Free College Essays-Fear Isn T Always Feared

Fear Isn’t Always Feared
Staring at a young child buying an admissions ticket to the scariest movie of the year can make one wonder. Why would someone put themselves through that experience? Exposing themselves to nightmares for weeks and a fear of dark closets. Seeing this, one could just not understand this situation. Though in the moment it may look like a bad choice, that same child later walks out of the movie laughing, smiling, and holding their loved ones close. The terrifying event supplied them with joy and new memories, and the reasons to this explain why many people around the world go through the exact same thing. The main reasons some individuals enjoy experiencing fear is because it is an emotion biologically ingrained in

humans, in certain cases, fear can be manipulated and developed depending on the individuals choices, and it can give individuals a rush.
The greatest reason fear is an emotion that can be enjoyed is because it is biologically ingrained in humans. Because “...fear is a biologically basic emotion of all humans...”(Adolphs 3), it can be experience in many different ways. When facing these instances one can either panic in fear, or enjoy the experience. Researchers have learned that, “… fear is usually conceptualized (idealized) as an adaptive but phasic… state [drawn out of] confrontation…”(Adolphs 3). When an individual confronts what has scared or startled them, they first go through what their body is signaling and then, choose how to react to it. Being scared is originally a bad thing, so “the bodies… threat system [lets] us know something is not quite right, and [prepares] us to run or fight”(Kerr). This is how the body tries to save individuals in dangerous situations like facing a wild animal in the woods or being in the same room with someone wielding a gun. When the “threat system” is not needed to survive, the “[triggered]… chemical cascade to help us survive…”(Kerr) develops a rush in the body and brain, building up positive feelings. When someone is laughing on a roller coaster, it is because they have converted those chemicals from “preparing for threat” to “enjoying a happy event”. This experience can be so addictive that people keep going back for more and pull their friends, family, and any others they want to share with. This creates a chain reaction where if one person finds something fun, another individual close to them will also participate in it. To actually take advantage of the chemicals people feel being scared, they need to feel comfortable with people they know and be in an environment where they don’t feel threatened.
Following the last statement, the second most important reason fear can be enjoyed is because fear can be manipulated and developed, depending on how an individual wants to experience it. From the above information, a type of rule can be made that one needs to feel unthreatened to enjoy the horror event. For participants to actually enjoy being scared, they need to know they have “… control …” and “… psychological distance between them and the [intense] acts…”(Griffiths). Being in a comfortable place and knowing there is someone nearby for protection can make a huge difference in how individuals react to being scared. Due to fear being “… ‘on a universal level crossing national boundaries… [and] working in different cultures’” (Griffiths), a “comfortable situation” is different for everyone. Someone may see comfort being with a close family member and another could see comfort in being able to have an exit out of the scary situation at any time. Comfort can also be perceived in environment and presence, for example, “… a clown at the circus or at a birthday party… that’s okay… but a clown in your backyard… at 11:30[pm]… that’s not right…”(Schlozman 15:36). If the comfort levels are met for an individual, and things seem to be where they should be, they are able then to take advantage of their feelings and enjoy the occurrence of being scared.
In addition to the fact that fear is very dependent on an individuals choices, once that individual chooses so, they can experience fear for fun, resulting in a chemical rush through their body.

The reason many people want to put themselves into situations where they may experience fear, is because they seek “… characteristics such as fearfulness, empathy, and sensation seeking”(Griffiths). Many of these characteristics brought out of someone are due to the chemical rush taking place. Since these feelings are so addictive for human beings, people often keep seeking out places where they can get scared on a regular basis. As individuals become excited to feel the sensation from being scared, one comes to realize that “The combination of friends, thrills, chills, and spooky things thrust [the] body… into a perfect state for… [storing] intense emotional experiences…”(Kerr), creating lasting memories. These memories help remind people “…what makes us feel good… and what makes us feel bad…”(Kerr), so in the future an individual can choose the best decision for themselves. Memories are a very important part of people’s life, so being able to obtain more of them, especially with people one admires, can have a great impact on an individuals

life.
Due to fear being biologically ingrained in humans, being capable of manipulation and development depending on the individuals choices, and efficiency in giving individuals a rush, experiencing a fearful situation has come to be very enjoyable to a large population of the world. Although this emotion is generally triggered when a person feels uncomfortable and threatened, over the years, the global community has found a way to take pleasure in being scared. The creation of amusement parks and movie theaters that display horror movies have extremely changed the way humans experience fear on a daily basis. Not only have these activities brought people closer together but have helped people face common fears. Once someone’s fear has been conquered they can take advantage of it, along with the positive chemicals released, and have fun instead of needing to cowering. When placed in a comfortable situation, fear can bring on many positive feeling that are absent if one was placed in the middle of the dark woods. Even though there are logical answers as to why humans enjoy and put themselves through fearful situations, many individuals do not understand the reasoning behind this choice, but know when they experience these situations people are more likely to come together. For many, going through something together can be more enjoyable then going through it alone. Therefore, the next time a group of people exit from a scary movie laughing and smiling, one can infer that those people were comfortable, did not feel threatened, and ultimately were able to pull happiness out of fear.