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One of the most significant traits of being human is convincing ourselves or others of what we want to believe. This trait generally occurs when a person has experienced death. You may also see this trait develop with fear, control, manipulation, and regret. With fear this trait usually develops in humans in their early stages of life. Some fears are acquired based on specific life experiences; others are more universal and innate. As a child, most children grow terrified of the dark. This usually happens because of a scary story the child heard or a creepy movie they watched. As children are introduced to these things they have not encountered, they tend to convince themselves that its real. Scientists have proved its not darkness itself thats frightening, Its the fear of what the darkness masks. The dark leaves us vulnerable and exposed, unable to spot any threats that may be lurking nearby. For much of human history, dark meant danger, and fearing it meant taking precautions to stay safe. The story Erl-King is a great example of this trait as a father tries to convince himself and his son in what he wants to believe. In this ballad, a father and son are journeying home on horseback at night. The son is growing ill with an invigorate fever and believes he can hear and see the Erl-King. The father tells him that the figure he sees is only the fog and the supposed voice he hears is the rustling of the leaves. The boy is convinced by his dad’s words unti

l the Erl-King appears again, threatening to forcibly take the child. When the child speaks his fears again, the father feeling his fears speeds up the ride only to return home with a deceased son. The importance of this ballad was to show the father pushing the childs fears away by replacing them with realistic examples. Knowing his child’s affliction was fatal, the father repeatedly reassured himself and the boy that he was safe and would be okay. In the Book of Job, God and Satan disagree on Job’s faithfulness towards God. To let Satan try and prove Job is not faithful for good reasons, God permits Satan allowing him to take anything Job contains away. With this power, Satan murders Jobs servants, animals, and children. Next, God allows Satan to physically harm Job by casting boils all over the body. After enduring great suffering, Job speaks out for his friends presence where he seeks comfort. After Job tells of the catastrophes occurring, he then explains he did nothing to deserve this. None of the three friends had confidence in Jobs words and insisted he was lying. Eliphaz’s reasoning for Job’s suffering was that Job was receiving punishment for being unjust. Next, Bildad goes on to say Job is suffering because of his children’s sins. Lastly, Zophars reasoning for Job’s suffering was he thinks Job sins for speaking to God as he did. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar chose not to believe Job based on their personal beliefs of how they perceive God.