Fear Thesaurus Entry: Discrimination

Debilitating fears are a problem for everyone, an unfortunate part of the human experience. Whether they’re a result of learned behavior as a child, are related to a mental health condition, or stem from a past wounding event, these fears influence a character’s behaviors, habits, beliefs, and personality traits. The compulsion to avoid what they fear will drive characters away from certain people, events, and situations and hold them back in life. 

In your story, this primary fear (or group of fears) will constantly challenge the goal the character is pursuing, tempting them to retreat, settle, and give up on what they want most. Because this fear must be addressed for them to achieve success, balance, and fulfillment, it plays a pivotal part in both character arc and the overall story.

This thesaurus explores the various fears that might be plaguing your character. Use it to understand and utilize fears to fully develop your characters and steer them through their story arc. Please note that this isn’t a self-diagnosis tool. Fears are common in the real world, and while we may at times share similar tendencies as characters, the entry below is for fiction writing purposes only.

Fear will hold your character back in the story and affect how they see themselves and the world. Below is a sample of the entry found in our Fear Thesaurus at One Stop for Writers. To access the full entry and the full range of topics in this powerful show-don’t-tell THESAURUS database, start a free trial.

Fear of Discrimination

Notes
Discrimination doesn’t have to be big or obvious to hurt; even one thoughtless word or exclusive action sting. The fear of being mistreated and maligned is one of degrees, but becomes debilitating for characters when, in an effort to avoid discrimination at all costs, they hide or change who they are, thereby limiting themselves and living short of their full potential.

What It May Look Like
The character associating mainly with people like them (same race, gender, class, etc.)
Avoiding certain neighborhoods or places
Keeping silent when witnessing discrimination to avoid being targeted also
…

Common Internal Struggles
Doubting people’s motives; wondering if they’re being discriminatory when they may not be
The character having prejudicial thoughts about people who have mistreated them
Feeling misunderstood 
…

Flaws That May Emerge
Abrasive, Antisocial, Apathetic, Callous, Cynical, Disloyal, Hypocritical, Inhibited, Insecure, Know-It-All, Martyr, Nervous, Oversensitive, Perfectionist, Prejudiced, Resentful, Self-destructive, Timid, Uncommunicative

Hindrances and Disruptions to the Character’s Life
Struggling with low self-esteem
Not making amends with people who have mistreated them
Being filled with anger
…

Scenarios That Might Awaken This Fear
Witnessing discrimination against someone else
Returning to a place where the character experienced discrimination (a school, family, church, etc.)
Speaking out against mistreatment and not being believed
…

Other Fear Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Fear is a Crucial Piece of Your Character’s Arc

A character’s fear is defining, determining who they are at the start of your story and what they’ll have to overcome to succeed in the end. Don’t overlook or underestimate this vital piece of the character’s arc. Unearth their greatest fear at One Stop for Writers.

The Fear Thesaurus is part of the largest, fiction-specific description database available.
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