By Meghan Runte
Halloween has been considered the day of frights and scares. As McNicholas students and teachers brace themselves for fear, one can’t help but wonder what fear is.
AP Psychology and social studies teacher Mrs. Mary Kiger explained that fear is “a basic human emotion that our brain and body produce when we sense danger. Psychologists consider it one of the universal emotions, meaning people in every culture recognize the facial expression of fear.” These expressions of fear include raised eyebrows, wide eyes, and agape mouth.
Fear is a natural emotion for all people. Kiger said that from “an evolutionary perspective, fear exists because it kept our ancestors alive. The amygdala, part of the brain, scans for threats and can trigger a fear response immediately.”
Humans react in one of two ways when faced with a threat; fight or flight. Kiger shared that “this is the body’s automatic reaction to a perceived threat. Our body prepares to either confront, fight, or run away, flight, from the threat.”
Kiger does not enjoy being scared and said that she finds “the side effects to be uncomfortable and unpleasant. I am not a fan of scary movies or haunted houses.”
Senior Grace Tierney said she enjoys scary movies and the trill of fear and even has a scary movie marathon with her friends every year. She said she enjoys “the thrill of being scared, even in a safe space.”
Junior Quinn McHugh also loves watching scary movies because “it gives me an adrenaline rush, making me glued to the screen. I just love it.”
Sophomore Marin Elkins likes scary movies and being scared because she likes “not knowing when something is going to happen. I mainly just watch scary movies because they don’t scare me that much, its just like another movie that has jump scares and more of a thrill than an average movie.”
Junior Claire Brinck does not enjoy being scared but likes the anticipation and rush of scary movies. “They keep me anticipating the next part of the movie and give me a nice thrill.”
Freshman Devyn Thomas added that she does not like being scared “because I never know when it’s going to come and that fact alone makes me scared.”
Next time you get your socks scared off, try to remember what fear is, and think about if you tend to fly or fight!
