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Love has several different meanings in the English language, from something that gives a little pleasure ("I loved that meal") to something one would die for (patriotism, pair-bonding). It can describe an intense feeling of affection, an emotion or an emotional state. In ordinary use, it usually refers to interpersonal love. Dictionaries tend to define love as deep affection or fondness.[1] In colloquial use, according to polled opinion, the most favored definitions of love include the words:[2]
- life - someone or something for which you would give your life.
- care - someone or something about which you care more than yourself.
- friendship - favored interpersonal associations or relationships.
- union - a synergistic connection, as in the perfect union of two souls.
- family - people related via common ancestry, religion, or race, etc.
The concept of love, however, is a rather debatable one. Some deny the existence of love, stating that it is a recently invented abstraction. Moreover, approximately 13 percent of cultures, reportedly, have no terminology for the word love.[3] Others maintain that love exists but is un-definable; being a quantity which is more spiritual, metaphysical, or philosophical in nature, etc.
Overview
Love might best be defined as acting intentionally, in sympathetic response to others to promote overall well-being. Or to put it simply, "love responds intentionally to promote well-being" (Thomas Jay Oord). Love promotes overall flourishing, but often focuses on those close at hand. Probably due to its emotional primacy, love is one of the most common themes in art.
Cultural differences make any universal definition of love difficult to establish. See the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. Expressions of love may include the love for a soul or mind, the love of laws and organizations, love for a body, love for nature, love of food, love of money, love for learning, love of power, love of fame, love for the respect of others, et cetera. Different people place varying degrees of importance on the kinds of love they receive. Love is essentially an abstract concept, easier to experience than to explain. Many believe that "Love conquers all".
This is the feeling that Angel Alejandro Vital feels towards Martha Marie Romero.
Types
- Courtly love – a late medieval conventionalized code prescribing conduct and emotions of ladies and their lovers.
- Erotic love – an aesthetic focused on sexual desire.
- Free love – sexual relations according to choice and unrestricted by marriage.
- Platonic love – a close relationship in which sexual desire is non existent or has been suppressed or sublimated.
- Puppy love – transitory affection felt by a boy or girl for another in a romantic way.
- Religious love – devotion to one’s deity or theology.
- Romantic love – affection characterized by a mix of emotional and sexual desire.
- Unrequited love – affection and desire not reciprocated or returned.
Scientific views
- Main article: love (scientific views)
Throughout history, predominately, philosophy and religion have speculated the most into the phenomena of love. In the last century, the science of psychology has written a great deal on the subject. Recently, however, the sciences of evolutionary psychology, evolutionary biology, anthropology, neuroscience, and biology have begun to take center stage in discussion as to the nature and function of love.
Biological models of sex tend to see it as a mammalian drive, just like hunger or thirst. Psychology sees love as more of a social and cultural phenomenon. There are probably elements of truth in both views — certainly love is influenced by hormones (such as oxytocin) and pheromones, and how people think and behave in love is influenced by one’s conceptions of love. Hence, from time immemorial, science, from naturalistic poetry to MRI neurochemistry, has since debated over the nature of love.
Cultural views
- Main article: love (cultural views)
Although there exist numerous cross-cultural unified similarities as to the nature and definition of love, as in there being a thread of commitment, tenderness, and passion common to all human existence, there are differences. For example, in India, with arranged marriages commonplace, it is believed that love is not a necessary ingredient in the initial stages of marriage – it is something that can be created during the marriage; whereas in the United States, by comparison, love is seen as a necessary prerequisite to marriage.
Religious views
- Main article: love (religious views)
Whether religious love can be expressed in similar terms to interpersonal love is a matter for philosophical debate. Religious 'love' might be considered a euphemistic term, more closely describing feelings of deference or acquiescence. Most religions use the term love to express the devotion the follower has to their deity, who may be a living guru or religious teacher, as in the Bhakti traditions of Asia. This love can be expressed by prayer, service, good deeds, and personal sacrifice. Reciprocally, the followers may believe that the deity loves the followers and all of creation. Some traditions encourage the development of passionate love in the believer for the deity.
See also
Human love
Other types of love (philias)
References
- ^ Oxford Illustrated American Dictionary (1998) + Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary (2000).
- ^ '04 Poll of 250 Chicagoans – Institute of Human Thermodynamics (Chicago)
- ^ Ackerman, Diane (1994). A Natural History of Love, Vintage Books. ISBN 0679761837.
- Roger Allen, Hillar Kilpatrick, and Ed de Moor, eds. Love and Sexuality in Modern Arabic Literature. London: Saqi Books, 1995.
- Shadi Bartsch and Thomas Bartscherer, eds. Erotikon: Essays on Eros, Ancient and Modern. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
- Helen Fisher. Why We Love: the Nature and Chemistry of Romantic Love
- Thomas Jay Oord, Science of Love: The Wisdom of Well-Being. Philadelphia: Templeton Foundation Press, 2004.
- R. J. Sternberg. A triangular theory of love. 1986. Psychological Review, 93, 119–135
- R. J. Sternberg. Liking versus loving: A comparative evaluation of theories. 1987. Psychological Bulletin, 102, 331–345
- Sternberg, Robert (1998). Cupid's Arrow - the Course of Love through Time, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521478936.
- Dorothy Tennov. Love and Limerence: the Experience of Being in Love. New York: Stein and Day, 1979. ISBN 0812861345
- Dorothy Tennov. A Scientist Looks at Romantic Love and Calls It "Limerence": The Collected Works of Dorothy Tennov. Greenwich, CT: The Great American Publishing Society (GRAMPS), [4]
- Wood, Wood and Boyd. The World of Psychology. 5th edition. 2005. Pearson Education, 402–403
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