Question: Why do the toys not want people to know they're alive?
Trainman
8th Dec 2018
Toy Story (1995)
Answer: They're not necessarily afraid, it's just part of being a toy. Woody even mentions "breaking rules" when they move in front of Sid. They may just accept that it's something they're not supposed to do.
But they did reveal themselves to animals like Scud and Buster though.
How are dogs going to tell anyone? Besides, they don't care since they are animals.
Answer: I think it's safe to assume that, unless a toy makes a conscious decision to reveal their true nature, they automatically default to inanimate toy mode. Otherwise, Buzz would have easily revealed himself within the first hour after Andy got him. With that in mind, since it's apparently something they have to work to do, I would propose that it's not that they have a reason not to want anyone to know their true nature, but that they have to have a real reason to reveal it in order to do so, like Woody had to save Buzz.
But Buzz could just as easily make the conscious decision to move whilst Andy was there, he thought he was the real Buzz lightyear after all, and not a toy. Then again, in the plot it's kinda stupid Buzz doesn't think he's a toy even though Andy plays with him. But if Woody can move whilst a human is in the room, then any toy can do that. Therefore, it's a decision not to do so. Buzz most likely got asked by the other toys to play the part and he obliged since he needed them till his ship was fixed, but still.
I said it appears they have to make a conscious decision to reveal their nature. Buzz not knowing his true nature makes that kind of impossible for him so he reverts to toy mode when Andy's around. Probably without even being aware of it.
That's a possibility. But then the question arises how the other toys became self-aware and why they are self-aware in the first place. It appears this is the first time they meet a toy that doesn't know he's a toy. On one side you have toys that are aware they are a toy and want to play by its rules and on the other hand you havee toys that don't believe they are one but magically never reveal their sentience.
Who said this was the first time this has happened? For all we know, Woody could've thought he was a real cowboy before realizing he's a toy. We just don't see his or any of the other toys' backstories.
Yet Buzz could also believe he's on a secret mission from Star Command, hence why he freezes. He didn't even believe he was a real toy at this point. Not a plot hole and not confusing. Also, toys can somehow "sense" when people are nearby and only move if either A), there's no people around or B), nobody's looking. Notice how all the toys go back to "toy form" any time this happens? They're very careful, not stupid.
Also a possibility, sure. Just to be clear; I'm not against the idea and thought process behind the plot. It's just a animated movie for kids. I just like to argue.
Answer: I questioned this to myself; even at Pizza Planet, before Buzz learns he's a toy, he gets picked up by Sid in the claw machine and turns back into an inanimate object which means by some sort of unconscious decision he becomes a toy again.
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Answer: Because they are supposed to play out the part of a toy, that's their purpose. They want to be there for a child as a toy.
lionhead
Ok, but what are they afraid might happen if people knew they were alive?
I don't really know how you want to look at this but if you look at it realistically I think it's quite obvious what they are afraid of. If it became publicly know that every toy ever made, including all teddy bears, remotely controlled cars and even etch-a-sketches are sentient, then you could probably expect a reaction comparable to that of Sid. Fear and panic.
lionhead
Also, wouldn't toys risk being experimented on, imprisoned, or destroyed if they revealed to humans that they were alive?
Exactly what happened to Sid. He found out and freaked out.