Love is one of the most powerful human emotions. It is the reason people will do almost anything for the ones they love. It is often regarded as the greatest happiness a person can experience, but it can also be an intense pain. It is a feeling that can be complicated to understand, especially since everyone feels it differently.
Researchers, psychologists, and sociologists have different ideas about what love is. Some believe it is a primary emotion like happiness and sadness, while others think it’s more of a motivation than an emotion. Biological researchers tend to define love as a mammalian drive, similar to hunger and thirst. Others say it is more of a complex emotion that comes from a mixture of primal drives, such as attachment and arousal.
Some philosophers have broken down the different components of love into three primary and several secondary and tertiary feelings. These include eros, agape, and philia. Eros is the most common form of love, and is based on physical attraction. It usually begins with an infatuation, and can deepen into a passionate love or fade as the relationship progresses.
Agape is a type of love that includes the desire to make a person happy and the concern for their well-being. It is also a type of spiritual love. Some scholars have disaggregated agape into two components: the altruistic and the narcissistic.
Storge is a more mature love that is based on trust and commitment. It can be seen between siblings, parents and children, friends, and neighbors. Some researchers have found that a person’s love style depends on their personality and past relationships, rather than genetics or hormones. People with dark traits, such as narcissism, psychopathy and machiavellianism, endorse more eros and mania love styles, while those who are insecure or needy may prefer the ludus and pragma styles.
Ultimately, it is up to the reader to decide what love means for them. It is important for authors to use a variety of ways to express their characters’ loves, so readers can fully connect with them. It is also helpful to show, rather than tell, what kind of love each character has for each other.
For example, showing a couple kissing or holding hands can help readers feel the intensity of their affection. It is also helpful to show how the people in a romance struggle with their feelings. This can bring the audience closer to their characters, and make them care more about what happens next.