explosivecombat | 033. [Text]

The standard example of existential anguish is said to be standing on the edge of a cliff or other high place; there inevitably comes a moment in most self-aware individuals where they experience the realization that not only do they fear falling to their death, but there's nothing stopping them from throwing themselves off. I've always found it strange that a moment of experiencing true freedom like that would be considered distressing rather than a relief; knowing that there's nothing holding me back - that I am in full control of my own choices, whether it's to stand perfectly still or throw myself off - and there is nothing pre-written into whatever it is that I am that will dictate what I do either way is something I've always found calming.

It begs the question, however - do we choose our fears, and more importantly, do we choose how we respond to them?

If nothing is predetermined and everything about our lives comes down to choice, it makes sense to me that our fears also have to come down to choice, whether consciously or not. The part I'm not entirely sure of is the response.

For example, if one is attacked by some sort of animal, it makes sense that one would fear that animal. However, the response to animal attacks tend to vary - some will try to minimize their contact with that sort of animal as much as they can, while others will immerse themselves in it and attempt to desensitize themselves. Is there a particular thing that predetermines what choice a person is going to make?

I'm curious about your thoughts on it; you don't have to detail what fears you have and how you handle them, though if you would like to that might be helpful. I'm more interested in whether you think this sort of thing comes down to ingrained personality - something more inherent, I suppose - or personal choice, and whether such a thing can be changed.

Answer me anonymously if you wish; as always, your response is of more interest to me than your identity, and quite frankly I'm not in the mood to judge either way.

(As for the existential anguish, I've found over the years that I get the greatest satisfaction from neither the thought of staying put, nor the thought of throwing myself off - I've always enjoyed the notion that if I stand on the edge long enough, perhaps someone will act on their compulsion to put their hands against my back and shove.)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

For me, being afraid of something has everything to do with, like, stuff that's happened to me before. Like how you said if you were attacked by an animal, you'd be afraid of it.

I mean I guess I could try not to be scared of it if I wanted to. But it's that sorta thing that you can't really help, I guess. Like if someone's...I dunno, really scared of heights, but no matter how much they try or how much they go to really high places to get over it, they're still scared and always will be. Not that they aren't trying to face their fear or that they don't want to get over it, it's just something they can't for some reason. ...If that makes sense.

So you believe that once you fear something, that's the end of it? You're always going to have some sort of wariness or dislike of that particular thing that you can't move past?

Well, maybe not always. I think it just depends on the person, or how bad the fear that they have is.

Fair enough.

Is there anything specific that makes the difference, in your opinion? Or is it just something that's inherently part of their personality - some cope better than others, in other words, for some arbitrary reason?

I have my own thoughts on the matter, of course, but I'm curious about others'.

I think your personality has a lot to do with it, yeah. Lots of people are scared of things, but they'll never show it just because of the way they are. It doesn't mean they're not still scared- it just means they're better at handling it than someone else.

Like, uh....I remember I think I used to be afraid of the dark. But eventually I found out that one day I wasn't scared anymore. That doesn't mean I like being in the dark, but I just know there's nothing about it to be really scared of.

Creeped out by, maybe, but not really scared.

I'm fairly sure that fear of the dark is human nature; it ties into general wariness regarding the unknown, and a desire to protect oneself from being attacked. The darkness ensures that one can't see any danger that may be close by, simply because human eyesight is so poor.

So I think wariness is normal, if not something that people discuss; most seem to think that they should get over primal fears like that, which in my opinion is a mistake.

[This is all extremely philosophical for Jimmy, and yet he finds himself compelled to ask.]

A mistake...so you think we all need to hang onto fears like that to survive?

[It makes sense, of course, and why shouldn't it? The problem herein lies in the fact that Jimmy lives in a world where danger is so constant that he's nearly numb to it at this point. Not that he even feels the affects of what usually would be fatal to someone normal in the first place.]

Yes and no. Obviously, holding on to things such that they become counterproductive is just as much of a mistake, if not more so.

I think some degree of instinctive wariness is both normal and desirable - though bear in mind that I'm also a soldier who's had to rely on things like that to remain alive.

I understand.

Like I said, I don't think it's impossible get over a fear, but it's...really hard for anybody to try to do. And I guess some people wouldn't want to take the effort to face their fears.

Or maybe they just don't want to in the first place.

Very little is actually impossible, in my experience; the human will is strong enough to defy the laws of the world and remake them entirely, should someone be able to see it through. It's admirable.

The problem is with the rest of what you've stated - people are disinclined to do anything that seems difficult or unpleasant, even when it's to their benefit.

[Jimmy ponders over that for a bit before answering.]

I guess when you think about it, people would probably be a lot happier if they at least tried, yeah? Might not make the world a better place or anything, but it would make the people living in it feel more at peace.

[...uh. well, it

that wasn't exactly

...

sure, kid.]

Something like that. Even if it didn't make the world better, progress would still be made.

[You have to understand, Jimmy's world doesn't exactly consist of many bad things. Much less dwelling on such things like fears. It's not that he's dumb, he just chooses to focus on other things.]

I'd sure hope so, anyway! Facing your fears is always gonna be hard, but rewarding. Not that everyone is gonna do that, but it's nice to think about how much better people would probably feel if they did.

Even if you don't really make any progress, you can still say you tried!

033. [Text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

[text]

Re: [text]

[text]