For something we have relatively little of in the first place, control is something many of us dread losing. Maybe that initial scarcity of it is the root of the degree of our fear. After all, you'd be more afraid of spilling a cup of water if it was all the water you had, than if you could easily draw more from a well. One character I focus on this week, Truman Burbank from The Truman Show, spends most of his life unaware of being controlled and manipulated by others. Another, Bodie Broadus from The Wire, is painfully aware of how little control he has, but futilely dreams of gaining more.

For episode sources, scripts and more, visit healthyfears.com.

For my publication credits, visit JohnnyCompton.com

The opening theme for Healthy Fears: “Dark Game Background Loop” by Claudiu D. Moga, licensed through Envato.

The closing theme for Healthy Fears: “Hitchcock Thriller” by JBlanks, licensed through Envato.

Other music for this episode: "Alien Autopsy" by Robert Ashbridge, licensed through Shutterstock.

Sources: 

• Cave, Stephen. “There's No Such Thing as Free Will.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 3 Jan. 2022, https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/06/theres-no-such-thing-as-free-will/480750/. 

• Mark, Griffiths D. “The Truman Show Delusion.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 10 Aug. 2016, https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/in-excess/201608/the-truman-show-delusion. 

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