Fearful Madness

“Which is the most universal human characteristic: fear, or laziness?” (Waking Life)

I think that the universal human characteristic is definatley fear because I think it is easier to be proactive than it is to be brave. And even when someone is brave it is not that they are not afraid. Rather that they are simply not immobilized by something extremely traumatic. Everyone in the world is afraid of something. It could be something as simple as the boogie man or something as big as death itself. Everyone experiences fear at least once in their life. Fear is instinctual. It is used to help us protect ourselves by causing us to fight or flee. I agree with quotation.

"Sanity is a madness put to good uses; waking life is a dream controlled." (Santayana)

I think that the quotation means that life is similar to a dream but simply more controlled. I however would counter that it is the opposite. That a dream is simply a more controlled version of life itself. In life your choices are limited, people have an influence on what you can and cannot do. If Life is the only sanity I would rather be insane, besides who doesn't want whatever they can imagine. And life isn't always put to good use. Occasionally you get serial killers. Unless you have some pretty nasty nightmares I think the dream world is a bit more hospitable. In addition I think that some dreams have been pretty influencial on my life. Simply unconscious thought is good for the soul.