Friday, February 19, 2010

Fear Journal

Just as manifested in Golding's work, Lord of the Flies, fear can have a profound effect on human nature. As per usual, the dark was my greatest childhood fear. There were countless times when a simple lack of electro-magnetic radiation created a living nightmare me, and none really vivid I can recall. But a nightmare is the right descriptor for darkness, because in the dark, lack of evidence that something isn't actually there, makes it all the easier to be actually there. In other words, when you can't see what's actually in front of you, you'll imagine the worst case scenario: a monster, or a creepy guy with a knife. That's why darkness, as a gateway to your worst imaginations, is much worse than anything that could actually be there; say, a spider. This is exactly the case on our scar-torn island. The boys, because of their great fear, have created a very real "Beast" out of a simple figment of their imaginations. This fear of the "Beast" has had dire effects upon the micro-society of the island, so far creating the rise of one boy, and the tragic fall of another. It could be said that fear itself is the governing force on the island, and because the boys are blocked by this facade of fear, they can't observe the reality beyond.