Antonio Faten
As complicated as Humanity is, it’s no secret that our emotions only add more to this convoluted cesspool we call life. We have our highs and lows, but for some reason, one of the core emotions that gets us all rattled up is fear. Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous. To summarize, it’s a defense mechanism designed to keep us safe. Even so, there’s just something about this emotion that leaves a lasting impact on us all.
Phobias
Now, let’s get one thing straight: everybody’s afraid of something, regardless of shape and size. It could be that you’re scared of a spider, being a parent for the first time, or looking for something that’s not there. Those kinds of fears fall under the term “phobia,” which is a fancier term for the same word with the exact definition. There are far too many phobias to list in this entry because, like all things in life, it’s complicated. But we can give you some examples of different showings that connect on some topics of fear.
The Fear Factor
In 1990, in the film Arachnophobia, a South African killer spider hitches a ride to California and starts breeding, thus leaving a trail of death that puzzles and terrifies the main protagonist, Dr. Ross Jennings, who moved to town with his family. As the title suggests, it touches the basis of people’s fear of spiders, and this one will give you nightmares, so watch at your own risk. Another film, in 2010, is titled Buried. The film centers around a U.S. truck driver in Iraq named Paul (starring Ryan Reynolds), who wakes up buried alive in a coffin after being attacked. There, he races against time, trying to find a way out with nothing but a lighter and his claustrophobia.
One last example comes from an unexpected place: a video game titled Five Nights at Freddy’s. We won’t delve into its convoluted lore, so we’ll mainly focus on the first game of the series. The story in the game revolves around a security guard hired to guard a run-down pizzeria, along with the animatronic assets of the company. But, as you (the player progress in the nights that follow, you find that the animatronics roam around the place and try to kill you, thinking you’re an employee out of a spring lock suit. This scenario plays on automatonophobia, the fear of life-like creatures; case in point, the animatronics.
The game was so popular for its fear mechanics that it led to numerous sequels, spin-offs, and novels; it even got a film adaptation in 2023. Dealing with our fear is not a walk in the park. The hurdles faced are significant in number. But fear is not something we can hop over. No, it requires something more “ethereal” in the sense.
Strength of Courage
Not everyone can face their fear because of how traumatizing the experiences were, and honestly, that’s completely normal. As stated previously, fear is an eternal mechanism that keeps us safe. Life is worth living, even when we take a few risks. From the lyrics of Hikaru Utada, “~Let me face, let me face, let me face my fears~”
Read More From The Able Show Contributors.
https://theableshow.com/fear-the-hidden-layers-of-the-mind
Works Cited:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099052
https://freddy-fazbears-pizza.fandom.com/wiki/Five_Nights_at_Freddy%27s