on love

Yes, I'm taking another break from my coursework...don't ask.

Lately I've been wondering why the English language only has one word for love. I've recently heard some friends speak of loved ones dying. The latest told of how his grandfather in his last breath tried to reach out for one last kiss with his lips. Said friend later told how his grandmother, at home, approached him in her late husbands shirt saying "I know it's probably gross, but I don't think I'll ever wash it--it still smells like him." I know, get yourself a tissue--I'll wait. Interesting though, none of us are good-looking when we're old--there's more to it than that (not that you thought it was just looks).

My good friend and late roommate recently got married. He decided early on that he wasn't going to say the words "I love you," to his girlfriend until he was on one knee with a ring in his hand. This, by the way (for you fellas), was quite hard on his girlfriend for a long time... Although I respect Brandon for his choice to be strong and hold high the commitment of the word love, there's simply more aspects to love than commitment. Trust me, I'm not trying to take anything away from his emphasis on commitment (i'm a proponent), for Brandon is right, our culture has lost that definition and "uses the word like it just doesn't mean anything anymore."

I'd be curious to do a study with the languages to try and understand why English only has one word. We know the Greek has at least 4, to distinguish between affection (storgē), friendship (philía), romantic love (érōs) and charity (agápē). Sorry, I'm not a linguist, but it does make me wonder if our one word adds to our complex misunderstandings of love in Western societies.