Love - And Its Portrayal In Literature - Research Paper Example

5 April Love - and its portrayal in Literature Love is a very exciting and aesthetic feeling. It is probably one of the deepest emotions that a man is able to feel, and they say that if one does not, or if one closes himself from the idea of love, he is committing a grave crime by doing so. It is an emotion felt when one makes himself vulnerable to the idea of being loved by someone else. It is full of regard and affection for another person; love is not love until it is for someone, however in many cases love is used selfishly in order to get past certain obstacles in life. All over the world, throughout times immemorial, love has been a very vivid and stark feeling portrayed everywhere. Some people that are in love with each other are not afraid to show it, they in fact engage in being affectionate each other wherever they are, without caring about the rest of the world or societal norms. However, there are some people that are not so open about their love; they feel constricted in a manner that they are not aware of how to show their feelings to others because they are afraid of being judged by others. Love is not something that can be judged by someone who is not feeling it. Those who do not open themselves to the idea of love will not be able to know how to feel it. Love is not a closed feeling, it can be towards anything. A person starts learning how to love with the help of the family and environment he grows up in. Being loved is not about having both parents or many siblings; it is in fact about how a person is able to learn to love whatever family he is born into, and whatever the circumstances might be. It is about adapting to someone else’s needs and habituating oneself beautifully in a manner befitting ease. According to the Bible: Corinthians Chapter 1, 13:4-7, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. Love is like air. You can't see it, but you can feel it.” Since the time of Adam and Eve and the apple on the tree, a new feeling is said to have arisen in the world in the form of love and its other aspects. The two felt ashamed of being around each other completely naked, because they started developing feelings for one another. Adam and Eve have been said to try and cover themselves from one another all of a sudden after eating the sacred fruit because they realised that a man and a woman have the capacity to be able to love each other and try and impress the other in order to be loved back by them. In all aspects of life, one is able to find love. It could be with anything, and for anything. Children love their parents, and as they grow older into teenagers and adolescents, they begin loving other people around them. As one gets to know more and more people, he understands truly the effect love and friendship can have. To be loved by someone is a true boon gifted to all of mankind by God. Having someone care for you and love you when the entire world seems to be against you is a feeling people will know only if they open their hearts and let themselves be loved. Along with love comes trust and commitment; these are responsibilities that people should be willing to accept if they want to be in love and love another person. In love, a person gives his or her heart away to another person, and in turn the other should take care of that heart and not cause it to break. In giving away such a large part of one self, a person thrusts a large amount of trust on the other. Many people say that love in the 21st century is not like it used to be earlier. In this modern era of technology, people have a habit of falling in love with the idea of love as they ‘hook up’ with any random person over the internet and with a few exchanges of niceties, ‘fall in love’ with them. This was not the case earlier when most women, in almost all religions, were exempted to be out for long or meet men other than their family members. That is why, love remained a special feeling kept aside only for that one extra special person in their lives. Many people get married through arranged means as well, and gradually learn how to love the person. However on the other hand, today, most people fall in love first and then get married to the people they want to share the rest of their lives with. Having children is also a symbol of love and bonding that two people share with each other. Despite this, there are many people that hold a special place in their hearts for the entire idea of having a constitution of love and marriage. There are many, that find that being old fashioned works best for them, and they continue to love selflessly, overcoming obstacles and hurdles that come across in their paths of love, with each other. If the love is true, people remain being with each other and work out their personal issues. People that truly love others watch out for them and let them know that they can depend on them. They help their loved ones grow and develop and achieve a sense of accomplishment when they reach greater heights in their personal careers. In literature as well, there have been a plethora of writers that have dedicated their work to love. Love for them was writing and creating characters that the world would fall in love with. Many writers, from the Romantic period are famous for their poems, sonnets, prose and stories on what love is. They have been able to portray the image and help people understand how selfless and meaningful this single most simple emotion can be. Shakespeare created Romeo and Juliet – two characters that have literally paved the way for love in the world. Though the two, he helped others understand how love happens in a matter of seconds; it is not something that gradually develops by forcing someone to love another. He explained through Romeo and Juliet’s words how they were even ready to give up their lives for each other. They come from different families but are not afraid to be with each other because of the difference. This is portrayed in act II, scene II when Juliet says to Romeo, “O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I'll no longer be a Capulet.” (Shakespeare, William) Love has also been portrayed as loyalty in the works of Homer, as can be seen in Illiad and Odyssey. The women in these stories are the ones that undergo sacrifices in order to be with the brave warriors they are in love with. He writes about the unconditional love between Helen and Paris as well as the love raging between Odysseus and Penelope. Odysseus was so in love with his wife and his son that he is seen giving up immortality just to be with them. In most literature, people are backed by their motives and dilemmas; whether or not to be with the person they truly love or to give all that up just to be able to grasp on their personal achievements. Many physical manifestations of love and lust have also greatly formed a portion of excellent literature all over the world. For example, as it can be seen in The Scarlet Letter, a passionate tale about an affair between Pearl and Hester. Such kind of books help the world to see that even in those days when love and its other forms were a strict taboo, people still engaged in them and were ready to face the world with the consequences as Pearl did. She was made to wear a red ‘A’ depicting adultery which turned all of society against her, but she was strong about it and did not give in. Hawthorne writes, “Ah, but let her cover the mark as she will, the pang of it will be always in her heart.” (Hawthorne, Nathaniel) This means that even if she is forbidden from loving someone else or giving way to her desires, the love will not die in her heart. The flame of it would be alive till she felt satisfied enough and was able to spend her life with the man she loved. Sophocles writes “One word frees us of all the weight and pain in life. That word is love.” He was an ancient Greek tragedian who wrote plays about dealing with emotions in life. His works are some of the oldest known works of literature in the world, and the proof and survival of his works help mankind to see how far back love goes. Even in those times, love was of prime importance and it was the only other feeling that helped people to be alive and have something to look forward to. One of the most famous books of all times, read all over the world by many people is Erich Segal’s Love Story. This book has turned the coldest of people soft, as it breaks through their souls and hits the chord of love. It is a heartbreaking novel about young love and how the two are separated because of death. In modern day literature, Nicholas Sparks is well known for being able to portray the feeling of love through his writing too. Most people are able to adapt better to this kind of literature than the ones written in olden days because they can relate to the kind of everyday situations the characters in the books are facing. Alfred Lord Tennyson, another name circling the writers’ arena, writes “Sweet is true love that is given in vain and sweet is death that takes away pain.” Through this he tries to explain to people how a person gives love easily but with pride, and how sweetly that same love can be taken away from him through death. Love has thus played a very recurrent role in world literature; in older times as well as now. It is not a lost feeling, but something that looms over every individual, and only when given the chance can it be allowed to develop into feelings and emotions worth going through. Most people undergo so much pain and trauma in their lives for the people they love, but when all this suffering is done for someone else, it is not realised as suffering. People gladly take the pain in order to make the lives of their loved ones better. Love has played a very important part in books and classics as well as movies, for example unconditional portrayal in Titanic and Casablanca. It is a conflict that hearts go through, and never stop comprehending what could have been had the turn of events not been the way they had. In most evergreen stories, lovers have ended up sacrificing their lives for each other, as discussed above. The question still remain though, is this portrayal of old literature applicable in the world today? In my personal opinion, there still are many people that hold meaning for true love and give it the utmost importance. However, such love should not be lost amidst this jungle of concrete and technology that human beings are living in today. People should thus try and learn from literature and not be afraid of the consequences they might suffer through, because they themselves will realise that in the end it would have been worth it. Works Cited T, Gareth. "The Role of Love in Literature." Helium - Where Knowledge Rules. 12 Feb. 2008. Web. 06 Apr. 2011. . Innong, Joan. "The Role of Love in Literature." Helium - Where Knowledge Rules. 20 June 2009. Web. 06 Apr. 2011. . Shakespeare, William, and Jill L. Levenson. Romeo and Juliet. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2000. Print. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Bantam, 1986. Print. "English Literature -- How Are Love and Romance Portrayed Differently in the 18th and 20th Centuries?" Free Essays, Term Papers, Research Paper, and Book Report. Web. 06 Apr. 2011. . "Love in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey :: Comparison Compare Contrast Essays." Free Essays, Term Papers, Research Paper, and Book Report. Web. 06 Apr. 2011. . "Power of Love, by Sophocles." Poetry Archive | Poems. Web. 06 Apr. 2011. . Bible Corinthians Chapter 1, 13:4-7 Read More