Fear In The Short Story Fear By Terry Trueman

Home is where people get comfort, but that’s not the case for Aphonso or just “Zo”. He lives in an unsafe community where there are burglars. When the burglars are at his front doorstep he is terrified. He doesn’t know what to do, but eventually he stands up for himself and fights his fear. In the short story “Fear” by Terry Trueman, Zo, the protagonist, is completely terrified in his house, alone, but he has a spark of confidence to stand up for himself and take action.
To begin, Zo is careful and smart when there are burglars outside of his house. Zo does not want the burglars to know he is at home. In the text it states, that Zo is silent when moving down the hall, being smart about where he stepped so the burglars wouldn’t know that he is home. “Zo moves silently down the hall, avoiding spots where he knows the floor creaks.” Zo is also very clever when he went and grabbed his aluminum baseball bat because if the burglars did some in, he had some way to protect himself. “...he tiptoes over to the hall closet where his aluminum baseball bat leans against the wall just inside the door. This reveals that Zo

‘They care about guys like you!’ he snaps back. ‘I let you in here, let you steal our stuff while I sit here like a little baby, hell, I might as well be dead anyways. But if I call the cops, get them after you—you'll be the ones who are scared! If you think I'm lying, count ten seconds and listen for sirens—I'm gonna call 911 right now!’”This illustrates that Zo would not allow the burglars to stop him. He fought back with the burglars. Zo did not allow the burglars to win and rob his house even when he is terrified at first. He had the spark of bravery in him to fight the burglars back with his words. Hence, Zo is brave by fighting off the burglars and getting them to go