Fear is a basic human instinct. Fear is supposed to keep a person alive, to keep a person from dan-gerous situations that could injure him or her. However, there are times when fear is holding a per-son back, and that could be when a person lets his fear control his decisions, which could lead to missing out on wonderful opportunities. There are times when a person must face their fears, in or-der to experience something wonderful, or exhilarating. The short story “The Swimmer” written by S.J. Butler in 2011 is about the main character, who decides to swim in a lake close to the place where she lives and works. The problem is that she is hesitant in the beginning, with her being afraid that the current in the lake is too strong for her, and
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Since it is a hot day she is tempted to go swimming in the river, however, the thought of someone seeing her, makes her hesitant to go. It says the following, “No one will see. Why she minds this, she doesn’t know. Every day she looks out at the river, and longs to swim in it.” When she finally decides to go to the river, she begins to have doubts about going into the river. It says the following, “An unnamed fear stirs her thoughts, takes a shape. Is the current stronger than it looks? ... Might it be too strong for her even today?” The reader is told, that the protagonist once before got as far as to the riverbed, but in the end decided not to go and swim. However, this time she decides to face her fear and go into the water, as it says, “She doesn’t look at the water today. She doesn’t give it time.” Although, in the beginning the main character is afraid, and losses her footing, she eventually calms down and slowly starts enjoying being in the water. As times passes the protagonist seems to deem her work as less important and to go swim in the river as a higher priority. The main character becomes more interested in swimming in the river, where she in the beginning did it in order to cool down, but when she met a swan swimming in the river, too, she became obsessed with the idea of seeing that swan. It says the following, “She cannot stop thinking …show more content…
By letting fear control you, you might miss out something brilliant; therefore, you must face your fear in order to enjoy life to the fullest. Furthermore, the short story does not only talk about rational fear, such as the main character thinking the current is too strong. It also revolves around the fear of what other people might think of you. The main character is afraid of somebody seeing her swim in the river, and that is what keeps her hesitant to go down to the river. The purpose of the story is to tell the reader that it does not matter what other people think, and that facing your fears can lead to great
Since it is a hot day she is tempted to go swimming in the river, however, the thought of someone seeing her, makes her hesitant to go. It says the following, “No one will see. Why she minds this, she doesn’t know. Every day she looks out at the river, and longs to swim in it.” When she finally decides to go to the river, she begins to have doubts about going into the river. It says the following, “An unnamed fear stirs her thoughts, takes a shape. Is the current stronger than it looks? ... Might it be too strong for her even today?” The reader is told, that the protagonist once before got as far as to the riverbed, but in the end decided not to go and swim. However, this time she decides to face her fear and go into the water, as it says, “She doesn’t look at the water today. She doesn’t give it time.” Although, in the beginning the main character is afraid, and losses her footing, she eventually calms down and slowly starts enjoying being in the water. As times passes the protagonist seems to deem her work as less important and to go swim in the river as a higher priority. The main character becomes more interested in swimming in the river, where she in the beginning did it in order to cool down, but when she met a swan swimming in the river, too, she became obsessed with the idea of seeing that swan. It says the following, “She cannot stop thinking …show more content…
By letting fear control you, you might miss out something brilliant; therefore, you must face your fear in order to enjoy life to the fullest. Furthermore, the short story does not only talk about rational fear, such as the main character thinking the current is too strong. It also revolves around the fear of what other people might think of you. The main character is afraid of somebody seeing her swim in the river, and that is what keeps her hesitant to go down to the river. The purpose of the story is to tell the reader that it does not matter what other people think, and that facing your fears can lead to great