by Graydyl

Created on: May 22, 2008   Last Updated: May 15, 2009

"Romantic love is a very powerful drive; stronger than hunger-We write songs about love, books about love. We live for love; die for love; some people kill for it. We can even fall into a clinical depression if we're rejected by the one we love." (Murray) Love is arguably one of the, if not the, strongest emotions that can be felt. It plays a critical role in life-families are held together by love, and certain decisions are influenced by love. Furthermore, love is a common theme in art, music, literature, and plays. Some examples include the Beatles' "All is Full of Love", Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet", and Greek mythological tales. Love, one of the strongest emotions that man can feel, has the ability to dramatically alter his rationality and influence his decisions, as demonstrated through Christianity, history, and literature.

The meaning of love has not changed significantly over time; its concept has not deviated much since its inception. The word "love", derived from Old English "lufu", means affection and friendliness (Onions 611). For the Germanic and Celtic languages, the old Indo-European word for love meant "free", which led to a word meaning "desire" taking its place (Onions 612). Now, love means essentially the same thing-warm affection, attachment, liking, fondness, affectionate devotion (Webster's 646), ardor, infatuation, passion, desire, attraction, and devotion (Roget's 296). There is virtually no change in the meaning of love from its origin to the present. However, the wide range of interpretations that love can have is at times confusing-the "love" in "I love to eat" and "I love my boyfriend" is obviously used differently.

Depending on the context in which it is used, the word "love" can have many nuances and degrees of profundity. The four Greek interpretations of "love" help to distinguish the ways that love is being used. Storge love refers to familial love-love between family members, such as that between parents and children (Tubbs). Eros, or erotic love, is the type of romantic love shown between lovers and partners (Tubbs). Philia is the love in friendships-it is the "embodiment of everything a true, meaningful friendship represents" (Tubbs). Lastly, "agape love is the selfless love for others" (Tubbs). When one expresses agape, one does not ask anything in return and is willing to make sacrifices for another. This is the type of love that is most spiritual and demonstrated throughout the Bible. The love that is most prominent

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