The Role Of Fear In Bettina Restrepo's Illegal

“How can you move when the world is tumbling down around you?” This is a question pondered throughout the whole story of Illegal by Bettina Restrepo, a story conveying the enervating immigration experience of a young girl and her family to America. In Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, he asserts that “human beings are motivated, even driven, by desires, fears, needs, and conflicts of which they are unaware.” Nora is initially motivated by the broken promises of her dad to return to Mexico for her quinceanera. Fearful of what has happened to him and hopeful for a better future, she then sets out on a journey to America to find her loved one. Throughout the story, Nora and her family face many challenges. From the start, they struggle to live in impoverished Mexico due to lack of …show more content…
At the start of the book, Nora was immensely fearful of her fate, of America, and of the unknown. While crossing the border, she says, “fear was climbing my legs like heavy mud ready to sink me to the bottom and smother the life out of me.” However, that fear prompted her to stand up for herself against the rancorous, cold-blooded smuggler and successfully cross the border. Fear keeps human conscience aware of outcomes. People are more likely to react in a situation out of fear of what could happen. Nora feared that if she stayed in Mexico, her father wouldn’t return and her family would end up penniless. Therefore, she derived her motivation out of fear. “Fear and excitement mixed in me like oil and water,” said Nora. Although these two emotions seem divergent, what makes them parallel is that they both give energy. Excitement prompts enthusiasm but fear makes people want to protect themselves and makes them more motivated to get out that fearful situation. The power of fear to motivate humans is much stronger than it