If I had one word to characterize the human condition I would choose "fear". Much like every other living organism on this planet we have been tamed by the limitations of our environment. Restrictions that define do's and don't's. And so we have invented illusions to get around this conundrum.
Elaborate creations myths became a necessity to explain our origins. Even after the dawn of science many of us refuse to admit that they are the outcome of a primordial chemical soup that is no different than the filth we step into after a rainy day. The invention of souls assured us that our existence is valued and deserves something better than to rot with the worms in the ground.
On a more superficial level, we masquerade ourselves with make-up so we can make an impression — perhaps to meet the person of our dreams. Later on we get disappointed if they end up falling in love with the idea of beauty and appearance instead of "who we really are". Our vocabularies are filled with words that remove the harshness of reality and rather romanticize our existence. This is how fucking becomes "love" in our heads. A default natural act that releases specific chemicals has fooled us enough to deny the process and rather attribute it to something higher — in hope of course that will also elevate our significance and place in the cosmos.
Throughout history we have made sure to distinguish ourselves from other animals. We are afraid of the idea of dying and be gone forever. We can envision our own demise and that scares the shit out of us. Yet, no matter how many messiahs we invent, no matter how many rituals and holy books we write, we still shit from the same hole as all of the beings.
The only antidote against reality is mutual brainwashing. If enough of us believe that there is something different other than the fucked up reality then the human brain can fool itself believing it is true. This is how people end up feeling so good when they are in church. This is why people feel safe and comfortable at home. This is how and why virtual reality, games and being glued in front of a screen for hours works. Our brains have been trained to defy reality at all costs.
We have been training our illusions in order to accommodate the harshness of reality since the dawn of human history. Slaves of the past told their own stories of hope and salvation. Terminally ill people assured themselves that it was a test and that something better is awaiting. Our brains are amazing storytelling machines and this is why our technologies are all focused towards that spectrum. Our future will become more and more made-up. Our brains will become devices that entertain themselves.
The story of the human being has always being a tragic one. We have been caught by surprise in evolution's elaborate scheme. Our brain cannot handle itself and thus it is lost in its stories. On a daily basis we are driven by hope and false promises. What would become if the 5-8 wage slave would realize that this is going to be their entire life? What would happen if a family man realizes that his offspring is no different than his neighbour's? What if a religious person realizes that he has been taught about a specific version of a supreme being because they were born in a particular culture and not another?
Our species would have never made it this far. The fear of reality if what allowed us to create functional societies. Fear of reality helped us construct ethical codes so we wouldn't boutcher each other senselessly but only if we had good excuse. Fear of reality allowed us to see our own tribe from a better perspective so that we could survive the threat from others. Without fearing reality there would be no meaning for our existence — for meaning prerequisites fear.