A Thing Called Love

Love, “that loosener of limbs”, would never be without the pain that “reptile-like strikes me down” especially in an anthrocentric mode of existence that man is leading. Taking an emotive point of view, a person would naturally realize that love in all its glory is a roller coaster ride of emotional setbacks and blissfulness. Yet, man is still at awe with love. It is the “irresistible” force that brings two people together and yet it could still be the “bittersweet” ride that people would choose to take if given the chance. It would seem that love has a way that makes people get captivated. It has a fine way of creeping into people “with his venom” bringing happiness and pain. In a world that is much concerned with all that is human, it could easily be seen that the emotional concern (as part of being human) could not be erased totally. The pain would usually come from other people or it may be due to man’s own doing. Either way, pain could come from different reasons and angles. The main focus then is as to how pain could also be derived from love that makes it “irresistible and bittersweet.”

What makes people anthrocentric to point of becoming egocentric is the fact that in this time of the era, technological boom had developed a standard that would necessitate a man’s concern for man in connection to the benefits that it would bring to the self. Egocentrism in this instance would not be the whole debate but the fact that man is centered and/or fascinated on humanity. Along with this fascination is the fascination for the emotive realm that is all too human. Even the most cold a person could not escape from the clutches of humanity and of mortality. Love is the inevitable “venom” that strikes in any given time. But what is most fascinating about it is the fact that love usually goes hand-in-hand with pain. It then creates this “bittersweet” emotion or a feeling of happiness and sadness.

It could not be at the same time since that would be contradictory but at some point there is this certain demarcation line where happiness would stop and the sadness would start and vice versa. What invokes this emotional status could be explained by the Sartrean point of view. Jean-Paul Sartre’s concept of Hell is Other People brings out the idea that others could have a definite effect on a person (Patrik, 2001). Undeniably, we are a being that is part of a world that is also inhabited by other beings as well. In this aspect, Sartre believed that a person is constantly at the mercy of the other as well as the other is at the mercy of the person (Patrik, 2001). It would seem then that the constant exposure to the other could have a direct emotional bearin on a person. The pain that “strikes me down” could then be brought about by the other person. Engaging in a relationship would then involve a certain give and take emotional behavior.

With this give and take there could be instances of something going awry. As this fix happens, a wave of emotional setback occurs that might create sorrow. Despitet hat problem, there is still this natural sensation of clinging to the emotion of love making this the “irresistible” guide that makes man create a havoc on the self. Heartbreaks may be the most obvious way of explaining the pain that love entails. But there could be instances that love is the “venom” that would “reptile-like” brings grief. In the light of unrequitted love, this love is the pain that overwhelmingly “strikes me down.” There is this “irresistible” dimension that in a “bittersweet” situation gives off the idea of “loosener of limbs” every moment that the object of love is present. In this case, the pain did not originate from the other but the person is the author of this plight. “With his venom,” a person feels the toll on what ought to be done but the pain inflicted to the self is not enough to be at par with the blissfullness that the obeject of affection brings.

Given this two angles where pain and love is concerned. One could conclude that regardless of what perspective it would take, love and pain could not be separated. With the blooming of love, there is this pain that could erupt at any given moment. This pain is caused usually by the other person involved or it could be brought about by the self alone. It usally is this egocentric feeling that causes the grief from love but this egocentric emotion is also the cause for love to spring forth as well.

References

• Patrik, L. E. (2001). Existential Literature: An Introduction. Canada: Wordsworth Thomson Learning.