Fear is a primal response, anchored deep within our nervous systems, whose purpose is to safeguard our survival. But that which scares us and the extent to which we fear differs from age to age and society to society. Though scholars have studied the history of fear in the West and in other cultures for some time now, the question remains whether or not we have fewer reasons to be fearful today than in the past. Might we have become more fearful with less reason? Is fear the dominant feeling of our society? How is it put to use politically? Through what means is it disseminated? To what extent can fear also be pleasurable?
 
Concept: Rüdiger Zill, Potsdam
Participants: Jan Assmann, Heidelberg; Borwin Bandelow, Göttingen; Joanna Bourke, London; Elisabeth Bronfen, Zürich; Christa Ebert, Frankfurt/Oder; Konstanty Gebert, Warsaw; Eva Horn, Basel; Heinz Dieter Kittsteiner, Frankfurt/Oder; David Konstan, Providence/RI; Joachim Radkau, Bielefeld; Eviatar Zerubavel, New Brunswick/NJ; Corey Robin, New York
 
The event will be partly held in English