Society, as a whole, depends on some form of fear to function. Everyday things have been changed to accommodate fear and its role within society. In most common examples, people pay and give up some things to combat that fear and give themselves peace of mind; paying money for protection from either people or things so they don’t have to worry about that fear. In extreme cases fear causes people to become irrational and afraid to change, making society turn on individual groups or people to save and protect themselves. One instance of this in our history was The Great Fear, when senator Joseph McCarthy used the fear of communism in society to gain power and cause people to become fearful to make a change. If you spoke out you became persecuted for something you didn't do which caused other people to become afraid to change it in fear they too would be persecuted. Society thrived on this fear and needed it to run, not only did it suppress the people, it thrived on the publicity it generated.
The role of fear within society has been invariably present throughout time. It’s societies Achilles heel. From the time people started colonizing the new world to today's modern times, fear has always been a major factor in societies decisions. Especially in today's world, one major fear factor is terrorism, which has caused society to become somewhat irrational. Long and costly wars have been either started or prolonged in the fight to end terrorism. If you speak out against them then you’re labeled as someone who supports the ‘bad guys’ even if it may cause a change, and while people may try and speak out, others will let it happen because the influence of fear around them. But even if someone speaks out, what they say may not be for the better good, people may wrongfully convict others to save themselves from that fear in society. Without society fear would not have anything to consume, but then again, without some type of fear, society would not be able to continue.
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