Column
LOVE is...
“ Love –
the art, such as the art of living. This art requires knowledge and efforts”
Erich Fromm
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE is everywhere. How often we meet this
word, watching TV programms, reading books, listening to music. It makes the
word “LOVE” more trivial and routine than it should be. So, we don’t figure out
what LOVE means for us: is it just a word or something more?
In Ancient Greece the idea of LOVE was divided into
four elements. Greeks paid close attention to LOVE and clearly understood that
it couldn’t be interpreted in one direction. Modern people probably don’t know
the Greek terminology of the word “LOVE”, but it is clear that LOVE can be differentiated. LOVE - affection
(Storgē)
refers to feeling of belonging to each other. LOVE – friendship (Philia) is
viewed as dispassionate
virtuous feeling. LOVE – passion (Eros) is considered
to be passionate physical attraction. Absolute LOVE ( Agape) means much more
spiritual intimacy than physical one.
In
our time, loving somebody, we don’t realize what type of LOVE it is. We accept
this feeling and follow it without any control. That’s why it doesn’t matter
for people what they feel. But it is important for them that they believe in
the existence of LOVE in themselves.
If ask: “What is LOVE?”, at first seconds a person will be confused and then will find
an answer. I tried to do something that with my close people.
My
friend answered that she couldn’t find what to say because she never had any
experience with LOVE. Another friend said that LOVE is a deep attachment to her
boyfriend.
“There
is no LOVE in our life, it is just fiction of young people at all.” – responded
elderly man. I can’t agree with the elder, because I think that something
exists in our inner world. This, something, becomes apparent under certain conditions
and is directed at someone.
As
for my first friend, she surely has such a feeling as LOVE. It is expressed in
loving her mother and this LOVE can’t be left unreciprocated. Of course, the mother loves her too. The second
friend feels some kind of attachment to her boyfriend and she has a right to
call it “LOVE”. I want to believe that her LOVE is reciprocal and the same
feeling captured her boyfriend too.
So, LOVE can be viewed in different ways for everyone.
This points to unquestionable existence of this feeling. It is impossible to
deny some power which pushes us to the others. I come back to the ancient
Greeks’ types of LOVE. It is like a
circle where talking about someone’s personal LOVE we return to the Greek
variety of LOVE . Afterwards we will associate our LOVE with the Greek one. This
statement underlines that modern LOVE is full of a great variety of LOVE meanings. At the same time LOVE didn’t
lose its unique quality. Moreover, we can’t cancel the existence of LOVE. It is
around us and we are around it. LOVE was given to us as the answer to the
problem of human existence. LOVE is the purpose of our life?! I consider that
it is possible.
The
question “What is LOVE?” is addressed to you, because neither me nor scientists
give the concrete answer to this question. You know yourself much more than the
others.
The article extremely attracted my attention because such a philosophic question is open for the discussion. Love. Recenlty I started thinking of it more and more often. What does it mean - to love? To my mind, there are dirfferent types of love: love to friends, to relatives, to family, to different things, to Motherland and to boyfriend (hope future husband). In any particular case love demonstrates in various ways. And finally I came to the conclusion that the main characteristic feature of love is its capability for giving the person anything he/she needs without asking anything in return. No one can explain what it is, but I'm strongly confident that when you love you are really happy person.
ReplyDeleteI took an interest in this article, becase its theme is popular at all times. It is absorbing to thing about love. Everyone understands this word in different ways and all of them are right. How do I see love? I think love is not only feelings but also desicion to devote our life to somebody or something. Of course, love is closely related to emotions and sensation, but they are always changeable as opposed to love. Sometimes we feel disappointment or take displeasure, sometimes we are happy. In spite of this, we continue to love. So, we may connect our love and different feelings, but not identify them. In my opinion love is a wish to share sorrows and joy. When person loves he is ready to share everything with another person. I think when we love we are happy.
ReplyDeleteIt's an eternal question "What is love?", and I suppose that everyone asked this question to themself about it. There are a lot of types of love, from love to our pets up to Motherland, and we should define it.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that love is like a miracle, if you don't believe, you wouldn't know what it is, and I think that everyone believe in love, but not all of them have already realized it.
Your article makes me think about love, and I understood that I really forget sometimes, that it's a fragile, and it can be broken. The first paragraph of your article remember me Philosophy’s lessons, and you know, if you were a teacher and you should tell your pupils about love, this way would be the best. Because it’s really interesting in comparison to different Philosophic books. Thanks a lot!