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From: lazeldes@wlcrjs.UUCP (Leah A Zeldes)
Newsgroups: net.nlang,net.women
Subject: Re: the word "love" in English...
Message-ID: <547@wlcrjs.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 7-Feb-85 18:10:53 EST
Article-I.D.: wlcrjs.547
Posted: Thu Feb  7 18:10:53 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 9-Feb-85 05:01:21 EST
References: <116@rtech.ARPA> <286@psivax.UUCP>
Reply-To: lazeldes@wlcrjs.UUCP (Leah A Zeldes)
Distribution: net
Organization: chi-net, Public Access UN*X, Chicago IL
Lines: 38
Xref: watmath net.nlang:2548 net.women:4407
Summary: 

>>      ...In the Hungarian language there are two words for "love": 
>>one for familial or platonic love, and one for sexual love
>> (i.e. the feeling that lovers have toward one another).  
>	...Ancient Greek also has more than one word for 'love'
>It has three, one for familial(brotherly) love, one for 'platonic' love
>and one for sexual love.
>>	I think that this lack of distinction in English has probably screwed up
>>more people that the he/she problem.
>>	...Would having two words for love create just as many problems?  
>>Am I overestimating the effect of language on behavior?

Bear in mind that English defines "love" in all these ways, as well as
"an extreme fondness for" -- "I just love pickled beets" -- and approval/liking
of -- "I love your new dress."

It also defines it as the loved one -- "Goodnight, love."

And for that matter, "nothing," as in tennis -- "Six-love."

Native speakers of English rarely confuse the meanings, with the possible
exception of platonic vs. sexual, and then, usually, only when applied to
non-family members.  (If you say "I love you" to your mother, she doesn't
take it sexually.)  But this overlap works in some cases -- many people
have sexual relationships in which they love the other platonically as
well -- one can be a friend as well as a lover.

We do have a word that conveys pure sexual affection -- "lust."  "Love"
implies a relationship.

If people are so afraid to express affection that they won't use "love,"
they just have to be more verbose -- "I like you a lot,"  "I'm very fond of
you," "I love you like a brother."


-- 

					Leah A Zeldes
					...ihnp4!wlcrjs!lazeldes