Fear Everyone is afraid of something, even people who claim that they are afraid of nothing, they are usually afraid of having fear. They are afraid of what people think of them. Fear is one of the base characteristics of everybody, it makes a person. I believe that by knowing a person’s fear, you can predict what their life was like, and how they will react in situations. My own definition of fear is the hesitation to an object, idea or person because of what you don’t know. The definition of fear from the dictionary is a painful emotion or passion excited by the expectation of evil, or the apprehension of impending danger. I like my explanation better. My strongest fear is fear itself, I don’t want to be afraid of anything, and I want to be able to face everything head-on. My fears have evolved, just like everybody else’s do. As you grow older, and have a wider knowledge of the things around you, your fear either adapts to them, or is solved. Natural fears, however, are derived from early childhood experiences or maybe a dream that you have once had. Abuses, love, rejection, all are key factors to a development of fear. Phobic, as in claustrophobic, is the suffering of irrational fears. Most people can probably name at least one phobic they can relate to. My phobic would have to be socialphobia (fear of public humiliation) but only to an extreme degree, as I do not get embarrassed easily. Fear has had it’s play in the history of the world, I can think of many conflicts where fear has played a key role in determining who will be in the war, and who will be the victor. Like in WW2, the fear that communists were taking over Germany led to them nominating someone that would end it, but to their surprise, they elected a butcher, a madman, who eventually drove fear right back into them.
Fear has also had its role in literature. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, by Harriet Beecher Stowe, there are several examples of fear. In chapter 1, Page9, Eliza overhears Mr. Haley discuss selling her son, harry. She fears she may lose her child, I think that is one of the bravest fears I have ever heard. A mothers fear, something that none of us should ever experience. Another fear in the book is when tom is worried that his new master, Mr. St. Clare, is not treating himself well, he knows Mr. St. Clare is a fair and noble man, but fears that “it will be the loss of all-all-body and soul. (Chapter 18, p.203). Tome is a good man, and he fears for the safety and assurance of acceptance into heaven for Mr. St. Clare. Eva, she has a fear, but it is different from all the rest, she has no reason to fear for someone else, she is the one in control. She is too young to be worrying about her father’s slaves, but she does. She worries that something bad might happen to them if St. Clare dies, she has heard terrible stories about slave owners, then she makes her father promise that the slaves be set free after she has died, he agrees. Eva is the perfect example of a perfect fear, one that is not selfish. Too bad she is a character of a novel, and not the girl next door. Fear is a need, without fear we may not have what we have now. Of course, fear is not always welcomed with open arms. Fear has also destroyed many lives, but I believe that it has also opened up the doors for new experiences for people. Fear has shown us that we can overcome it, we have made ourselves braver, and we have developed a type of pride that is unparalleled. I am afraid of what will happen when we have no fear.