This was when I was very young, before I started primary school. At the time, no one could make me see that dreams had no reality and that it was impossible for a goblin to be living in our fireplace.
This was my own fear. I have never come across anybody else who feared a goblin in their fireplace and so anybody else would probably find it hard to understand. Other fears are shared by many as they all begin from similar origins.
Films, urban legends and common dreams can often be the cause of the fears. Watching the film Jaws, and other films where creatures might be lurking to attack you, can often be pin-pointed as the reason that a small amount of fear can fill us just before entering the sea on holiday as we check the waters surface for any signs of what could be a fin.
With phobias, the psychiatrist will be aiming to trace back to the origin of the fear in order to cure it and over come it. They realise that it usually will have been a negative experience that brought about the fear.
What is interesting to observe is how people will react differently to a situation. Men will often cover up their fears to show bravery, as for them to show certain fears would be seen as cowardly. In the war, fear was discouraged in a similar way to how boys are discouraged from showing fear today. Women, however, will even perhaps be seen to exaggerate their fears, but very rarely disguise them. A familiar cartoon character of a shrieking woman on a stool trying to escape from a mouse demonstrates this. We never see a scene of a shrieking man on a stool, unless for comic value. This is due to the macho image of fearlessness, from the male always being able to protect the female.
As well as this distinction between males and females, individuals will have individual reactions to fear. Some people would not even approach a spider for example, while others will not think anything of it. Generally, the extent of fear person experiences will often correlate with certain aspects of their personality. Different experiences a person may have had will also alter the response that person will have. Fear is unique to an individual person. It is not possible to inherit fears or pass them on because they all derive from our own personal experiences. However, children often follow the example of the parents, if the parent shows a particular response of fear
The difference in reactions in different ages is very noticeable. Children and adults will often have very different fears. When we think of the fears children have, and the fears that we had as a young child, the obvious things like ghosts and the dark come to mind. The fears of witches and monsters all come under the category of fantasy fears. These are the fears that generally are unique to children and very rarely are experienced by adults. Especially after reading a story or watching a film, the child’s imagination is alive with these thoughts which can then fill the child with fear of the stories coming alive.
When children are even younger, as babies, they go through a wide range of fears, less obvious and often misunderstood. When about six months, a child will usually fear loud noises. Between six and eight months of age, the child has a fear of strangers. A fear of specific animals usually occurs within three to five years. It is these phobias that are often carried through to adulthood.
From childhood to adulthood we grow out of most of our fears. The rise and fall of fears, as in childhood is said to come from the exposure we have to our fears.
“Fears diminish as a result of repeated exposure to a mild or toned down version of the frightening situation” This quotation was taken from a psychologist, Stanley Rachman, who was discussing the outgrowth of fears. He continued by saying that repeated exposure to the fear-evoking object or situation could either increase the fear (sensitisation) or decrease it (habituation), depending on the situation. His theory was that fears were in a state of balance and a change of many factors would tilt it. This shows that if a fear fades, then the exposure to the situation must have decreased the fear.
With fantasy fears, it is as the child grows older and becomes more intelligent that the fear fades. Once the child can see for himself, rather than other people telling him, that what he fears does not exist, and the child can prove that to himself, then he is able to grow out of it. The classic fear of the dark demonstrates this.
Once an adult, fantasy and petty fears will most commonly have been grown out of. However, an adult may still have fears. Fears of animals and phobias may still be present from childhood. In adulthood as well as late childhood there are also worries and fears of the inevitable. The majority of people have a small fear of death. Many people also fear things like getting old. There are things like embarrassment or loneliness that are fears that adults have, unlike young children.
Though at first it seems unlikely, we can also use fear to learn. We create fears when we are very young which we unknowingly put in use daily. The fears in early childhood can act as protection. When a child experiences something he doesn’t like e.g. a sharp object or knife, the child will learn to avoid it. This can be seen in other things like fire. We unconsciously avoid the heat of a fire due to our fear and knowledge that it is harmful.
When my sister was about 2 years old, my mum saw how she had still not yet properly developed her fears. My sister became excited to see a dog jumping up and down in a car and saw no danger. The dog was barking and growling and my mum was wary of it and yet my sister did not even notice how ferocious the dog was. She only saw it as happy and bouncing up and down with excitement rather than anger. At this stage she had still not learnt to fear its behaviour.
Fear can benefit us from our own experiences but can also be used by others to purposely scare us. Parents will tell you that if something is not done then the Bogeyman will get you. By having a fear of the Bogeyman, then you will do what you are told.
At amusement parks, fear is the main attraction on roller coasters and haunted houses. They feed on the same basic fear of loss of control. Once on, you can no longer control what goes on. You are faced with surprise and shock. We choose to put our selves through as much fear as we can bear, because at the end of it we’ve enjoyed the thrill.
Horror films also are there to scare and frighten you. They try their hardest to venture deep into your deepest fears in order to make you jump, scream or freeze with fright. A few years ago I went with my family to watch the play “Lady in Black”. This was a spooky play, set in the mists of a marsh. This was such a powerful play, that it made the audience scream out loud on several occasions. It was interesting to see how even though we knew that we had been watching actors and actresses and that the story had been written and created by an author, we were still filled with fear. We were in complete security and yet still felt so insecure. An opposite of this can be seen with children. I have never come across a child with a fear of animals such as dinosaurs. These can be ferocious flesh eating creatures, and yet the child must realise that he or she is safe from them in order to hold no fear.
Fear, being defined as ‘Alarm, painful emotion caused by impending danger or evil’ is in fact a lot more than a worry or scare. It is an emotion that in some cases we will go to great lengths to avoid, but in other cases thrive on its enjoyment or use it as a benefactor. The fear in children shows us a great deal about how we develop and how there is such a great spectrum of origins for our fears. Fear shows our individuality.
