Why the unreasonable fear of snakes?
By JJ
@JolietJake (50190)
May 25, 2016 6:48am CST
I seriously don't get it. 
I'm not putting anyone down over it, but I've always thought it a bit strange that even some big macho he-man types can turn into crying blubbering jelly-kneed weaklings at the sight of a snake.
Is it because some are poisonous and can kill you?
The fact is, the majority of snakes are not venomous, and you are more likely to be killed by a stranger you bump into on the street than by a snake.
Is it the depiction of Satan as a snake (serpent) in the Bible?
Once again, man is inherently much more evil than a snake could ever be. And let's not forget...Satan was an Angel...are you scared of them?
Years ago, I had a grass snake I kept for a bit as a pet...about 3 feet long, maybe as big around as my ring finger. Perfectly harmless, it wouldn't even act like it was going to bite anyone.
A friend I had that is about 6'8" and weighs about 250 came over with his 4 year old son one day. Nick (his son) was really interested in the snake and wanted to hold it, so I got it out of the terrarium. Mike (his Dad) freaked out and ran into the kitchen because he was afraid Nick would bring it to him. 
But this seems to be normal...the majority of people I meet are simply terrified of snakes, even if they've never seen one in real life.
What is it about snakes that bothers people so much?
(The photo is my favorite one I took yesterday while spending an hour photographing a couple snakes out near a small creek here)
I'm not putting anyone down over it, but I've always thought it a bit strange that even some big macho he-man types can turn into crying blubbering jelly-kneed weaklings at the sight of a snake.
Is it because some are poisonous and can kill you?
The fact is, the majority of snakes are not venomous, and you are more likely to be killed by a stranger you bump into on the street than by a snake.
Is it the depiction of Satan as a snake (serpent) in the Bible?
Once again, man is inherently much more evil than a snake could ever be. And let's not forget...Satan was an Angel...are you scared of them?
Years ago, I had a grass snake I kept for a bit as a pet...about 3 feet long, maybe as big around as my ring finger. Perfectly harmless, it wouldn't even act like it was going to bite anyone.
A friend I had that is about 6'8" and weighs about 250 came over with his 4 year old son one day. Nick (his son) was really interested in the snake and wanted to hold it, so I got it out of the terrarium. Mike (his Dad) freaked out and ran into the kitchen because he was afraid Nick would bring it to him.
But this seems to be normal...the majority of people I meet are simply terrified of snakes, even if they've never seen one in real life.
What is it about snakes that bothers people so much?
(The photo is my favorite one I took yesterday while spending an hour photographing a couple snakes out near a small creek here)27 people like this
32 responses
@owlwings (43902)
• Cambridge, England
25 May 16
I think the fear of snakes is very deep-rooted and comes from long before our human ancestry. Cats do not like snakes and one way of keeping cats out of your garden is to put a piece of hosepipe on the lawn. Have you seen those videos of people putting cucumbers next to cats while they are eating? That shows just how scared cats are of anything which looks like a snake! Many other animals beside cats are spooked at the sight of a snake or something that looks like one, so I think that the story of Satan as a talking serpent (which, by the way, is not in the Bible at all) is much older than humanity and that Dr. Freud (or was it Jung) had it all wrong when he said that snakes were symbolic of something else!
People's fear of spiders and disgust at slugs and snails is really just as illogical as their fear of snakes.
7 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50970)
• Holiday, Florida
25 May 16
@JolietJake some snakes will swell your parts if they bite and make you quite sick. my cousin was bitten by a black snake which is what they say is one of the good snakes, usually not poisonous enough to kill but her whole face swelled and it was pretty painful.
2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
I had no problem with spiders until I was actually bitten by one and watched my hand and fingers swell up so much I was seriously afraid it would break the skin. Since that time, I can't stand to have them around me, even though I know the chances of being bitten by another recluse are fairly slim, so point taken.
Except it doesn't explain why people that have never even seen a real live one would be so extremely phobic of them...my fear of spiders does have a root cause to it.
7 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
Men can kill you. Women too. Planes falling out of the sky. So yes, it is rather unrational, especially since the majority of them can't harm you.
2 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50970)
• Holiday, Florida
25 May 16
@JolietJake I myself am also scared of humans that kill
3 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50970)
• Holiday, Florida
25 May 16
@JolietJake and planes, cars, etc.
2 people like this
@thesids (22180)
• Bhubaneswar, India
25 May 16
I do not fear snakes but somehow, I find them repulsive (I know this is the wrong word, but I have no other to describe, maybe I write about that one incident which changed all things for clarity) -
Years ago, I held a snake in my hand and it was that feeling of the snake in my hand that made me feel yucky. And before I dropped it off, it had bit me.
Now, if repulsive was the right word, all good. If not, can anyone reading this help me with the right word.
2 people like this
@much2say (57649)
• Los Angeles, California
25 May 16
This is not the same thing, but I know many moms in my son's class had described silkworms as "disgusting". They thought the slithering, crawling worms were "disgusting" and "yucky" - and demanded their children to wash their hands every time they touched one.
Not too long ago one mom came up to me as we were looking at the tray of silkworms . . . she whispered "Aren't they disgusting?!" . . . and I replied "Well, we actually have about 30 of them on our kitchen counter . . . " . . . I enjoyed seeing her reaction of 
! 
! 
@Daljinder (23235)
• Bangalore, India
25 May 16
There is a common misconception that India is a land of snake charmer. 
lol I have seen snakes many times. When I was really little, there used to be a snake charmer who would come in our neighborhood. He used to have two full grown snakes with which he would entertain people. Those snakes weren't poisonous. We got to touch them too. Snakes are very common to see in the hometown of my father. It's a country side with large fields of corn. sugarcane, rice, etc. Haven't had any close encounter with those snakes.
I can't say I am scared but can't say I am fine with them too. I just don't like their slimy bodies. Just as well I don't like fish's slimy and slippery bodies.
lol I have seen snakes many times. When I was really little, there used to be a snake charmer who would come in our neighborhood. He used to have two full grown snakes with which he would entertain people. Those snakes weren't poisonous. We got to touch them too. Snakes are very common to see in the hometown of my father. It's a country side with large fields of corn. sugarcane, rice, etc. Haven't had any close encounter with those snakes.
I can't say I am scared but can't say I am fine with them too. I just don't like their slimy bodies. Just as well I don't like fish's slimy and slippery bodies.2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
But snakes are not 'slimy', they have dry scaly skin.
3 people like this
@TheHorse (227733)
• Walnut Creek, California
4 Jun 16
@JolietJake I'm less scared of snakes than some, but I wouldn't consider them snuggly.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109845)
• Los Angeles, California
25 May 16
That is a really cool shot. I guess because snakes are associated with evil and poison and just creep people out the way they slither along. It's the same with spiders. They creep people out and it's only black widows you really have to fear.
3 people like this
@slayer08 (2377)
• Philippines
25 May 16
I for one is terrified of snakes of all kinds.. As a child, and growing up a catholic, they've always been associated with Satan. Also, they look mean and my skin would crawl when I feel or see anything scaley I don't know why.. I guess, it's because I don't understand snakes that well and never really tried getting to know these creatures.
2 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50970)
• Holiday, Florida
25 May 16
@JolietJake I am. there are dark angels just as there are good witches.
2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
But the association with Satan...he was a fallen angel...are you afraid of angels?
4 people like this
@slayer08 (2377)
• Philippines
25 May 16
@JolietJake well, I've been brainwashed for a very long time so it's kind of difficult to shake off.. A yes and a njo would be my answer.. Yes because I can't get it off my system, no becuase it's ridiculous.. And I feel more ridiculous now that I've realized that..
2 people like this
@bunnybon7 (50970)
• Holiday, Florida
25 May 16
yes terrified of any snakes. they just look gross and slimey even though I am told they are warm, etc. women have a right to be grossed out by a snake. after all that's what brought her down to a lot of pain and hated by humanity. 
2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
I've been bitten countless times over the years and it hasn't done anything to me. Very few specie are poisonous.
1 person likes this
@Lolaze (5092)
• St. Louis, Missouri
25 May 16
I think it goes back to the days of Adam and Eve and the devil impersonating the snake. Snakes are seen as evil and a representation of the devil in our subconscious mind. On a less psychological idea - also because most people assume any snake they see is venomous.
I don't mind them, I went on a special zoo/aquarium tour a couple months ago and was holding quite a few at one time.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (356254)
• Rockingham, Australia
25 May 16
I have a healthy respect for snakes but have killed venomous ones that got too near the house. But I wouldn't go charging after one. What worries me is that they can turn and move so quickly you never know which way they're going next. The few I've killed have been sunning themselves or otherwise inert-ish. Being afraid of mice seems a much more illogical fear to me.
2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
It seems most people can't give a concrete reason for it.
3 people like this
@annaroselock (805)
• United Kingdom
25 May 16
Some people's fears can't always be explained 
2 people like this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
25 May 16
True, even they themselves can't explain them sometimes
1 person likes this
@Curlybobby (370)
•
26 May 16
I'm personally terrified of snakes because they look slithery and slimy and scary to me. A lot of people would agree that there is something very unappealing and repulsive about how snakes look. Well that's what I feel in any case. And added to that is the conditioning from my childhood that snakes are dangerous creatures. I hear everything you say about how snakes are nice animals and I know that they don't really interfere but it's just difficult to get those deep seated fears out of my head!
1 person likes this
@sabashekh (1218)
• Bhopal, India
26 May 16
Even I have snake fear .. BTW great photo
1 person likes this
@JolietJake (50190)
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26 May 16
@sabashekh I don't fear them but I do respect them and know that you need to be cautious as to what kind of snake you are photographing/handling.
1 person likes this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
26 May 16
Thanks.
I was rather pleased with it, a pair of banded water snakes were just idly swimming about while I was sitting there photographing them, they often passed within a foot of me as they were hunting.
I was rather pleased with it, a pair of banded water snakes were just idly swimming about while I was sitting there photographing them, they often passed within a foot of me as they were hunting.1 person likes this
@sabashekh (1218)
• Bhopal, India
26 May 16
@JolietJake oh .. So it seems you hardly fear snake .. I hardly had direct view of snake .. I once saw kobra .. Scary it was ;)
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45942)
• United States
26 May 16
My brothers often chased me with snakes. Freaked me out. Truthfully I don't know what spurs the fear. I can't stand the sight of mice either.
1 person likes this
@1creekgirl (43743)
• United States
26 May 16
If I were bitten by a snake, it really wouldn't matter if it was poisonous or not. The fright alone would kill me.
1 person likes this
@JolietJake (50190)
•
26 May 16
I had a bullsnake (for a very short time) that was probably the most evil-tempered thing I've ever seen. Got bit a couple times and it hurt like crazy...and their teeth curve backwards into their jaws to help hold prey...basically had to pry him off my arm. It sucked.
1 person likes this
@thisworldthough (41)
•
25 May 16
I am not at all scared of snakes and I'm a woman who has owned a snake :) he was a cute amel corn called fluffy he escaped into the house and hasn't been seen since that was almost a year ago
1 person likes this
