Fear is not a cowardly sin, but an instinct to protect myself. Only when we face that fear do we create true safety and peace.
Five complete deep essays
In 1588, a rural English village was filled with fear when news spread that the Spanish Armada was invading England. Amidst the extreme fear, one pregnant woman gave birth ahead of her due date. That child was Thomas Hobbes.
Hobbes later wrote in his autobiography: 'My mother gave birth to twins out of sheer fear, me and Fear.' Hobbes lived to the age of 91, witnessing the bloody and violent times of England's brutal Puritan civil war and the king's beheading.
He conducted a dissection of human nature more dispassionately and more dispassionately than any other philosopher. 'The most fundamental and powerful driving force that moves humans is not morality or ideals, but the honest fear of death and danger!'
Hobbes was fascinated by Galileo's Mechanics in the 17th century. He saw the human body as a machine that moves like springs and gears. The heart is the pump, the nerves are the cords, and the joints are the wheels.
So what are emotions? When external light or sound hits the eyes and ears, the shock is transmitted through the brain to the heart. At this time, a very subtle movement begins within the heart, which Hobbes called 'conatus' in Latin and 'endeavor' in English.
� The movement that moves in the direction of promoting the vital beating of the heart is called 'Desire / Appetite', and the movement that suppresses the heart beating and retreats from what threatens is called 'Aversion / Fear'. All complex human emotions are ultimately just variations of these two mechanical movements of ‘approaching (attraction)’ and ‘retreating (avoidance)’.
Ancient Aristotle and medieval philosophers believed that there was life's ultimate settlement, the 'highest good' where all desires would completely cease and enjoy eternal peace. But Hobbes dismissed this as an illusion.
'As long as you live, there is no such thing as perfect peace of mind or ultimate satisfaction! Because life is movement itself.'
The joy we feel when we achieve a goal (getting accepted to college, getting a job, getting a promotion, buying a house) is only temporary. Before long, a new desire arises for your next goal. Hobbes never saw this as corruption or sin. Constantly crossing stepping stones from one desire to another is the essential proof of life that humans are alive and breathing.
The most famous concept in Hobbes's famous book, Leviathan, is the 'State of Nature'. In a lawless world where there are no laws, police, or government, humans distrust each other and fall into a state of ‘all against all.’ There, human life is 'lonely, poor, harsh, cruel, and short.'
What was it that saved humans from this living hell? It was not a noble moral sense. It was the ‘terrible fear of violent death, of being stabbed to death at any moment.’
In the face of this great fear, humans finally exercised reason. 'Let us lay down our weapons and establish a common law and judge (state, Leviathan) that everyone must follow!' In other words, fear was the greatest driving force in human history that saved humans from destruction and created civilization and peaceful order.
Whenever we feel anxious or afraid, we feel ashamed of ourselves and ask ourselves, ‘Why am I so scared?’ But Hobbes will take your hand and say: 'Being afraid is proof that you are wise and full of vitality.'
If you are anxious about the future, don't try to cover up that anxiety with optimism. Like Hobbes, look straight ahead. 'What is the worst-case scenario that I'm really afraid of?'
And based on that fear, create safeguards that you can build today (emergency fund, building skills, honest contracts, trust with precious friends). When you stop avoiding your fears and turn to wise countermeasures, anxiety will become your most loyal sentinel.