Everyone knows what love is . However, if you ask this question to different people, the answers will be completely different. Why is that? And is there the only true and correct definition of love - I want to talk about this.
The science
So what is love? Many minds of mankind have tried to define love throughout the entire history of earthly civilization. That is why it is worth considering this concept from various points of view. And I want to start my analysis precisely from the scientific sphere. An interesting fact for many will be the fact that there is a special chemistry of love. Scientists have proven that when a person falls in love, his body produces so many hormones that are akin to drug or alcohol intoxication. In this case, the brain receives signals that indicate that a person is in a state of love. However, this is only one side of this state, and considering love only as chemistry is just a crime.
Interesting Facts
We understand further what love is. Many scientists have tried to give a definition of love; all of their conclusions can be formalized into some rather interesting scientific facts about love:
- Love is a drug. Proof of this is a tomography of the head of a man in love. The same brain regions are activated in him as in a person who has consumed cocaine and is in a state of euphoria.
- Love is a way of survival. Scientists have proven that human love is a somewhat modified form of hobby in animals. That is, it is easier for a person to find one partner for life, and not constantly seek new ones to satisfy their sexual needs.
- Love is blind. This statement has scientific evidence. A German researcher found that the brain zones responsible for rational decisions and negative emotions in a person in love are simply turned off.
- Love is an addiction. Scientists say that it is necessary to treat for love as well as for drug addiction: remove from the field of view of the "patient" all the factors irritating him: photographs, gifts, any reminders of the object of desire.
- The cure for love. Since during a person’s love, the level of such a hormone as serotonin drops quite seriously, doctors suggest compensating it medically in order to be able to avoid crimes motivated by this feeling (as statistics show, their number has increased significantly over the last time). However, if you "go too far" with this hormone, a person will not fall in love, and attraction will remain, which is fraught with promiscuous sexual intercourse.
- Men love eyes. This statement is known to many people, but not everyone knows that it also has scientific evidence. During falling in love, the guys activate the cerebral cortex, which is responsible for the visual factor. It will be interesting that women become active in the area responsible for memory: a lady remembers her partner’s behavior, then to analyze him and draw conclusions: is it worth it to be with such a person further.
Dictionaries
So, as a small conclusion, I want to give a few explanations of what love is. Scientific explanation, wording:
- This is a strong heart feeling, emotional attraction.
- Sexual attraction, attraction.
- Strong positive emotions.
- Intimacy, tender attitude.
But in general, we can say that love is scientifically pure chemistry.
Art
An interesting fact is that you can see love. Photos, paintings - they perfectly illustrate this feeling. However, this is not enough for art. Many writers also pondered what love is. She is sung in poems, songs, necessarily appears on the pages of prose stories and novels. Various quotes about love have already become so famous that people sometimes don’t even know who said it and from which work they are taken.
- Boris Pasternak: "Love is a high disease."
- Stendhal, “On Love”: “Love is like a fever, it can appear and fade away without the slightest sense of human will.”
- Haruki Murakami, “Kafka on the Beach”: “Every person who falls in love is in search of something he lacks.”
- The Physiology of Marriage Honore de Balzac: "True affection is blind. You should not judge those people you love."
- Shakespeare, “A Midsummer Night's Dream”: “Therefore, Cupids are portrayed blind because the lover does not look with his eyes, but with his heart.”
- Fedor Dostoevsky, “The Brothers Karamazov”: “What is hell? Regret that you can’t love even more.”
And such statements can lead a huge number. As for the nuances, they will all be different, but they will still have a single line.
Philosophers: Erich Fromm
Philosophers also have their own works on this subject. They talked a lot about love, giving information from a variety of points of view. Now I want to pay attention to Erich Fromm and his work “The Art of Love”. What interesting conclusions did this philosopher draw in his work. So, in his opinion, love is not just a sentimental feeling that can arise in a person. This is not enough, not enough. In order for love to develop, to develop and grow morally, man himself must. The first step that everyone must take is to realize that love is art, akin to the art of living. And in order to understand love in its entirety, each person must perceive it as something more than a given. Also, the philosopher says that in addition to love, there is also some other form of relationship, a symbiotic unity. It is of two types:
- Passive is to some extent masochism, when a person subordinates himself to the will of another, becomes its integral part. In this case, he loses his personality.
- The active is sadism, when one person subordinates the will of another person to himself, making him his integral part.
However, mature love is the opposite of these forms of relationships. This is an association of two people while maintaining their identity, individuality, integrity. According to Erich Fromm, love is a kind of force that destroys walls, helping a person to reunite with another person. True mature love is a paradox: two people become one, while remaining two personalities. Important nuances of love, according to the author:
- If a person loves, he will give (himself, his life).
- A person is fully interested in the life of his partner.
- Partners must respect each other.
Fromm about objects of love
We study further love. The definition of love, namely its different types, is also given by this philosopher in his work “The Art of Loving”.
- Brotherly love is fundamental, the foundation of the remaining types. This is respect, care, responsibility.
- Maternal love is the first love in the life of every person. Her essence, according to the author, should imply a woman’s desire for the child to separate from her in the future.
- Erotic love is a complete carnal unity with one person.
- Self love. The author writes that this should not be confused with selfishness, these are different concepts. Only by loving oneself can a person become a loved one and someone else.
- Love of God, a religious form of love.
Philosopher Carl Jung
What other philosophers spoke of love? So, why not turn to the works of Karl Gustave Jung, who at the same time was a great psychiatrist and at the same time also a student of Sigmund Freud? His main and beloved phrase: “Nothing is possible without love,” from which many conclusions can already be drawn. According to the author, love is the most powerful all-conquering factor in human life. So, it is impossible to consider this topic without two archetypes that are inherent in every person: Anima and Animus. This is the so-called personification of the unconscious beginning of the representative of the opposite sex in the psyche of each individual person. These halves are attracted to people. What is Jung's love? The definition of love that the author gives: traits hidden in a person are in another person and they attract him, exciting a feeling of love.
Anthropology of love
The definition of the word “love” has also been tried by a science such as anthropology. Particularly noteworthy is the work of the American scientist Helen Fisher "Why we love: the nature and chemistry of romantic love." Here she identified three fundamental whales of this feeling: attachment (a sense of security and tranquility), romance (the most powerful stimulator of the emergence of love) and lust (satisfaction of natural needs).
Religion
It is certainly worth mentioning that there is also a religious definition of love. The Bible says a lot about this feeling.
- Prov. 10:12: "... the love of man covers all his sins ..."
- Song of Songs, 8: 6-7: “... love is as strong as death; she is fierce as hell; her arrows are fiery; her flame is very strong. Rivers and large waters will not flood it. ”
- 1 Pet., 4: 8 "... Have love for one another, because it is she who covers all sins."
- 1 John 4: 7-8,18: "... love is from God, everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."
- 2 John 6 "... love is that all should walk according to the commandments of God."
These are not all quotes about love that can be found in the main book of mankind, but they fully reflect the mood and definition of this feeling according to religious canons.
Psychology
We further study the concept of love. The definition of love can also be found in psychology. So, scientists in this field of science distinguish three main factors on which this feeling is based:
- Passion. Attraction, arousal. This is the physical side of love.
- Proximity Friendship, unity. The emotional side.
- Liabilities. Willingness to solve the problems of the couple, care. This is the moral aspect of this feeling.
Love in Greek
The theme of love was touched upon by all peoples and cultures. At this stage, I would like to talk about what kinds of love were singled out by the ancient Greeks.
- Agape. This is not just love, but more compassion. The highest type, when a person can give all of himself without expecting anything in return.
- Eros is passion. However, this is far from always a bodily passion; it can also be spiritual. Eros by nature - enthusiasm, love.
- Filia, or sons, is brotherly love. A calmer feeling, the main thing here is spirituality.
- Storge is more like attachment. Most often this is conjugal love.
These four types of love are still basic today, however, in their modern world, their other subtypes also arise. Such a type as mania may turn out to be interesting - this is insanity, love-obsession.
Household level
As already mentioned above, for each person love is something special. Everyone understands it in their own way, there is nothing wrong with that. How can one characterize love in a simple way without referring to the opinions of scientists, writers or philosophers?
- Love is a desire to do something good for a loved one, to constantly please him.
- “What love is there, if I cannot breathe without him” (film “Love and Pigeons”). Love is the desire to always be with your loved one, if not physically, then at least mentally.
- Love is constantly thinking about whether it is good for a loved one: is it warm for him, is he eating, is everything okay with him.
- Love is more to give than to receive, completely without thinking about it.
To love is to forgive, to try to be better, not to pay attention to shortcomings. Love is a constant work not only on relationships, but also on oneself. This is work that can only be rewarded in a year.