Man of Honour
Random thread alert.
I went out for dinner with some friends last week and the topic of love came up (following a conversation about the universe which was mind bending).
We were exploring whether or not saying "I love you" means the same to different people, or if you mean it in the same way towards different recipients. Also what the cultural elements are. Some countries use it sparingly, some use it pretty much all the time, some it is shown overtly others in a more reserved way.
Personally I feel that the word changes based on the person receiving it and the person saying it.
i.e. I have children, and the love for them is somewhat different to the love I have for my wife. Similarly the love I have for my wife is different to that of my parents and siblings. And again towards friends and other members of the family etc...
It is 1 word that carries a lot of nuance (I guess most words do to a certain degree?), and it depends on context, and when it is said. i.e. a drunken "I love you" to the person you're dating after a week is probably less impactful that sharing a life altering event like a wedding, childbirth, etc...
A couple of my friends were adamant that it's a word and should be used in the context / purpose that it was, and that if you say the word love in a different context it "lessens" the word. I sort of get it, but then I'm also of the view that context / situation matters.
I mean I love my kids to a level that's actually an overwhelming visceral experience. If that's not love what is it? They said it's more complicated than love as they are "flesh and blood" and there's a bond that goes beyond love. I kinda get it, but does that mean there isn't a word to describe the love for your own kids?
I then said, what about my friends (life-long friends) there's love there. The sort of love where you'd travel across the world to be there for them. They said, that's a different bond, it's an intellectual, life experience bond, shared hardship and pleasure over years of time. However, I argued that surely it's just a different level of love. They said, no it's friendship, you care for each other, but love is different.
To be honest they made some good arguments but I can't entirely remember all of them! It was a fun evening
Ultimately for me if you can spread love and nice words like love rather than anything else it's a win in my book! However I guess their point was if you weaken the impact of the word it has less of an effect?
Yes, I have weird conversations with my friends...
I went out for dinner with some friends last week and the topic of love came up (following a conversation about the universe which was mind bending).
We were exploring whether or not saying "I love you" means the same to different people, or if you mean it in the same way towards different recipients. Also what the cultural elements are. Some countries use it sparingly, some use it pretty much all the time, some it is shown overtly others in a more reserved way.
Personally I feel that the word changes based on the person receiving it and the person saying it.
i.e. I have children, and the love for them is somewhat different to the love I have for my wife. Similarly the love I have for my wife is different to that of my parents and siblings. And again towards friends and other members of the family etc...
It is 1 word that carries a lot of nuance (I guess most words do to a certain degree?), and it depends on context, and when it is said. i.e. a drunken "I love you" to the person you're dating after a week is probably less impactful that sharing a life altering event like a wedding, childbirth, etc...
A couple of my friends were adamant that it's a word and should be used in the context / purpose that it was, and that if you say the word love in a different context it "lessens" the word. I sort of get it, but then I'm also of the view that context / situation matters.
I mean I love my kids to a level that's actually an overwhelming visceral experience. If that's not love what is it? They said it's more complicated than love as they are "flesh and blood" and there's a bond that goes beyond love. I kinda get it, but does that mean there isn't a word to describe the love for your own kids?
I then said, what about my friends (life-long friends) there's love there. The sort of love where you'd travel across the world to be there for them. They said, that's a different bond, it's an intellectual, life experience bond, shared hardship and pleasure over years of time. However, I argued that surely it's just a different level of love. They said, no it's friendship, you care for each other, but love is different.
To be honest they made some good arguments but I can't entirely remember all of them! It was a fun evening
Ultimately for me if you can spread love and nice words like love rather than anything else it's a win in my book! However I guess their point was if you weaken the impact of the word it has less of an effect?
Yes, I have weird conversations with my friends...
