Love in the Humanities College of Humanities
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Wolran Kim
December 2013
In short, the definition of love is the warmest and most desirable human relationship. Also it is the movement of the heart to keep such a condition. The basis of humanity is a wide range of the term love. Six professors from each department pointed out a variety of fields in the meaning of love associated with philosophy, literature, and language in this Homecoming 2013 event for the College of Humanities. Professor of Classics, Al Duncan, said, “Love makes you better, and love is harmony” after comparing it to Lust, Desire, Philia, Eros, and Platonic Love in his title, “Love and Beauty in Plato’s Symposium.” Professor of English, Scott Black, showed classic examples of pain and love through the poetry of Philip Sidney and Pablo Neruda in his title, “Love, Poems, and Other Troubles.” His theme, “Love is discovery,” was a powerful expression of the profound meaning of love. Professor of Communication discussed communication, strategy, and journalism in her title, “Argument and love.” “Arguers as lovers” and “Where there is love, there is life” widened the belt of consensus. Professor Margaret Toscano, Isabel Moreira, and Katharina Gerstenberger, each lectured on the meaning of love related to a romantic God in novels, queen of Clovis II, Balthild, and the sorrows of Goethe and young Weather.
Love is a complex mind related to delight, morality, and even admonition. Also, it is the field of mentality highlighted with belief the same as in religious areas. Therefore, philosophy, psychology, religion, ethics, art, and even politics cover the discourse of love. Looking at the origin of love is also interesting. Motherhood and the adsorption behavior can be found in Latin, “amor” and Japanese, “mamma.” Latin, “amor” (Italian, amore; French, amour; and Spanish, amor) are used to express the adoration for a mother’s breast. This love is the meaning of desire. English, “love” and German, “leibe” came from “leubh,” and it means love, admiration, and familiarity. Freud’s “libido” refers to severe desire. Greek, “philia” means kindness and friendship, and “eros” refers to sexual love. “Agape” represents goodwill, affection, and satisfaction. The origin of English, “charity” is Latin, “caritas,” and this means charitable love.
Love in the Orient is similar to the concept of philanthropy in Christianity. The Buddha’s mercy is pan-humanity, which is love toward all objects having lives. Sanskrit synonyms of love in the Buddhist scriptures are usually translated as “love.” There are two different terms of love in Buddhism, love with worldly desires and pure love without worldly desires. This worldly desire is an attachment of a purpose, and this creates all human pains.
Confucius’ love is not an indiscriminate charity, but the rightfulness of oneself. His frame of love expands from family to the country. According to his concept, love always begins with a close status and moves to a farther one, step-by-step. There is no concept such as love toward enemies in the Confucian idea. Mencius criticizes indiscriminate love, because there is no distinguishing between one’s own parents and others, which is the same as the love of animals.
In the West, Plato’s Eros is close to the desire of deficiency.
However, his idea refers to the desire of the more high-level of beauty, perfection, and value. Christian love in the New Testament is Agape, and refers to God, the creator’s love. The nature of God is also love, and human love toward God can reach the love of God. This love is focused in “giving” not receiving. This love is the desire of unity toward the Absolute father, and this is beyond human desire.
According to Freud, the heterosexual love begins from self-love, such as the child sucking his own thumb. Narcissus of narcissism in Greek mythology drowned, caused from his self images on the surface of the water. Narcissism is the personality that over-values his own actions or qualities, and libido toward the inner self. The subject of self-love could be part of a normal developmental stage, and some degree of narcissism is continued for a lifetime. Narcissistic personalities easily lose the ability to control, and are overly sensitive in interpersonal relationships. This symptom of regression appears in neurotic and psychotic diseases, and the separation of oneself and others is not possible. Heterosexuality also begins from homosexuality. Sexual obstacles appear if the possibility of love is concealed through a self-centered nature or the anxiety of isolation, such as homosexuality, sadism, masochism, exhibitionism, fetishism, or peeking. The principle of love does not easily coexist with modern capitalist society consisting of exchange and consumption. Thus, the new wave of Freud warns that the pathology of love is already in progress as a symbol of contradictions in the modern society.
Love is the mental process leading deep attachment and longing. I think the basis of love is a man-woman relationship among friendship, humanity, desire for the truth, and patriotism. Love is a human instinct and nature. Human beings will disappear in a hundred years without love between males and females. Despair and destruction are often caused from a lack of love, and it is terrible. Most criminals grow up in a loveless environment, and this shows the value of love in human life. One famous monk says that love is the greatest agony of humans. The reason is that love can not easily escape from human desire. Human life is finite and love is not eternal either. However, humans without love cannot be imagined. The relationship between love and desire is a profound idea that may refer to heaven and hell, or good and evil.
=============================================
Wolran Kim
December 2013
In short, the definition of love is the warmest and most desirable human relationship. Also it is the movement of the heart to keep such a condition. The basis of humanity is a wide range of the term love. Six professors from each department pointed out a variety of fields in the meaning of love associated with philosophy, literature, and language in this Homecoming 2013 event for the College of Humanities. Professor of Classics, Al Duncan, said, “Love makes you better, and love is harmony” after comparing it to Lust, Desire, Philia, Eros, and Platonic Love in his title, “Love and Beauty in Plato’s Symposium.” Professor of English, Scott Black, showed classic examples of pain and love through the poetry of Philip Sidney and Pablo Neruda in his title, “Love, Poems, and Other Troubles.” His theme, “Love is discovery,” was a powerful expression of the profound meaning of love. Professor of Communication discussed communication, strategy, and journalism in her title, “Argument and love.” “Arguers as lovers” and “Where there is love, there is life” widened the belt of consensus. Professor Margaret Toscano, Isabel Moreira, and Katharina Gerstenberger, each lectured on the meaning of love related to a romantic God in novels, queen of Clovis II, Balthild, and the sorrows of Goethe and young Weather.
Love is a complex mind related to delight, morality, and even admonition. Also, it is the field of mentality highlighted with belief the same as in religious areas. Therefore, philosophy, psychology, religion, ethics, art, and even politics cover the discourse of love. Looking at the origin of love is also interesting. Motherhood and the adsorption behavior can be found in Latin, “amor” and Japanese, “mamma.” Latin, “amor” (Italian, amore; French, amour; and Spanish, amor) are used to express the adoration for a mother’s breast. This love is the meaning of desire. English, “love” and German, “leibe” came from “leubh,” and it means love, admiration, and familiarity. Freud’s “libido” refers to severe desire. Greek, “philia” means kindness and friendship, and “eros” refers to sexual love. “Agape” represents goodwill, affection, and satisfaction. The origin of English, “charity” is Latin, “caritas,” and this means charitable love.
Love in the Orient is similar to the concept of philanthropy in Christianity. The Buddha’s mercy is pan-humanity, which is love toward all objects having lives. Sanskrit synonyms of love in the Buddhist scriptures are usually translated as “love.” There are two different terms of love in Buddhism, love with worldly desires and pure love without worldly desires. This worldly desire is an attachment of a purpose, and this creates all human pains.
Confucius’ love is not an indiscriminate charity, but the rightfulness of oneself. His frame of love expands from family to the country. According to his concept, love always begins with a close status and moves to a farther one, step-by-step. There is no concept such as love toward enemies in the Confucian idea. Mencius criticizes indiscriminate love, because there is no distinguishing between one’s own parents and others, which is the same as the love of animals.
In the West, Plato’s Eros is close to the desire of deficiency.
However, his idea refers to the desire of the more high-level of beauty, perfection, and value. Christian love in the New Testament is Agape, and refers to God, the creator’s love. The nature of God is also love, and human love toward God can reach the love of God. This love is focused in “giving” not receiving. This love is the desire of unity toward the Absolute father, and this is beyond human desire.
According to Freud, the heterosexual love begins from self-love, such as the child sucking his own thumb. Narcissus of narcissism in Greek mythology drowned, caused from his self images on the surface of the water. Narcissism is the personality that over-values his own actions or qualities, and libido toward the inner self. The subject of self-love could be part of a normal developmental stage, and some degree of narcissism is continued for a lifetime. Narcissistic personalities easily lose the ability to control, and are overly sensitive in interpersonal relationships. This symptom of regression appears in neurotic and psychotic diseases, and the separation of oneself and others is not possible. Heterosexuality also begins from homosexuality. Sexual obstacles appear if the possibility of love is concealed through a self-centered nature or the anxiety of isolation, such as homosexuality, sadism, masochism, exhibitionism, fetishism, or peeking. The principle of love does not easily coexist with modern capitalist society consisting of exchange and consumption. Thus, the new wave of Freud warns that the pathology of love is already in progress as a symbol of contradictions in the modern society.
Love is the mental process leading deep attachment and longing. I think the basis of love is a man-woman relationship among friendship, humanity, desire for the truth, and patriotism. Love is a human instinct and nature. Human beings will disappear in a hundred years without love between males and females. Despair and destruction are often caused from a lack of love, and it is terrible. Most criminals grow up in a loveless environment, and this shows the value of love in human life. One famous monk says that love is the greatest agony of humans. The reason is that love can not easily escape from human desire. Human life is finite and love is not eternal either. However, humans without love cannot be imagined. The relationship between love and desire is a profound idea that may refer to heaven and hell, or good and evil.
