legovanan
I just had a thought, and I'm feeling thoughtful today so here we go.
You know how there's the expression that people fear the unknown, like in Beauty and Beast, when Gaston's leading the villagers to attack the castle, they're singing, "We don't like what we don't understand and this monster is..."
Obviously there's reasoning about that. It's more comfortable, more secure. It's the same. You know what's going to happen. Nothing exhilirating, yet nothing unpredictable and dangerous. If you're suffering, at least the pain is familiar.

But then...
There's the whole theory that people are attracted to the mysterious, the unknown. Like the Phantom of the Opera, women are somehow attracted to him (never mind Gerry Butler), because of the mystery and enigma he holds. How girls always like the bad boys, or at least the dark, handsome, mysterious stranger. Tolkien plays around with it too, with the character of Feanaro. None of us can really pinpoint what exactly it is we love about him. Well, the problematic, obsessed few of us that spend our days analyzing his character and writing stories about him and Nerdanel. He should be feared. He should be hated. He burns everyone he comes in touch with, with his all-consuming flame. He leaves you nothing for yourself, but as one person, who I think has captured Feanaro with these words perfectly, wrote in their story:

"It would burn those who watch it into destruction, yet they would yearn to be destroyed, only to once have been so bright."

So which is it? Do we fear what we don't know, or are we drawn to it, wanting to unravel the mystery, yet never doing so? Yet what would be the fun of a solved mystery? The feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction soon wears away, and you seek new mysteries and enigmas to poke and prod at. Maybe Camron is right once in a while. Enigma isn't a bad thing all the time; just infuriating for the one trying to solve it.