The poem My Fear written by Lawrence Raab, is an inward reflection of our fears and nightmares. Raab uses personification to portray fear as a person. Mr. Fear, as he is referred to in the poem, takes specific notes on what terrifies us during our daily lives, and uses them against us in our sleeping hours. The poem accurately shows how a fear can inhibit our lives by seeing them as something big and scary that have the power to scare us at the pull of an item from a bag, even if they are relatively harmless in nature. Raab’s use of imagery in the poem is superb. The personification of fear that we see daily, pulling today’s scare from his brown sack, is a great device that the audience can relate to, because we mostly picture our fears…show more content… Fear, because it is unclear if he enjoys his job, or if he is remorseful for terrorizing us, yet must do it regardless.
In knowing that fear is just a part of life, or that Mr. Fear is just doing his job, we ask for minimal nightmares, that we can effectively defend ourselves from. Specifically, “Make it small, please. Let it fit in my pocket, let it fall through the hole in my pocket. Fear, let me have a small brown bat and a purse of crickets like the ones I heard singing last night out there in the stubbly field before I slept, and met you” (14-24). The narrator is pleading for a small nightmare that he can use the good thoughts to safeguard himself from the bad ones.
Nightmares truly bring our fears to life, our vivid dreams terrify as we cannot distinguish the terror from reality. Raab’s use of imagery brings the fears to life in the same way, in a way that the reader can connect with. It also sets the scene and tone of the poem, contrasting happiness with sorrow. The poem begins with Mr. Fear extending his list of fears and terrorizing those about to drift off with their own imagination. Yet in the poem, the perspective changes with the defence of the good thoughts. The crickets chirping bring peace to the narrator and help fight off the evil