Hate vs Fear
Hate Vs Fear: “Fearing the unknown” Have you ever heard someone say “I hate this” or “I hate that”? Do you think they really hate that object, person or idea? Are they confusing hatred with fear? What exactly is fear? Fear is a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil or pain, Whether or not the threat is real or imagined. What exactly is hate? Hate is to dislike intensely or passionately; feeling extreme aversion or extreme hostility toward; detest. Why is hate accepted in today’s culture? Saying a person hates something, someone or an idea is a lot easier for most people in today’s society, rather than saying they fear it.
They do not have to explain themselves why exactly they “hate” something. It just is. We are taught from a young age to feel hostility or hatred towards opposing ideas, an example for a young child would be eating their vegetables. They don’t really hate eating them, they fear what they would taste like because they’re something new and taboo to a child. We fear the unknown and label that with hatred. Humans are quick to judge and fear the unknown. We may not admit it but we are plagued with xenophic tendencies. Hate creates a chain reaction that many people are not aware of but fall into quite often, with the end result always being fear.
The reason for this chain reaction is lack of understanding and immediately gets the feeling of fear which leads to hate. The first reaction of hate is the act of attacking. People will attack a person or an idea through words or actions, “No one attacks without intent to hurt”. An example of a hate related attack could be directed towards homosexuals. They are given cruel names such as faggot or flamer, which is the attack. The chain reaction is then followed by guilt, guilt because you realize your attack was not logical, For example what if an adult made fun of homosexuals repeatedly only to find out that their own child is actually gay.
They would then feel the heavy pressure of guilt. Fear is the end result in this chain reaction. People fear punishment and they fear that because they know their thoughts/actions were not right, for example a parent may fear the punishment of losing their child because of their attacks on something sensitive for the child. The end result of hate is always fear. When someone makes a choice to “hate” something, someone or an idea they’re really making a choice for fear.
Hate makes people feel empowered, when they have the idea that they hate something instilled in their head it makes them feel higher than the object or idea they “hate” giving them the feeling of being a hierarchy. With the feeling of hate a person also feels stronger. In today’s society it is so much easier for one to say they hate a certain thing and leave it at that rather than have to explain themselves for the reasoning behind the hatred, people hide fear with hatred. As Lester B Pearson once said “Misunderstanding arising from ignorance breeds fear, and fear remains the greatest enemy of peace”.
