Fear gets a bad rap(评价). It is certainly true that pure fear doesn’t feel good, but that is very important. Fear tells us to get out of it. Fear developed over millions of years to protect us from danger. So, yes, fear is a feel-bad emotion, but also, perhaps on the contrary, the engine in a whole range of pleasurable activities and behaviors--which inspire what we can call recreational(娱乐) fear.
Once you start looking for it, you’ll find recreational fear everywhere. From a very early age, humans love being jump-scared by caregivers and being hurtled(猛冲) into the air (and caught). They get older and take great pleasure in chase-play and hide-and-seek. They are drawn to scary stories about monsters, witches and ghosts. As they grow a little older, they get together for horror(恐怖)movie nights, stand patiently in line for roller coasters, and play horror video games. Indeed, most of us never quite lose our odd attraction to recreational fear.
One theory is that recreational fear is a form of play behavior, which is widespread in the animal kingdom and universal among humans. When an organism(生物) plays, it learns important skills and develops strategies for survival. Playfighting cats train their ability to hold their own in a hostile encounter(敌对遭遇), but with little risk and low cost, compared to the real thing. It’s the same with humans. When we join in recreational fear activities, from hide-and-seek to horror movie watching, we play with fear, challenge our limits, and learn about our own physical and mental responses to stress.
So, there is pleasure from these activities, but are there any other benefits? In several past and ongoing studies of the psychological(心里的) and social effects of engagement with recreational fear, we’ve seen it improve people’s ability to deal with stress and anxiety. For instance, one study found that people who watch many horror movies showed better psychological resilience(适应力) during the first COVID-19 lockdown than people who stay away from scary movies.
With research findings such as these in mind, we should maybe think twice about protecting kids and young people too eagerly from playful forms of fear. They’ll end up in the real world sooner or later, and they will be better equipped if they’ve at least pretended to be there before.
12. What’s recreational fear in the author’s eyes?
A.Another greedy emotion. |
B.A lifelong attraction to humans. |
C.A remote memory at an early age. |
D.A good inspiration for brave behaviors. |
13. How does play behavior benefit animals and humans?
A.By attracting them to activities with little risk. |
B.By providing guidance on how to play with fear. |
C.By offering chances to improve their ability to survive. |
D.By showing them importance of challenging their limits. |
14. Why does the author mention COVID-19 lockdown?
A.To show it is another example of recreational fear. |
B.To prove scary movies affect people. |
C.To indicate protective measures against it are necessary. |
D.To prove the experiences of recreational fear are beneficial. |
15. What does the author mean by saying “
we should maybe think twice” in the last paragraph?
A.We should allow kids to experience more recreational fear. |
B.We shouldn’t ignore kids’ needs for more time to play. |
C.We should stop kids from recreational fear activities. |
D.We should be careful in planning playful activities for kids. |