Social anxiety in "Barn Burning" by William Faulkner, "The Man Who Was Almost a Man" by Richard Wright and, "A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty.

According to the Social Anxiety Network, "Social anxiety is a fear of social situations and the interaction with other people." Put another way, social anxiety is the fear and anxiety of being judged and evaluated negatively by other people, leading to feelings of inadequacy, embarrassment, humiliation, and depression. People with social anxiety may know that their anxiety is irrational and does not make "head" sense. Nevertheless, "knowing" something is not the same thing as "believing" …

…It can come from life situations and the fear of not making any accomplishments. Another possibility is that social anxiety is the result of how people feel about themselves or how people believe they are perceived by others. The short stories: "Barn Burning" by William Faulkner, "The Man Who Was Almost A Man" by Richard Wright and, "A Worn Path by Eudora Welty, all use social anxiety as a key factor for the main character.