Fear, experienced by every being of the human species, is an utterly unavoidable emotion. The extent and range of fears varies from person to person, but the emotion is the same. One person's reaction of seeing a snake will be similar to another person's reaction of walking into a train station. The body is programmed to react in a distinct fashion once the stimulus is recognized.

"With all or almost all animals, even with birds, Terror causes the body to tremble. The skin becomes pale, sweat breaks out, and the hair bristles. The secretions of the alimentary canal and of the kidneys are increased, and they are involuntarily voided... The breathing is hurried. The heart beats quickly, wildly, and violently; but whether it pumps the blood more efficiently through the body may be doubted, for the surface seems bloodless and the strength of the muscles soon fails... The mental faculties are much disturbed. Utter prostration soon follows,

Hitchcock's Psycho is the story of secretary, Marion, who steals $40,000 from her employer and flees. She is forced, by inclement weather, to pull into the Bates Motel. The motel is deserted except for a handsome young man, Norman Bates, who runs the motel and takes care of his mother. They have dinner, but it is after dinner, in her room, that the celebrated shower scene takes place. Marion is brutally murdered. The remainder of the film is composed of Marion's searchers and investigators trying to discover her whereabouts. One of the investigators is killed. Norman is eventually arrested and his mother is found dead and decomposing in his house.

Similar to The Exorcist, the other thing that captivates the audience while viewing Psycho is the theme of unexplainable forces. The workings of science, to this day, are unexplainable. Laws have been developed to explain what science does, yet there is no plausible justification for the mysteries of science.

The above discussed aspects of horror films are all portrayed in two of the centuries best known thrillers: Psycho (1960), directed by Alfred Hitchcock, and The Exorcist (1973), by William Friedkin.

Simply, horror films make people feel good. It isn't unusual to see someone laughing, or feeling giddy after something scary has happened, whether it is real life or while watching a film. Such things make people feel "more alive." Roller coasters are another example of things that give a similar dose of small-time euphoria. Film or roller coaster, either one has an addictive characteristic. To feel the same pleasurable feeling, the next time the dose needs to be anted. In some cases, it becomes so extreme that people attempt to climb Mr. Everest, or jump from high-rise to high-rise on a motorcycle. The process is similar of a drug user; over time, more and more of the drug is needed to produce the same effect.

Why the body reacts this way, is a very technical subject that is not to be discussed over the duration of this essay. The brain is the most important organ of the human body; however, it is also the most complicated and the least understood. Although the physiological aspects of fear are being overlooked right now, the psychological points will be explored in depth.

The emotion of fear is a natural occurring emotion that is stimulated and then exhibited in many various forms. An acquired fear is a fear that is formed from a traumatic event, or from prolonged negative exposure. Because the entire human population does not have the same acquired fears, such fears aren't evoked purposely during film. However, the fears spoken about earlier, the fears humans are born with, are unavoidable, and quite exploitable.

The experiences of a person's past are extremely important constituents that affect a person's range, and intensity of fears. As it is explained in John Locke's most important work, An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, the mind is analogous to a blank slate, a tabula rasa, on which the senses make impressions. If a young boy is chased and stung by a nest of bees, this experience will be kept in his mind forever; the "slate" is marked. Every action and every experience is marked on the tabula rasa. The slate is marked, whether the person consciously remembers or not; and there is no eraser. This theory also explains the irrational phobias that many people experience. Often, the affected can't understand why he is afraid, but through therapy he comes to an understanding of some previous event that had a traumatizing affect.

Similar to that in The Exorcist, this aspect of evil has almost mystical qualities. How can the devil take over a young girl? How can a human man be so inclined to kill his mother as well as female visitors that he feels he does no wrong? Such events exude feelings of inhumanity. And inhumanity leads right back to the issue of control, or lack thereof.

Alfred Hitchcock receives an angry letter

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Approximate Word count = 2859
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)