Posted by Ethereal Zephyr at 5:56pm Jan 21 '05Alright, so I was having an engaging debate (fancy that! Me, debating!) with a friend over love vs. lust and love vs. hate. Things were going along swimmingly until I had the following thought (which I voiced. Duh).
What if love isn't an emotion?
Now, before I get thrown to the wolves, allow me to explain.
When you get mad, and we're talking well-and truly hacked as hell, that's all you can feel, right? And when you're either depressed or happy, that's all you can feel. There's no mixing, yes? You can shift back and forth rather quickly, but can you actually feel two emotions at the same time?
I would assert that, no, you can't.
Thus, I got to thinking about the nature of love and hate, as such. Hate is an all-consuming beast. When you really hate something or someone (not just the casual "I hate this class!" thing that passes quickly), there isn't room for anything else in your heart or life. Hatred is the only thing possible. You can't even find a place for happiness or laughter because you are existing in a void.
Love, on the other hand, isn't at all like that. You can be in love with someone and still be mad as all-get-out at them, right? When you get into a huge tiff with your significant other, you probably walk away madder than a wet hen. You also still love them, possibly even more than before.
When you're depressed, maybe even suicidal, you still love that person. You know it, accept it, feel it within every fiber of your being. It does not, however, push out the love or "switch" in and out with it.
Thus, I propose that love in its truest transcending sense is not an emotion at all, but a state of being. Perhaps not, though? I'd be curious to see where the holes in this one are, because I'm sure there are a lot. I'd like to strengthen my stance before I go and argue with a psych professor, hee hee.
What if love isn't an emotion?
Now, before I get thrown to the wolves, allow me to explain.
When you get mad, and we're talking well-and truly hacked as hell, that's all you can feel, right? And when you're either depressed or happy, that's all you can feel. There's no mixing, yes? You can shift back and forth rather quickly, but can you actually feel two emotions at the same time?
I would assert that, no, you can't.
Thus, I got to thinking about the nature of love and hate, as such. Hate is an all-consuming beast. When you really hate something or someone (not just the casual "I hate this class!" thing that passes quickly), there isn't room for anything else in your heart or life. Hatred is the only thing possible. You can't even find a place for happiness or laughter because you are existing in a void.
Love, on the other hand, isn't at all like that. You can be in love with someone and still be mad as all-get-out at them, right? When you get into a huge tiff with your significant other, you probably walk away madder than a wet hen. You also still love them, possibly even more than before.
When you're depressed, maybe even suicidal, you still love that person. You know it, accept it, feel it within every fiber of your being. It does not, however, push out the love or "switch" in and out with it.
Thus, I propose that love in its truest transcending sense is not an emotion at all, but a state of being. Perhaps not, though? I'd be curious to see where the holes in this one are, because I'm sure there are a lot. I'd like to strengthen my stance before I go and argue with a psych professor, hee hee.