Why do we Fear things?
HippieTrippie
Regular
I would like to hear some input on this.
I think that humans fear things for two reasons.
1. It is unknown, foreign, or misunderstood by the person. Humans by nature prefer things that are familiar that we know will not harm us. This goes even to a level of knowledge. The more we know about something the more comfortable we are with it. For example, if you know absolutely everything about the 2005 Chevy Silverado, you will tend to keep that car longer than a car you know little about, you will make larger, more detailed and accurate responses to questions about it, and you will cling to that knowledge more than fleeting thoughts or less known information.
Now take that same truck, replace the engine, the radiator, tires, transmission, steering, repaint it, re-do the interior, and change the name. Now you know very little to nothing about it. Do you still love it as much, care about it, cling to its knowledge? Of course you don't because now its foreign to you. Do you fear it? Not really, you know its just a vehicle. But if you replace it with a random object covered in Darkness, are you at least apprehensive?
2. Survival instinct. This one is simple, if we believe something poses a threat to our survival, whether founded in fact (Fear of Spiders, Fear of Heights) or not (Fear of Clowns, Fear of the Dark, Fear of Long words) we will naturally want to avoid it at all costs.
tl;dr Answer the damn question.
I think that humans fear things for two reasons.
1. It is unknown, foreign, or misunderstood by the person. Humans by nature prefer things that are familiar that we know will not harm us. This goes even to a level of knowledge. The more we know about something the more comfortable we are with it. For example, if you know absolutely everything about the 2005 Chevy Silverado, you will tend to keep that car longer than a car you know little about, you will make larger, more detailed and accurate responses to questions about it, and you will cling to that knowledge more than fleeting thoughts or less known information.
Now take that same truck, replace the engine, the radiator, tires, transmission, steering, repaint it, re-do the interior, and change the name. Now you know very little to nothing about it. Do you still love it as much, care about it, cling to its knowledge? Of course you don't because now its foreign to you. Do you fear it? Not really, you know its just a vehicle. But if you replace it with a random object covered in Darkness, are you at least apprehensive?
2. Survival instinct. This one is simple, if we believe something poses a threat to our survival, whether founded in fact (Fear of Spiders, Fear of Heights) or not (Fear of Clowns, Fear of the Dark, Fear of Long words) we will naturally want to avoid it at all costs.
tl;dr Answer the damn question.
Comments
Its an illusion, not real, it doesn't matter. Lo and behold you fight the fear you fight for yourself.
Or, instead of fighting it try the harder route, love your fear.
For instance the spider example. Our survival traits and senses will let us know that harm or perceived harm is near but we make a mountain out of a molehill saying "kill it kill it!" when in reality the baby spider wants no harm and is just being a spider.
These ancient instincts can be conditioned through Classical Conditioning, and fear responses can be learned if the stimulus has previously caused harm, or perceived as possibly causing harm to us, or those in our social circle. It's all about survival, mang.
Yea. Fear of death. Goes back to what I wrote on your philosophy diatribe, OP.
But what about small children when encountered with something unknown, like a spider? I've noticed that if a toddler sees a spider, he/she will actually approach it with genuine curiosity. But this comes down to conditioning. The toddler would most likely approach the spider if he/she sees that the humans around it are not showing any signs of fear. If everyone in the room back away from the spider and screams, the toddler would understand that the spider should be avoided and feared, even if there's no explanation for it. Early conditioning and unintentional indoctrination plays a massive role in developing fear. A child who is raised by a family of dog-lovers would eventually become a dog lover itself, as long as the child didn't find itself in a fearful situation with dogs (such as getting bitten at an early age). However, this developed fear can be overcome if the child's parents forced the child to face its fears. If confronted by a vicious dog, the dog-lover (as a grown up) would no doubt be aware of the consequences that may follow if the situation goes out of control due to experience, but would not be fearful.
wen u hav a kid, maik sur u fors him to fais his feers