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Fear: "An unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain or harm.
The likelihood of something unwelcome happening."
(Oxford Dictionary). |
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Since 'horror/scary' writing plays on our fears I decided to think more about FEAR and what it does. Here's what I came up with:-
1. Fear gives rise to other emotions
If you think about it, a lot of our other emotions are linked to fear. Take anger, for example. You're driving, and another driver cuts in front of you. You get mad at him. Why? What's the root of your anger? Fear that there might have been an accident, that's what. Take envy. Your colleague at work does a really good presentation. You're jealous. Why? You're afraid he might get promoted and you won't. Take over-protectiveness. Why do fathers get so over-protective of their daughters going for that first date? You got it - fear! Possessiveness ... ? Fear! Fear of losing something or someone you love to someone else. Arrogance ... ? Fear! Fear that others will see you as you really are, making you vulnerable.
Which is why the horror writer has so much to play with. Fear can be the root of a myriad of other emotions, enabling you to create well-rounded characters. Taking fear as the basic and then drawing from it enables you to go back in time (what was the basis of that fear? A childhood incident?) and project forward in time (what other emotions is that fear going to bring about? How is that going to affect the main character and those around her/him?) to have stories with powerful plots, based on solid character analysis.
2. Fear can be internal or external
The fear of getting hit by a speeding car is the fear of something external to yourself. The fear of flying is fear of something external to yourself. The fear of not fitting in at a party is what I'd call an 'internal' fear. Nothing 'scary' actually happens, but your mind makes it so. Oh, the raised eyebrows because your dress isn't in fashion are scary enough, you say? Only because you let them scare you. If you were to choose to make them ridiculous, they'd be ridiculous.
So external fear is fear of something you can't change or choose, internal fear can be changed -- can be dissolved, can be converted to another emotion. It's something you fear because you choose to be afraid.
What's interesting for the writer is when these overlap. When the same fear could be internal or external, given the personality and circumstances of the character. The fear of sleeping on the street is 'external' for a homeless man, and 'internal' for someone who owns an apartment, a penthouse and a farmhouse and somehow thinks he might lose them all one day.
3. Fear is universal to all cultures
If you think about it, people from different cultures might be happy or sad about different things, excited or frustrated at varying times, but fear is usually shared. Fear of being hungry, or losing a loved one, of declining health ... these are, in most cases, common to all cultures. I'm not saying there are no exceptions, of course there are, but this commonality of fear again opens up a whole area of opportunity for a writer whose work is based on fear.
4. Fear can propel you forward or hold you back
Martina Navratilova is just one of the greats who has admitted that she's nervous before EVERY match she plays, no matter what the tournament, no matter where she is in her career now. Be they sportspeople or entertainers, we've all heard of those who are at the top of their profession feeling raw fear before stepping on stage or out on the field or the tennis court. This is good fear. It keeps us from getting complacent. It makes us prepare well, it makes us be as good as we can be - and then reach higher. Without it, there may be no excellence.
A friend of mine is scared of elevators. No matter on what floor (storey) her client is located, she climbs. There are times when she has to reach a meeting up to forty minutes early, to budget the time for climbing. When she twisted her ankle and couldn't climb the stairs to work, she just didn't go in to office for a few days. She worked from home, online, to the best of her ability, but it hampered her. She's Creative Director in an advertising agency, and sometimes, her presence was needed to approve layouts or make presentations. Her fear held her back.
An interesting case in point is my fear of blood tests. On the one hand, it keeps me from getting my thyroid checked as regularly as it should be ... on the other hand, it's one of the things that influences my regular walking programme. If I don't walk regularly, I'll be in bad health and have to face a blood test later ... it's definitely one of the factors that gets me to the park when I'm feeling lazy! So the same fear is holding me back - and yet propelling me forward!
5. Fear lasts a long time
My grandfather dreamed he failed his Bachelor of Arts exam fifty years after he appeared for it. He had always been a good student, had never failed an exam, and yet that fear was somehow deep rooted and long-lasting. That's another factor that's in favour of a writer who writes based on fear - it's possible to dig deep into a character's psyche to get to the roots of their anxiety. The deeper you dig into a character's past, the more real a character becomes.
6. Fear can be rational or irrational
A few months ago, there was a burglary on the next street. The residents heard nothing, the robbers got away with a lot of cash in the wee hours of the morning. It happened because the residents had been boasting about some earnings in public, saying how they were going to bank these the next day. It could have been an inside job or an outside job, they're not sure. Now, every time I'm trying to get to sleep and I hear the slightest sound, I think, "Burglars!" According to me, my fear is rational, there was a burglary nearby, wasn't there?  Everyone else laughs! 
Some irrational fears are very hard to explain and understand. Each time I go for my blood test and behave like an absolute baby, my doctor empathises with me because she is scared of caterpillars! She's a great doctor, I've been going to her for years now -- and she's scared of caterpillars! She isn't afraid of any bigger creatures, nor of any other creepy-crawlies. Just caterpillars. Why? Because she is. That's it!
7. Fear can be in-born or learned
Gerald Durrell, the naturalist-writer, says a child will play happily with a snake, without feeling fear. It's only when an adult instructs the child to fear the snake that the child will be afraid. Similarly, babies will happily put their hands into the pretty orange flame - it's only when fire burns the finger that fear is learned. Fear of authority is learned.
Some fears are instinctive. An infant who recognises her mother will wail when the mother leaves the room - the fear of abandonment is instinctive. Animals have well developed instinctive fears, humans tend to blunt their instincts. Still, 'gut feel' is a powerful tool for the writer to use, since a lot of fear is in the 'gut' and turns out to be something concrete later.
8. Fear increases or diminishes when shared
A friend was to have surgery, and confided this to someone she was close to. She was hoping to get a few words of comfort, instead she got, "Oh, that's going to hurt!" and other scary predictions. Her fear, when shared, increased. Keeping the fear to herself might have been better, in this instance.
Once, as a teenager, I was giving an exam. It was one of many 'elective' subjects, which means I could've opted for that paper, or one of a few others, to be conducted on different days. On reaching the exam. hall, I found my roll number missing from the list. Apparently, a clerical error had put me down for another paper. I panicked -- till I found a few other students in the same predicament. Together, we went to the supervisor and got the list corrected in time to do the exam. Had I been alone in that situation, I'm sure I wouldn't have been able to think clearly enough to take any action. Sharing the fear brought immediate relief and clarity.
Another incident when I was a teenager involved the 'annual day' of the college I attended. The celebrations went on till after dark, which was a new experience for first-years like me, since school celebrations were usually conducted during the daytime. My Dad was supposed to pick me up in the car after the celebration. Well, there was some miscommunication between us, and Dad got the timing wrong. He arrived to pick me up an hour after everyone else had left. The lights in and around the hall had been switched off. This was before the days of mobile phones, so there was no way we could communicate. Had I been alone, I would probably have been a wreck. As it turns out, we were giving three other girls a ride, so the four of us managed to stay cheerful together while waiting for Dad. (P.S. -- I'd actually forgotten about this incident, which took place more than twenty years ago. Dad had a nightmare about it recently and reminded me!)
9. A good imagination can hinder or help
On the one hand, a good imagination exaggerates fear. Every shadow is a potential threat. Every rustle is a lurker. Fans of the "Anne of Green Gables" series by Lucy Maud Montgomery will recall the incident where Anne and her best friend decided the wood between their two houses was haunted. Anne, who once went across the wood at any time of day or night without a second thought, suddenly refused to fetch a sewing pattern for her guardian because her vivid imagination conjured up all kinds of horrors among the leaves and shadows. When forced to go, she returned vowing she wouldn't give her imagination free rein any more!
On the other hand, a good imagination can help alleviate fear, too. If all the possibly threatening situations are thought up in advance, and 'answered' satisfactorily, there's nothing to be afraid of any more. For example, a child, if told in advance that there's going to be a 'drill' at the dentist's, and then told how it will help her teeth, and how it'll only last seconds or minutes, and what it'll feel like, is less likely to be afraid than a child who suddenly sees and hears the drill coming at her while on the dentist's chair. Having imagined the drill and what it's going to do in advance alleviates fear.
10. Fear can be 'reflected' or 'projected'
If you see someone going through a scary situation, you might think 'what if that were me?' I call this 'reflection'. My friend narrated how his friend helped with the ceremonies after the death of his father. The friend appeared to be more upset than the family members - he was probably thinking how he would have to do those things for his own father at some point in the future.
On the other hand, you might 'project' your fears on to someone else in a situation. If you're scared of heights, you might not want someone else to climb to a height - "You'll get dizzy!" you might warn the person, when that isn't the case with them at all.
11. Fear can start at the smallest thing
Unlike other negative emotions, which usually require a build-up till the 'last straw' is reached, or need to be big in themselves to begin with, fear can start at the hint of a rumour. The smallest whisper about danger can lead to a stampede. That's because the survival instinct is strong in humans, and anything that threatens our survival needs immediate response.
12. Courage is a 'supreme' virtue
It's difficult to overcome real fear. Which is why we salute the truly courageous, like rescue or police workers during terrorist attacks, or even ordinary citizens who show great fortitude in the face of danger. To go against the basic survival instinct takes a greatness of spirit that is hard to describe.
Well, that's it folks! My take on 'fear'.
Now, get those pencils sharpened - and those teeth, and those claws! Scare on!
- Sonali
PS: Linking another Horror/Scary newsletter I did - more on 'fear'.
"You Can't Fight Fear with Fear"
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Some chilling reads, an interactive you could add to -- and a group you can join!
| |  | Bloody Bones (18+)
A monster lives in a pond in a boy's backyard. For A Flicker of Madness. 500 words max.
#1540359 by CBlackmon  |
| | I Walk (18+)
A journal found outside a public restroom, it was just recently released to the public.
#1450503 by Coyote Smith |
| |  | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#1486936 by Not Available. |
| |  | The Mansion (13+)
Once you enter the haunted mansion, strange things start to happen, like what?
#1216276 by totodile |
To round off, here's a poem to soothe fears.
| | | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#1405046 by Not Available. |
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This is my first Horror/Scary Newsletter!
Um - hope the feedback I get isn't too frightening! Write in and soothe my fears, people!
Something to think about -- what, according to you, are the 'physical' manifestations of fear? When a person is scared, how do you sense it?
Thanks,
Sonali |
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Horror/Scary: March 25, 2009 Issue [#2960]
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