Love: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Ronald de Sousa
Author:Ronald de Sousa [de Sousa, Ronald]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9780199663842
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2014-01-08T00:00:00+00:00
Two more puzzles diagnosed
The most constant wife in Greek mythology was Alcmene, wife of Amphitryon. So faithful was she that Zeus was unable to seduce her in any of the seduction disguises—swan, bull, or shower of gold—that had worked with other mortal targets of his lust. His last resort was to show up as her husband. As a god, he could assume all of Amphitryon’s qualities. The man who made love to Alcmene that night was indistinguishable from Amphitryon in all the focal properties for which she loved him. So why should she mind? Of course, history doesn’t say whether she did mind. But in analogous cases that have recently come before the courts, women have been known to win a rape conviction when the wrong twin took advantage of dim light. Despite possessing the right focal properties, Zeus was not the target of Alcmene’s love, so she too was raped despite her ostensible consent.
More puzzling is the case of Roxane, in Edmond Rostand’s play Cyrano de Bergerac. Roxane thinks she loves Christian, not just because he is handsome and brave, but because, as she falsely believes, he is the author of the witty and poetic words that are actually Cyrano’s. Cyrano too loves Roxane, but his disfiguring nose forbids him any hope of requital. Years later, long after Christian has been killed in war, Roxane insists she would love Christian for his poetic wit, even if he were ugly.
When the truth finally transpires, should we say Roxane really loved Cyrano all along? Here the difficulty is that there are two potential targets, and two sets of focal properties. Cyrano’s wit was the focus and a cause of her love. But Christian’s looks and bravery contributed as well. It was Christian whom Roxane kissed, and married, and mourned, even though he lacked the focal properties in which she thought her love was grounded. It was now too late to change the target of her love, even though it was picked on false pretences. Maybe she would have loved Cyrano (though she could be wrong about that); but as things stand, she loved Christian.
The lesson of these cases is that the target of love is a particular individual, not just whoever happens to have the right qualities. Even lacking the right qualities altogether may not matter. Once the target is picked, only that actual individual counts as relevantly similar. Targets of love are non-fungible. (An object such as a five pound note is ‘fungible’, when any other of equivalent value—any set of notes adding up to five pounds—is acceptable as a replacement). In many human relationships, including some sexual relations, persons are to some extent replaceable, insofar as they fulfil a certain role for the participants. Think, for example, of a sensible person arranging a marriage, or advertising for a ‘mail-order’ spouse. There will be a list of requirements exchanged. Those requirements may be stringent; but in principle any number of people could meet them.
The target of love, by contrast, is not a kind of person, however elaborately specified.
Download
Love: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Ronald de Sousa.mobi
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
Deconstruction | Existentialism |
Humanism | Phenomenology |
Pragmatism | Rationalism |
Structuralism | Transcendentalism |
Utilitarianism |
The remains of the day by Kazuo Ishiguro(7753)
Tools of Titans by Timothy Ferriss(7175)
The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb(6368)
Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin(6132)
Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy by Sadhguru(6065)
The Way of Zen by Alan W. Watts(5943)
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle(4921)
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII (WOMEN IN HISTORY) by Fraser Antonia(4904)
Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking by M. Neil Browne & Stuart M. Keeley(4765)
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson(4728)
12 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson(3876)
The Ethical Slut by Janet W. Hardy(3654)
Skin in the Game by Nassim Nicholas Taleb(3601)
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson(3587)
The Art of Happiness by The Dalai Lama(3500)
Double Down (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 11) by Jeff Kinney(3400)
Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life by Nassim Nicholas Taleb(3377)
Ikigai by Héctor García & Francesc Miralles(3357)
Walking by Henry David Thoreau(3342)