A couple of days ago, I was watching a movie where an English teacher asks her students to discuss ‘what is love’. Majority of the class did not know how to respond. At first, I found this odd considering that love is a universally understood emotion that can be felt by most human beings. We express the emotion on a daily basis, whether it be towards our family, friends, or significant others. However, upon some introspection, I realized that it is difficult to come up with a solid definition for it because of its subjective nature. Love exists in many different forms and holds different meanings for different people.
A scientist would base their definition of ‘love’ on logic and reason that can be fully supported by factual evidence. For instance, according to Jim Al-Khalili, a theoretical physicist, “love is basically chemistry.” The attraction between two people originates “from the release of a whole set of chemicals,” such as “pheromones, dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, oxytocin and vasopressin” in the brain.
On another note, psychotherapist, Philippa Perry, suggests that there are several variations of the word love. First, there is Philia that …show more content…
I, personally, only have firsthand knowledge of familial and friendly love. From these experiences, I have learnt that love is when my mom hugs me after a bad day, love is when my best friend and I spend seven hours talking on the phone, love is when my brother and I burst out laughing in the middle of a fight. Meanwhile, although, I have no idea what it feels like to be ‘in love’ with someone, I know it’s love when my dad cooks my mom’s favorite meal when she’s sick or when my grandpa paints my grandma’s toenails because she can no longer bend over due to her arthritis. In more general terms, I feel