I'm scared of him," said Piggy, "and that's why I know him. If you're scared of someone you hate him but you can't stop thinking about him. You kid yourself he's all right really, an' then when you see him again; it's like asthma an' you can't breathe.
Interpretation
Fear can be a powerful motivator that drives our awareness and understanding of others.
This quote reflects the complex emotions that arise from fear and hatred. Piggy's admission reveals that fear can create an obsessive fixation on the one we fear, leading to a mix of admiration and repulsion. It highlights how fear can cloud judgment and how our perceptions of others can be distorted by our emotions. The metaphor of asthma illustrates the suffocating nature of this fear, making it difficult to confront the true nature of the person we find intimidating.
In practice
In a presentation on overcoming personal fears, you might quote this to illustrate the complexities of fear and intimidation.
Consider a man riding a bicycle. Whoever he is, we can say three things about him. We know he got on the bicycle and started to move. We know that at some point he will stop and get off. Most important of all, we know that if at any point between the beginning and the end of his journey he stops moving and does not get off the bicycle he will fall off it. That is a metaphor for the journey through life of any living thing, and I think of any society of living things.
The skull regarded Ralph like one who knows all the answers and won't tell.
Maybe, he said hesitantly, maybe there is a beast. The assembly cried out savagely and Ralph stood up in amazement. You, Simon? You believe in this? I don't know, said Simon. His heartbeats were choking him. [...] Ralph shouted. Hear him! He's got the conch! What I mean is . . . maybe it's only us. Nuts! That was from Piggy, shocked out of decorum.
The mask was a thing on it's own, behind which Jack hid, liberated from shame and self-conciousness.
Man produces evil as a bee produces honey.
Utopias are presented for our inspection as a critique of the human state.
Bullies, oppressors and all men who do violence to the rights of others are guilty not only of their own crimes, but also of the corruption they bring into the hearts of their victims.
The scum of the earth... but what fine soldiers we have made them.
I am afraid that Yazidis and Yazidism will vanish and will not be able to resist the extremists.
Just know that all the pain that I've been through, it made me strong.
All women are strong. My mother survived Auschwitz, and fear wasn't an option when we were growing up. If we were afraid of the dark, we were put into the closet until we weren't.
We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people.
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