Merriam Webster defines fear as “an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by
anticipation or awareness of danger.” Fear is more of an emotion that cannot be expressed through words but rather experience. Some believe they fear spiders and critters, others believe they fear death; the truth is, people fear what they don’t fully understand. Fear forces us to act on our primal instincts to survive causing us to act one of two ways. According to Medical News Today, fear causes a person’s heart rate to rapidly increase while hormones are released throughout the body to prepare it’s muscles for action. With the muscles prepared, the mind can now make a decision: it can either choose to run away, or stay and face their demons. Those who choose to run away are mocked and criticized by society for not having the courage to fight back. Then there are those who choose to act on their violent instincts and fight to face their fears; unlike the others they are viewed as strong, brave and are often considered the “heroes” of the story. Now what if I were to say there is actually no difference between the two kinds of people. Unknowingly the mind is always making decisions that it believes will bring an individual closer to happiness. This way of life is what has taught and continues to teach us right from wrong; in addition to when and when not to act. So even though the ones who choose to run away are not viewed as heroic and brave, both sides are choosing survival and happiness. Fear kicks this instinct into overdrive because whatever the mind doesn’t understand, it views as a threat to its main goal of happiness. What people do not realize is that fear is what drives us to be the best version of ourselves. We fear failure and disappointment, therefore, we use this fear to push us to study more, work harder, and train faster. Without fear, there would be nothing driving us to be who we wish to be, there would be chaos, and life as we know it would be in disarray. There
would be no fear of punishment, causing our moral rules and laws to be thrown out the window;
there would be no fear of disappointment and failure causing us to regress into the worst possible
version of ourselves. Fear is a necessary evil in life. Fear pushes us to survive and follow the
rules. This fear causes us to evolve and become the person we were destined to be. Fear shows us
who a man really is, because when fear is instilled in a man’s heart they decide to show their true
colors and either, rise up to the man they desire to be, or drop down and become what they fear
most. So, what is Fear? The answer to that question is too complex to understand. It could be the
force that pushes us to be the best version of ourselves, or it could be what pushes to follow the
rules and comply to the world. The truth is, there is no real answer to this question, but rather an
infinite number of theories that our mind is trying to provide us because the mind itself doesn’t
fully understand what fear is.
This is a refreshing topic to write about, there has been many pieces trying to define the abstract idea of love, and I'm glad that you chose to write about fear. It's also very interesting that you explored the 'flight or fight' response in humans, while also arguing that neither should be considered courageous or cowardly. You provide an interesting insight about how our fears make us who we are, rather than how they support our weakest selves. I agree that fear cannot truly be defined, as fears range from an irrational one or one that stems from a traumatic event. Great job! - Hailey Pagulayan
ReplyDeleteThis topic is not often talked about and it is very nice to see someone who understands fear of things is just a misunderstanding of something or they do not fully know about something. Fear should be based off experiences many people enjoy being scared and some hate it. You would be scared by something as much is you were knowledgeable about the topic or time. Fear should not consume or dictate how ypur life is lives but make you want to learn more on the subject.
ReplyDeleteThis brings me to a new perspective of fear. Fear to me has always been one of those words that I knew what it meant, but when I really think about it, I cants seem to give a definitions. I could only talk about fear through experiences and or other stuff like movie characters or something. But seeing how fear can be interpreted in many ways really puts a thought into my head about what fear really means to me. You said it best yourself, maybe fear is whats supposed to push us to be the best version of ourselves. Nice work, - Khristian Castillejo
ReplyDeleteThis piece really hits a emotion that many in the community today are affected by. The fear of disappointment of failure as a high school student is what I related to within this piece, struggling to be the best version of myself for my future self. Great read!
ReplyDeleteI like how you said that how people are afraid of being criticized for the things that take place. There are a lot of things that people fear and some ear more things then other and that's just how it is. Why is that we fear for things that aren't dangerous, like it is because it's the unknown. You don't know what's gonna happen or take place. This world is a scary place and it's full of dangerous things. Some things that we can't explain.Like why is it that people can die from having heart attacks from be fearful then rather just being scared.Was it something they couldn't control or they could. Good piece, especially because not a lot of people own up to it.-Trinity Escobedo
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to learn how true fear is actually from the unknown, it makes sense to be afraid of the unexpected. Also, it was very intriguing to read that fear is actually a necessary evil for us as humans, and how it drives us to do more.
ReplyDeleteIt's rare that people bring this up but it is really true. For you to even have already grasped a concept like this is great because so many kids our age haven't owned up to it yet. We are all driven by fear, such a great perspective. - Joy Campbell
ReplyDeleteThe description of fear help bring an interesting perspective of its necessity. The idea of fear being a force that helps evolve a person character is well supported. As the us of fight or flight and stating that both are acceptable help the reader feel more calm about fear and possibly look to face it in the future. Overall a really good piece with some superb evidence.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting concept. The way you tied fear and happiness together is so fresh and new. And I loved how you addressed that it does not matter if you run from your fears or face them because either way you are bringing out the best in yourself. Nice work, very beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThis piece was very insightful into a perspective that I'm sure most people have never considered. Fear can shown as the driving force behind action that a person does. Very interesting essay! -Diego Olmos
ReplyDeleteYour view of what fear is is very enlightening, especially how it can be used as a driving force for humans to better themselves. The idea that those who fight or flight are both trying to attain their own happiness was also an interesting idea that is not heard of often. Anyways, nice job with your piece!
ReplyDeleteI always have looked at fear as a negative, and never embraced all the fears I had. However, reading this piece literally completely changed my viewpoint on fear, so good job!
ReplyDeleteI think many people can agree with your point of view of what fear actually can do and the actual help we get from being fearful. I really enjoyed your piece in that it wasn't so much of a cliche, like the "love" pieces or "home" pieces. I never got bored within your piece and I relate to most of what you say about how fear actually improves our character and our minds. Amazing job!
ReplyDelete- Melanie Viernes
I really liked how you portrayed fear and left it open-ended as for the reader to interpret what their fear is! Awesome job! -Brandon Santos
ReplyDeleteIt is very interesting how you interpreted fear to almost be a driving component in our lives because it is so incomprehensible and will teach us how to survive. I totally agree that fear is something incredibly complex and is hard to define. Great use of detail throughout your piece, well done!
ReplyDeleteI've never thought about fear like that. The idea of the mind making decisions based on fear to achieve happiness is fascinating to me. The ending leaves my wanting to keep diving into the answer, even though I know it will result the same as the "What is life?" complex.
ReplyDelete-Chloe Bohrer
This is a concept no one truly talks about and its interesting to see that you've comprehended fear in a way that it can be used to push us to new heights
ReplyDeleteYour piece was easily understandable and well thought out , your interpretation of fear is easily understood and really makes you think how fear is applied to our lives and is somewhat our driving force
ReplyDeleteThe discussion revolving around fear, although topical in the youths eyes, is still an admiring subject to read in a descriptive piece like this. Not only defining other definitions of fear, but expressing the emotions that come along with fear are developed nicely in this piece.
ReplyDeleteThis piece, for me, was easily comprehensible. I admired your interpretation of fear, being that there are other versions and definitions for it. I personally have never heard fear depicted in this way, but I understood it very well. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your piece is comprehensive and abstract. I really liked how an interpretation and definition of fear can never be fully understood. Your perspective on fear is really interesting. Good job.
ReplyDelete