Reflections on Fear

Abstract

The present work intends, very briefly, to provide some reflections on the phenomenon of fear along a historical process, from the point of view of various thinkers, from Classical Antiquity to the present day. More than an individual phenomenon, fear can be considered as a collective representation, and in its connection with religion has been an important instrument of social control. At present, the reflections of thinkers like Slavoj Zizek warn that because of the need for a process of social organization and efficient management of group life, as well as the possibility of having a wide range of power, the power of fear becomes increasingly relevant, emphasizing the so-called politics of fear. In a reality increasingly devoid of future prospects, where one seeks to avoid anything that is capable of causing suffering, fear begins to acquire a mode of consumption, devoid of old religious views.