Every October, movie fans flock to theaters to see the newest scary release. I like to make a plan to watch as many horror films as I can--modern or classic, psychological or slasher. In fact, horror movies are not limited only to October. It seems there is a new horror movie in theaters every month and on Netflix every week. And I could just as easily put on Silence of the Lambs or Halloween in April as I could in the fall. As a form of entertainment, we seek out fear and crave terrifying situations. As long as it’s happening to someone else. As long as it’s fictional.
Despite our seeming obsession with the macabre, humans certainly try and avoid fears in real life. It goes without saying, none of us want to be trapped in a house stalked by a killer. Luckily, almost no one has to endure this terror, but this doesn’t mean our lives are entirely absent of fear. Our forms of fear are less intense, but equally affecting.
People confront fears on a daily basis at a personal level as well as at a global level. We may be afraid of our boss which prevents us from advancing in our career. Or we may be afraid of our commute which prevents from even getting to work. Or we may be afraid of global warming and nuclear war which prevents us from getting out of bed. These are all fears, however irrational, that people could possibly be forced to manage.
For most people, the above concerns would not even register. But there may be little truths hidden in these fears that may seem a little more familiar. For example, we may be afraid of disappointing our boss if our work is not up to usual standards. This a far more valid fear that affects our daily life. What’s interesting, though, instead of destroying us, this fear could be a tool to inspire us to work harder.
Fear can also be a benefit or a hindrance in creating art. Imagine a person so proud of a song she wrote or a painting he made. The natural place to share this work is the Internet. But what about the countless examples we have of faceless commenters tearing down creative work for no personal gain? All it takes is that spark of fear and the budding artist will never share their work. The fear of being attacked online is painful, of course, because it is symbolic of the fear of failing.
The most commonly expressed fears always seem to be external, like snakes, flights, or heights. Often the fears circle back to pain or death. Failure, on the contrary, is more of an internal fear. The pain of failure is often a more emotional one, but still just as real.
