All you need is love?

March 27, 2012

Thematic Essay

Final Draft  


Defining “Love”

By Jessica

 “L is for the way you look at me, O is for the only one I see, V is very, very extra-ordinary, E is even more than anyone that you adore and Love is all that I can give to you…” You may have heard this song performed by Nat King Cole or Frank Sinatra. This is one of my favorite love songs, because it expresses how much the man in the song would do for his woman. Through specific examples, I will define the abstract concept of love. Some important topics in my essay are a meaningful quote about an article about the psychology of love, and a discussion of the love triangle in The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. Through this process I will define the indefinable…love.

 “Love is a glimpse of heaven.” This is the perfect quote to describe what being in love should feel like.  That moment when you are counting down the seconds until you see them again. I cannot wait to be able to look at someone and be overwhelmed with happiness and love. Love can make you do crazy things you might not even know you are capable of doing. But most importantly, if you are with the right person you will be a happier, nicer, and more caring version of yourself.

In an article in Pscyhology Today magazine, psychologist Lisa J. Cohen discusses “The Psychology of Love.” This article was mainly about the psychology of love. The report discusses three aspects of love includes intimacy, passion, and commitment. Intimacy is about being close, including cuddling and feeling close to the person. Passion includes the lust and emotions we could feel toward another person. Commitment is about what a relationship can overcome and how long it endures. Psychologists derived these three parts of love from a method called “factor analysis,” a research method that uses questionnaires about love, and comes up with clusters that “can then be labeled as components of love.”

Both in real life and fictional stories there are strong connections to love.In the thrilling novel The Hunger Games the two main characters Katniss and Peeta are forced into love. Gale says, “Katniss will choose whoever she can’t survive without.” Gale Hawthorne is referring to Katniss choosing between her love Peeta and Gale.  Throughout the book Peeta and Katniss learn and need the love of one another. They lean on each other for moral and emotional support like couples do in real life. At the end of the book they have shared numerous kisses that could have been their last and have built many memories that will live on.

In conclusion, love is different for everyone. Whether it be passion, intimacy, or commitment or all three, “when you’re in love, all the songs make sense.” Love is when you go weak at the knees. Love is calling them in the middle of the night knowing they will pick up. Love is when you’re having a bad day and they don’t leave your side until you smile again. This is the kind of love I want, this is the kind of love I’m in love with.