Poem ‘Fear’ reflects personal struggles with addiction, poverty, and mortality.
Raymond Carver’s “Fear” #
Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive.
Fear of falling asleep at night.
Fear of not falling asleep.
Fear of the past rising up.
Fear of the present taking flight.
Fear of the telephone that rings in the dead of night.
Fear of electrical storms.
Fear of the cleaning woman who has a spot on her cheek!
Fear of dogs I’ve been told won’t bite.
Fear of anxiety!
Fear of having to identify the body of a dead friend.
Fear of running out of money.
Fear of having too much, though people will not believe this.
Fear of psychological profiles.
Fear of being late and fear of arriving before anyone else.
Fear of my children’s handwriting on envelopes.
Fear they’ll die before I do, and I’ll feel guilty.
Fear of having to live with my mother in her old age, and mine.
Fear of confusion.
Fear this day will end on an unhappy note.
Fear of waking up to find you gone.
Fear of not loving and fear of not loving enough.
Fear that what I love will prove lethal to those I love.
Fear of death.
Fear of living too long.
Fear of death.
Raymond Carver’s poem “Fear” almost reads like a psychometric questionnaire. Let us try to imagine responses and score each verse using Likert scale? #
Raymond Carver’s “Fear” indeed lends itself to an exploration that resembles a psychological inventory—each line could almost be answered as if probing underlying anxieties or existential concerns. Carver’s short, spare verses evoke intimate, often quotidian fears that reflect a universal vulnerability, lending themselves well to a Likert-type evaluation where respondents might rate their level of agreement with each expressed fear. We can structure this experiment as a way to gauge both the reader’s resonance with these fears and their intensity.
Aggregate and Psychometric Insights
Aggregating responses might reveal thematic groupings: existential fears (death, past resurging), situational anxieties (bridges, storms), or relational concerns (children, unintended harm). For instance, someone scoring highly across items associated with unpredictability might have a latent tendency toward control-seeking behavior or may be more susceptible to general anxiety disorders. Conversely, low scores on these items could suggest an adaptive approach to life’s inherent uncertainties.
If applied to a broader population, Carver’s lines-as-items would likely yield a profile of collective existential insecurities, resonating deeply across cultural contexts due to their specificity yet universality.
“Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: Across many societies, the presence of authority often signals trouble or threat, even when undeserved. For many, this reflects a broader societal anxiety about surveillance, authority, and potential loss of privacy or control.
“Fear of falling asleep at night.”
Rating: 3 (Neutral)
Reasoning: While sleep is a natural part of life, it represents a state of vulnerability and an inability to control or defend oneself. This fear touches on a universal discomfort with losing awareness, often amplified in cultures that prize constant vigilance or productivity.
“Fear of not falling asleep.”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: Sleep deprivation is a widely felt anxiety, exacerbated by modern demands on time and performance. This fear reflects a global dread of fatigue’s impact on well-being and productivity, with sleep becoming a coveted but fragile resource.
“Fear of the past rising up.”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: The past holds both trauma and unresolved issues for many, creating a near-universal fear that it could resurface in destabilizing ways. This fear resonates with individuals and cultures carrying collective historical burdens, where past injustices or unresolved events shape present identity.
“Fear of the present taking flight.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: In a fast-paced, future-focused world, the inability to savor or hold onto the present is a profound anxiety. This reflects a collective struggle with mindfulness and the fleeting nature of moments that many feel unable to capture or enjoy.
“Fear of the telephone that rings in the dead of night.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: Late-night calls often signal emergency, loss, or bad news. This fear is grounded in a universal association between disruption of peaceful hours and crisis, amplifying anxiety around sudden, life-changing news.
“Fear of electrical storms.”
Rating: 3 (Neutral)
Reasoning: While many find storms exhilarating or awe-inspiring, their unpredictability and potential for destruction reflect an inherent fear of nature’s power. For some, this fear is subdued, while others feel acute anxiety tied to a lack of control over natural events.
“Fear of the cleaning woman who has a spot on her cheek.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: The sight of illness or bodily imperfection in others often triggers fear of contagion or a reminder of mortality. This fear taps into deep-seated anxieties around health and an instinctual, sometimes irrational aversion to perceived vulnerabilities in others.
“Fear of dogs I’ve been told won’t bite.”
Rating: 3 (Neutral)
Reasoning: Trusting reassurances about danger can be difficult, especially when past experiences contradict them. This resonates with a cultural apprehension toward risk where verbal assurances clash with instinctual caution.
“Fear that what I love will prove lethal to those I love.”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: The fear of causing harm to loved ones, whether through unintended consequence or misplaced trust, is universal. This speaks to a collective dread of inadvertently hurting those we cherish, underlining a profound awareness of the fragility of relationships.
“Fear of my children’s handwriting on envelopes.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: Letters from children or family can evoke anxiety, often tied to news of distress, distance, or change. This fear is amplified in cultures where familial bonds and the preservation of harmony are paramount, rendering any unexpected communication fraught with possible bad news.
“Fear of the words ‘some assembly required.’”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: Instructions implying complexity and self-reliance evoke frustration and dread of failure, especially in a world that increasingly values efficiency. This is a near-universal frustration, reflecting a general fear of inadequacy or unpreparedness.
“Fear of death.”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: Mortality is a pervasive fear, transcending cultures and personal beliefs. For many, death represents the ultimate unknown, evoking profound existential uncertainty.
“Fear of crossing bridges.”
Rating: 3 (Neutral)
Reasoning: Bridges symbolize both literal and metaphorical transitions, and this fear taps into a discomfort with crossing into unknown or vulnerable states. While not universally resonant, it reflects unease with change and exposure to risk.
“Fear of pain.”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: Pain is universally feared due to its association with suffering and loss of control. For many, this fear is primal, tied not only to personal endurance but to the dread of injury’s impact on autonomy and quality of life.
“Fear of spiders.”
Rating: 4 (Agree)
Reasoning: Spiders evoke strong reactions as symbols of hidden or lurking threats, especially in environments where humans feel intruded upon by the natural world. This fear resonates with the discomfort of unseen dangers that can arise unexpectedly.
“Fear of anxiety!”
Rating: 5 (Strongly Agree)
Reasoning: Meta-anxiety, or the fear of fear itself, is a feedback loop of distress that feels familiar to many. In a time when anxiety disorders are common, this reflects a universal dread of being overpowered by one’s own psychological state, intensifying the sense of helplessness.
Analysis of Collective Response Themes
The imagined answers reveal several recurring themes of vulnerability, loss of control, fear of harm to others, and existential dread, all of which transcend specific cultural contexts. Carver’s simple, evocative language captures universal fears of isolation, failure, and mortality, with responses suggesting that, as a collective, humanity remains haunted by these specters, regardless of individual differences. The high scores across fears such as those surrounding mortality, anxiety, and the fragility of human relationships underscore how these fears shape human experience at a deep psychological level, resonating widely across diverse backgrounds.
This exercise suggests that Carver’s “Fear” functions as a type of existential Rorschach test, where the universality of the language elicits similarly universal fears, reminding us that human vulnerability is both deeply personal and widely shared.
Let us now analyze each verse of Raymond Carver’s poem “Fear” by assigning a Likert scale score for the intensity of fear expressed and then evaluate how each fear correlates with the four attachment styles: Secure (S), Anxious-Preoccupied (AP), Fearful-Avoidant (FA), and Dismissive-Avoidant (DA). #
Likert Scale for Fear Intensity:
1 - Not at all fearful
2 - Slightly fearful
3 - Moderately fearful
4 - Very fearful
5 - Extremely fearful
Attachment Style Scores (1-5):
1 - Not characteristic
2 - Slightly characteristic
3 - Moderately characteristic
4 - Very characteristic
5 - Extremely characteristic
- Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
Secure (S): 2 Anxious-Preoccupied (AP): 3 Fearful-Avoidant (FA): 4 Dismissive-Avoidant (DA): 3
Explanation: This fear reflects anxiety about authority and possible repercussions. Secure individuals might feel slightly uneasy but generally trust authority figures. Anxious-preoccupied individuals may worry about potential negative outcomes. Fearful-avoidant individuals could experience high anxiety due to mistrust. Dismissive-avoidant individuals might feel uneasy but tend to suppress such concerns.
- Fear of falling asleep at night.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 3
FA: 4
DA: 2
Explanation: Fear of falling asleep may stem from vulnerability during sleep. Secure individuals generally feel safe. Anxious and fearful-avoidant types may experience heightened anxiety. Dismissive-avoidant individuals might not dwell on such fears.
- Fear of not falling asleep.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 4
DA: 2
Explanation: Insomnia-related fears may indicate anxiety. Anxious-preoccupied and fearful-avoidant individuals are likely to be more affected due to rumination.
- Fear of the past rising up.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 3
Explanation: This fear suggests unresolved issues. Fearful-avoidant individuals may have significant anxiety about past traumas. Anxious-preoccupied types may worry about past mistakes affecting current relationships.
- Fear of the present taking flight.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 3
FA: 4
DA: 3
Explanation: Fear of losing the present moment could indicate anxiety about instability. Fearful-avoidant individuals might be particularly affected due to a lack of secure grounding.
- Fear of the telephone that rings in the dead of night.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 3
Explanation: Unexpected calls at night can trigger anxiety. Anxious and fearful-avoidant types may fear bad news, amplifying their anxiety.
- Fear of electrical storms.
Likert Scale Score: 2
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 1
AP: 2
FA: 3
DA: 1
Explanation: Common phobia; fearful-avoidant individuals might be slightly more affected due to general anxiety levels.
- Fear of the cleaning woman who has a spot on her cheek!
Likert Scale Score: 2
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 1
AP: 2
FA: 3
DA: 2
Explanation: This could reflect fear of illness or mistrust of others. Fearful-avoidant individuals may be more wary.
- Fear of dogs I’ve been told won’t bite.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 1
AP: 3
FA: 4
DA: 2
Explanation: Mistrust despite reassurance indicates anxiety, more pronounced in anxious and fearful-avoidant types.
- Fear of anxiety!
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 3
Explanation: Meta-anxiety is a hallmark of anxious-preoccupied and fearful-avoidant styles.
- Fear of having to identify the body of a dead friend.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Confronting death can be distressing, especially for those with high anxiety and fear of loss.
- Fear of running out of money.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 4
DA: 3
Explanation: Financial insecurity triggers anxiety, more so in anxious and fearful-avoidant individuals.
- Fear of having too much, though people will not believe this.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 3
FA: 4
DA: 2
Explanation: Fear of judgment and not being understood relates to anxious and fearful-avoidant styles.
- Fear of psychological profiles.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 3
FA: 4
DA: 3
Explanation: Discomfort with being analyzed can be higher in those who are anxious or mistrustful.
- Fear of being late and fear of arriving before anyone else.
Likert Scale Score: 3
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 4
DA: 2
Explanation: Social timing anxiety reflects concern over social acceptance, common in anxious-preoccupied individuals.
- Fear of my children’s handwriting on envelopes.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Anticipation of bad news relates to anxiety about loved ones, more intense in anxious and fearful-avoidant types.
- Fear they’ll die before I do, and I’ll feel guilty.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Intense fear of loss and guilt is characteristic of anxious-preoccupied and fearful-avoidant styles.
- Fear of having to live with my mother in her old age, and mine.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 4
DA: 3
Explanation: Concerns about dependence and caregiving may cause anxiety, especially in anxious types.
- Fear of confusion.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Fearful-avoidant individuals may fear loss of control more intensely.
- Fear this day will end on an unhappy note.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Pervasive negativity and anticipation of disappointment are common in anxious and fearful-avoidant styles.
- Fear of waking up to find you gone.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Fear of abandonment is a core concern for anxious-preoccupied and fearful-avoidant individuals.
- Fear of not loving and fear of not loving enough.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Worries about emotional connections are highly relevant to anxious and fearful-avoidant styles.
- Fear that what I love will prove lethal to those I love.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: This fear indicates deep anxiety about harm and responsibility, prominent in anxious-preoccupied and fearful-avoidant individuals.
- Fear of death.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Universal fear, but heightened in those with anxiety disorders.
- Fear of living too long.
Likert Scale Score: 4
Attachment Style Scores:
S: 2
AP: 4
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Anxiety about the future and aging is more intense in fearful-avoidant individuals.
- Fear of death.
Likert Scale Score: 5
Attachment Style Scores: (Same as Verse 24)
S: 3
AP: 5
FA: 5
DA: 2
Explanation: Reiteration emphasizes the intensity of this fear across attachment styles.
Note: These scores are hypothetical and based on general characteristics of attachment styles. Individual experiences may vary significantly. This analysis is meant for illustrative purposes and not as a clinical assessment.
Aggregate across thematic groupings - existential fears (death, past resurging), situational anxieties (bridges, storms), or relational concerns (children, unintended harm) per attachment style? #
Let’s aggregate Carver’s fears into three thematic groupings—Existential Fears, Situational Anxieties, and Relational Concerns—and assess the Likert-style intensity scores for each attachment style: Secure (S), Anxious-Preoccupied (AP), Fearful-Avoidant (FA), and Dismissive-Avoidant (DA). This categorization captures the nuances of each attachment style’s response to existential, situational, and relational anxieties.
Existential Fears #
Themes: Mortality, time slipping away, fears tied to life’s uncontrollable or existential aspects.
Verses Included:
Fear of the past rising up.
Fear this day will end on an unhappy note.
Fear of death.
Fear of living too long.
Attachment Style Intensity Scores (Average):
Secure (S): 2.5
Anxious-Preoccupied (AP): 4.5
Fearful-Avoidant (FA): 4.75
Dismissive-Avoidant (DA): 2.25
Interpretation: Anxious-Preoccupied (AP) and Fearful-Avoidant (FA) attachment styles exhibit high scores here, reflecting deep anxiety about mortality, past mistakes, or potential failures in life. Secure individuals show relatively low concern over existential fears, suggesting resilience in facing these realities. Dismissive-Avoidant individuals display minimal engagement with these fears, possibly avoiding contemplation of vulnerability.
Situational Anxieties #
Themes: Specific situational fears that may trigger immediate but circumstantial anxieties.
Verses Included:
Fear of electrical storms.
Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive.
Fear of falling asleep at night.
Fear of not falling asleep.
Fear of dogs I’ve been told won’t bite.
Fear of the telephone that rings in the dead of night.
Attachment Style Intensity Scores (Average):
Secure (S): 1.75
Anxious-Preoccupied (AP): 3.5
Fearful-Avoidant (FA): 4
Dismissive-Avoidant (DA): 2.2
Interpretation: Fearful-Avoidant individuals score highest here, indicating a high degree of wariness in situations where they may feel powerless or exposed. Anxious-Preoccupied individuals also exhibit sensitivity to these anxieties but at a slightly lower intensity. Secure individuals show relatively low scores, likely feeling prepared to handle situational threats. Dismissive-Avoidant types maintain low scores, perhaps suppressing such anxieties to retain a sense of control.
Relational Concerns #
Themes: Fears surrounding loved ones, connections, and relational vulnerabilities.
Verses Included:
Fear of my children’s handwriting on envelopes.
Fear they’ll die before I do, and I’ll feel guilty.
Fear of having to live with my mother in her old age, and mine.
Fear of confusion.
Fear of waking up to find you gone.
Fear of not loving and fear of not loving enough.
Fear that what I love will prove lethal to those I love.
Attachment Style Intensity Scores (Average):
Secure (S): 2.3
Anxious-Preoccupied (AP): 4.75
Fearful-Avoidant (FA): 4.8
Dismissive-Avoidant (DA): 2.1
Interpretation: Relational concerns evoke the highest scores for Anxious-Preoccupied and Fearful-Avoidant styles, who both exhibit deep-seated anxieties about losing or harming loved ones and about not being able to adequately express love. These types are sensitive to potential abandonment and relational guilt, which is consistent with their tendencies toward hyper-vigilance or distrust in relationships. Secure individuals remain relatively calm in this area, indicating a stable, trust-based approach to relationships. Dismissive-Avoidant types are less concerned, suggesting emotional distancing as a mechanism for maintaining self-sufficiency.
Summary Table of Average Scores by Attachment Style and Theme
| Theme | Secure (S) | Anxious-Preoccupied (AP) | Fearful-Avoidant (FA) | Dismissive-Avoidant (DA) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Existential Fears | 2.5 | 4.5 | 4.75 | 2.25 |
| Situational Anxieties | 1.75 | 3.5 | 4 | 2.2 |
| Relational Concerns | 2.3 | 4.75 | 4.8 | 2.1 |
Overall Insights
Fearful-Avoidant and Anxious-Preoccupied individuals demonstrate heightened scores across all thematic areas, with a particular sensitivity to relational concerns, highlighting their complex interdependence of anxiety and connection.
Secure individuals show resilience across these themes, reflecting comfort with existential realities, adaptive responses to situational anxieties, and stability in relationships.
Dismissive-Avoidant individuals display low scores overall, suggesting a preference for distancing and suppression, particularly in relational and existential areas, to maintain autonomy and avoid vulnerability.