Fear Essay, Research Paper

FEAR

Recently, earthquakes have hit many places like, Kobe, Greece, Turkey and Taiwan. Moreover, some scientists predict that a huge earthquake will hit the Tokai area and it will have enough power to destroy the Tokyo area. I fear earthquakes for 3 reasons: anticipation of disaster, being on the point of death in the rubble, and becoming injured or sick.

First, when any size earthquake hits, even a small one, I feel fear because my mind says, “Someday there will be huge earthquake”. Actually, a huge earthquake has not come yet, but psychologically I feel fear. For example, a few days ago an earthquake hit Tokyo. It was small but my heart beat so quickly during and after the earthquake that I could not do anything because I was so scared.

When a huge earthquake such as the Kobe earthquake occurs, many buildings and houses will be destroyed. At that time, I give full scope to my imagination that I will be buried under rubble. Actually, being buried under rubble is most frightening to me because I could become weaker and weaker and finally die. I am frightened not only of being buried under rubble but also of being surrounded by fire or poisonous gas. Being surrounded by fire or poisonous gas, I could feel heat or breathe with difficulty and could know I am going to die. If an airplane crashes or a bomb explodes most people will die instantly, so people usually do not feel pain or fear. However if I am buried under rubble or surrounded by fire and poisonous gas I will feel pain or have difficulty in breathing and I will not die quickly. So it is an agonizing death filled with fear.

After the earthquake happens, many problems will occur; for example, there will be a problem of supply with goods or temporary dwellings. However, the most frightening problem is disease. After an earthquake, there are sanitary problems. If some diseases spread among the people, it will be difficult to cure the diseases because there will be almost no medical supplies and almost no food. Even if I survive the earthquake itself, there will still be other situations to survive, so I still fear earthquakes.

Recently, some scientists have said that they can foretell an earthquake, but the actual foretelling of the situation is difficult. In fact, unpredicted earthquakes have hit many places and thousands of people have been killed. When I think about these earthquake situations, I feel scared because I think I might have the same experience sooner or later.