Earle Birney's short poem "Bushed" conveys many messages about how isolation, fear, imagination, and insanity feed on each other. For example: one does not see a fear of the night in young children when they are in their parents' company, but as soon as they are left alone, in solitude, the shadows grow dangerous and young children become afraid. Part of this phobia may be attributed to a fear of being alone and a fear of being defenseless. Isolation heightens one's sensitivity to possible dangers resulting in fear. As Earle Birney's short poem "Bushed" proves, isolation instills fear in an individual.

Isolation causes an individual to develop a fear of what cannot be controlled. Examples seen in "Bushed" include his development of a fear of death and a fear of nature's force. His fear of death is shown in the quote, "When he tried his eyes on the...