Normally heroes are shown to be fearless, but in Frieren, they are shown to be able to overcome fear.
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (Sousou no Frieren) is essentially about heroes, old ones who had defeated the Demon King and the new ones who travel with Frieren. In actuality it is about much more than that, but a story about heroes has to tackle fear at some point. And Frieren: Beyond Journey's End does tackle it through multiple heroes: Eisen, who defeated Demon King together with Frieren decades ago, and Stark and Fern, the new heroes.
All of them are shown to fear but to also overcome that fear. After all, being brave and courageous is not about never feeling fear; it is about being stronger than that fear.
However, Eisen introduces another perspective on fear by pointing out that fear is precisely what had kept him alive for so long.
The Surprising Power of Fear in Survival
This perspective is powerful. It highlights the natural purpose of fear, which, indeed, is what keeps a person alive. Eisen is not even the best example of that, even though he is shown to go into battles with his arms shaking, which is why Frieren gets him to admit that he is scared and that it is not a bad thing. The best example of fear letting one survive in the series so far is the dragon that lived near the village Stark chose to live in and protect.
When Stark confesses to being a bit of a fraud and afraid of the dragon, the question of why the dragon left the village remains. However, Frieren soon figures it out: the dragon is not a foolish creature, and when it sees a powerful opponent, it retreats.
When the dragon saw Stark, it knew that it was up against a powerful human, so it left the village be. And throughout the years that Stark wondered how he survived and why the dragon did not attack the village again, the dragon was probably wondering why Stark never came after it.
Fear is normal, and while it can cause trouble, especially for a hero, it can also perform its natural function of protecting the person who is experiencing it.
The dragon got itself a couple years of life just by staying away from Stark, knowing that the human would end it quickly, which Stark eventually did. And Eisen's words also make heroes who experience fear be more open about it and less ashamed. Eisen's words are, indeed, very powerful.
Normally heroes are shown to be fearless, but in Frieren, they are shown to be able to overcome fear.
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (Sousou no Frieren) is essentially about heroes, old ones who had defeated the Demon King and the new ones who travel with Frieren. In actuality it is about much more than that, but a story about heroes has to tackle fear at some point. And Frieren: Beyond Journey's End does tackle it through multiple heroes: Eisen, who defeated Demon King together with Frieren decades ago, and Stark and Fern, the new heroes.
All of them are shown to fear but to also overcome that fear. After all, being brave and courageous is not about never feeling fear; it is about being stronger than that fear.
However, Eisen introduces another perspective on fear by pointing out that fear is precisely what had kept him alive for so long.
The Surprising Power of Fear in Survival
This perspective is powerful. It highlights the natural purpose of fear, which, indeed, is what keeps a person alive. Eisen is not even the best example of that, even though he is shown to go into battles with his arms shaking, which is why Frieren gets him to admit that he is scared and that it is not a bad thing. The best example of fear letting one survive in the series so far is the dragon that lived near the village Stark chose to live in and protect.
When Stark confesses to being a bit of a fraud and afraid of the dragon, the question of why the dragon left the village remains. However, Frieren soon figures it out: the dragon is not a foolish creature, and when it sees a powerful opponent, it retreats.
When the dragon saw Stark, it knew that it was up against a powerful human, so it left the village be. And throughout the years that Stark wondered how he survived and why the dragon did not attack the village again, the dragon was probably wondering why Stark never came after it.
Fear is normal, and while it can cause trouble, especially for a hero, it can also perform its natural function of protecting the person who is experiencing it.
The dragon got itself a couple years of life just by staying away from Stark, knowing that the human would end it quickly, which Stark eventually did. And Eisen's words also make heroes who experience fear be more open about it and less ashamed. Eisen's words are, indeed, very powerful.
