Face the Fears

Posted by Bahtyah Ward in English 2 · Pahomov · E Band on Friday, April 6, 2018 at 2:35 pm

Fear is an inevitable feeling that everyone gets. It has a strong hold on some people, while for others it can inspire them to take control of a situation. To overcome the idea it is sometimes projected on others. In a child like mind, fear is exemplified because of imagination. Being afraid of an idea, physical thing, or scaring oneself changes behavior and mentality. The experience of being scared can encourage people to act like cowards -- but that fear of looking like a coward can also inspire them to become brave.

In the book Lord of the Flies by WIlliam Golding, a group of boys are stranded on an island. They have no adult figure to lead them, so they are forced to lead themselves. Over time, the boys have to grow together or grow apart. All of them agree on leaders, jobs, and who can speak while holding the conch shell. As living on the island becomes more crucial, the boys need to make harsh decisions. Without these rules and discipline, chaos would occur at a faster pace than it already will. The boys claim to see a flying beast that will kill them all. Some live in fear on the island, while others do not want to believe the beast is real. “Someone's got to go across the island and tell Piggy we'll be back after dark." Bill spoke, unbelieving."Through the forest by himself? --We can't spare more than one." Simon pushed his way to Ralph's elbow." "I'll go if you like. I don't mind, honestly."(124-129). Simon shows no fear of the beast, unlike everyone else. Although he was once scared, he realized it was the the boys scaring themselves. Everyone projected their feelings of fear onto each other, but Simon acted bravely instead. This kind of behavior sparked curiosity in the group, they all questioned why he was not scared of the “flying beast” in the darkness. Over all his own fears, Simon has taken the brave way out to act against everything the group has been believing.

Feelings of fear will coexist with us forever. In many instances, the biggest enemy is oneself. At no point does fear not affect someone, it is how they choose to approach what scares them. When people find their backs against the wall, irrational decisions are made. Humans act this way to handle what their mind is retaining and manage their own anxiety. "The common thread that weaves violent political movements together is fear. It is not the only motivating factor behind political violence, nor necessarily the most obvious, but it is virtually always there. Whenever we ask why people hate, or why they are willing to kill or die for a cause, the answer is invariably fear." People will to do things beyond the norm as a reaction to fear and anxiety. When approached by the unknown, immediately an individual or group will find something to blame, argue against, or even eliminate.

Also in the novel, the boys have made themselves a ritual. The ritual was for slaughtering a mother pig. In order to survive, they had to hunt and eat whatever they found. It was all terror and hostility. Underlying fear kept hold of everyone, nobody wanted to face the beast. “Maybe […] there is a beast. [...] What I mean is… maybe it's only us.” After a while of debating on what is real or just imagination, the boys began to fight over who to believe and why they should believe them. The title of who is leader and the meaning of a conch shell has decreased. Piggy and Simon believe it is not the Lord of the Flies that the they all should fear. In fact, the biggest obstacles are themselves. They bravely spoke out on the new idea that true monsters were the boys, it seemed only Simon and Piggy could grasp that concept.

In conclusion, the strongest thing humans have against fear is their own mind. Even the smallest idea built from imagination draws one to fear, causing them act irrationally. When approached by the unknown, everyone finds a different way to cope. The norm is to act cowardly and shy away from what they are afraid of. There are people who do not want to look weak, knowing that everyone else is afraid, that makes them want to be brave. The decision to fight fear with bravery all comes from the mind. The mind can be the closest friend or the worst enemy.

Works Cited:

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. New York: Penguin, 2006

“Fear.” Beyond Intractability, 28 Feb. 2017, www.beyondintractability.org/essay/fear.

“Fear.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/fear.

Comments (3)

Jayden Tull

I learned how strong fear can control someone. peolpe will act soley out of fear making bad decisions.
To stop fear you must overcome it or get rid of the thing that brings you fear.

Donald Moses

In my opinion, there is no simple way to avoid or solve this problem as it's a mentality problem. You could tell them there is no such thing of whatever their fearing but they'll still fear it. Only true way to solve the problem is to show them reality and help them out in any way you can instead of just telling them something doesn't exist.

Teyonna Little

I've learned that fear can be a close friend or an enemy. People will always fear something or someone, it can improve them as a person, or just bring them down.
Fear to me, fear is inescapable, you can't run or get away from it. This problem/behavior cannot be solved or avoided, but you choose if you want to let fear control you, or you control fear.