly surprising or revelatory for philosophers to make, even in Montaigne’s time. However, what can be considered unique about Montaigne, aside from his sharp perceptions of the everyday man, are his sharp—and honest—perceptions of himself, never bragging about his intellectual prowess or

a very common fear every salve of the time inhibited. By illustrating the tragic life of a young

Becoming isolated from one’s humanity changes a human in drastic ways. “A word of command has made these silent figures our enemies; a word of command might transform them into our friends” (Remarque 195). Remarque uses this quote to show how the ones in authority turn the soldiers under

One of the many themes developed in the novel, A Separate Peace, is fear. Going to war, not excelling in studies, and jumping from a tree are three events that show how fear is portrayed throughout the story. Fear is an important theme in this story because almost every character ends up being consumed by fear. The entire story revolves around fear and without it, the story wouldn’t be the same.

The historian Richard Kaeuper notes that prowess being crucial to honor may have contributed as much to the ‘problem of violence as it provided a solution’. Therefore, this appears to convey why the concept of chivalry began to be associated with violence and warfare as knights, in the pursuit of honor, became reliant on violence and battle to prove their aptitude. This idea is supported by a medieval knight Sir John Chandos, who stated that men brought up for martial calling ‘cannot live without war and do not know how to’. Maurice Keen argues that ‘chivalry was quintessentially bellicose’ as it presented those who fought has having a ‘pinnacle of honor’. As a result, the use of force by knights as a way of denoting their gallantry led to the belief that violence was intrinsic to the notion of chivalry.

To start of the novel Fear, by Gabriel Chevallier, Jean Dartemont is in France observing all the civilians celebrate the start of the new war. He criticizes their behavior and strongly disapproves, however, he admits a curiosity in him that convinces him to volunteer for the war for it will be a ‘remarkable spectacle.” After being approved to go to war, Dartemont heads to a training camp. There he becomes a private after failing to become an officer. Here he commands a group, but realized he finds the maintenance of soldiers to be tedious and useless work. Already he becomes quite eager to arrive at the front lines, which soon happens.

Fear: a simple word with an abundance of meanings. To one, fear can be losing a loved one and to another it can be being alone for their entire life. Ghandi once claimed that the enemy of every soul is not hate, but fear itself. This enemy, however, can be derived from hate, for everything you loathe is the reason for your distress. Taking the Salem Witch Trial as an example, fear portrayed an enormous role in the lives of many. During the time period of 1692 to 1693, fear controlled an entire village by manipulation and hatred. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible perfectly captures how fear is exploited by characters in the play because these characters used their hatred towards others to build up horror in the sacred town of Salem. Although this classic novel was written over fifty years ago, Miller touched on timeless societal fears that still apply to the existing world today. As seen through Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, fear can prompt people to denounce their beliefs in order to save their own lives, prevent their reputation from being tarnished, and it can make one take extreme measures in order to protect the ones they love.

Another way in how human nature is best defined as fear, is shown in the story, “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe. For example, Poe speaks about how individuals can feel fear after losing someone special. In this case, fear can make us not believe in the goodwill of other individuals. We can infer that fear is often involved with people who suffer depression most of the time. At one point, his use of internal rhyme makes the readers question why the the narrator feels a sense of fear when the curtains start to flutter. The author says, “ And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain thrilled me and filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before” (Poe 10). From the words, “thrilled me” we can infer that the speaker is frightened

When many Americans look back on the Salem Witch Trials, they wonder how it could have happened; they don’t realize that they are currently living in the midst of a modern day witch hunt - this time with a different targeted group: Muslim Americans. In the years since 9/11 occurred, Americans have become obsessed with terrorism and looked for people to blame these terrible attacks on. However, it has been within the past nine months or so that hysteria has hit a fever pitch. Leading up to the 2016 election and following the appointment of President Donald Trump, terrorism and national defense have become topics of intense interest across the nation. Although not supported by many Americans, a hunt for terrorists in the country began, with Muslim Americans being the first to be targeted. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible reveals how fear can make a group of people act in irrational and misguided ways, a lesson that is extremely applicable today in how Muslim

Fear is a common human emotion, but the way some people react is different than others. Although, it is harder on some humans unlike other people. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said,” Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world.” I think that means that fear harms more people than anything else does in the whole world. Also that people can scare themselves way easier than normal and it’s not healthy.

Fear can lead to a lot of things, but unfortunately, in humans it usually leads to something bad. Throughout history, fear has lead to some of the most violent actions by man, and some of the biggest collapses of organized society. In early American history, the people of Salem experienced this for themselves. Arthur Miller shows this in his book. The society of Salem that Miller creates in The Crucible shows how fear can slowly cause rational thought to deteriorate, leading to mass hysteria and eventually the breakdown of civilized behavior.

“...fear can't hurt you any more than a dream.” Quote William Golding in Lord of Flies. William Golding argues that the fear of the unknown gives a high disadvantage to certain boys who are easily frightened. Golding’s opinion of fear is expressed in Lord of the Flies, relating to the nightmares he had as a child and his fear of abuse from his parents. In our society, the less courageous people have more life struggles and do not have as many experiences. I believe this novel proves that fear holds us back, but in reality, it will not hurt us.

As represented in Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, fear played an important role and is exploited by the characters in the play. The Crucible beings with a group of girls accusing people of witchcraft for their selfish benefit.Fear is an emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to inflict pain , or a threat. Fear is an emotion that is capable of overtaking and controlling one’s state of mind and well being. However , fear can be used as a motivation factor. Fear influenced these people to take extreme measures and act irrationally. Additionally, fear is a master of suffering capable of haunting those who patronize it Moreover, in The Crucible this erratic emotion causes people to fear being labeled

Montaigne learned how to foresee when his passions, such as anger, would come and watch its course