Critical Insights : Paranoia, Fear & Alienation

Fear, paranoia, and alienation are terms that pull in different directions, but they also overlap in key ways, most having to do with the idea that the mind's apprehension of danger, whether that apprehension is accurate or not, can lead to expected emotions. The fact that the body can produce fear-related responses when there is no immediate threat has lead over the centuries of human existence to stories--oral, visual, or written--with the intention of making the audience experience the emotional and physical symptoms of fear.