Eros (ἔρως érōs) is passionate love, with sensual desire and longing. The Modern Greek word "erotas" means "(romantic) love". The term erotic is derived from eros.
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Eros in the Greco-Roman tradition
In the classical world, the phenomenon of passionate love was generally understood as a kind of madness or, as the Greeks put it, theia mania ("madness from the gods"). [1] This love passion was described through an elaborate metaphoric and mythological psychological schema involving "love's arrows" or "love darts", the source of which was often given as the mythological Eros or Cupid,[2], sometimes by other mythological deities (such as Rumor[3]). In Roman mythology, Cupid (Latin cupido) is the god of Erotic Love and Beauty. A rumour or rumor (see spelling differences) is often viewed as "an unverified account or explanation of events circulating from person to person and At times, the source of the arrows was said to be the image of the beautiful love object itself. If these arrows were to arrive at the lover's eyes, they would then travel to and 'pierce' and 'wound' his or her heart and overwhelm him/her with desire and longing (love sickness). Love sickness is a non-medical term used to describe mental and physical symptoms associated with Falling in love. The image of the "arrow's wound" was sometimes used to create oxymorons and rhetorical antithesis concerning its pleasure and pain. Antithesis ( Greek for "setting opposite" from against + position) is a counter- Propositions and denotes a direct Contrast
"Love at first sight" was explained as a sudden and immediate beguiling of the lover through the action of these processes, but was not the only mode of entering into passionate love in classical texts. Love at first sight is an emotional condition whereby a person feels romantic attraction for a stranger on the first encounter with the stranger At times the passion could occur after the initial meeting, as, for example, in Phraedra's letter (IV) to Hippolytus in Ovid's Heroides: "That time I went to Eleusis. This article is on the mythological figure For other meanings see Phaedra. In Greek mythology, Hippolytus ( Greek for "loose horse" was a son of Theseus and either Antiope or Hippolyte. . . it was then most of all (though you had pleased me before) that piercing love lodged in my deepest bones. [4] At times, the passion could precede the first glimpse, as in Paris' letter (XVI) to Helen of Troy in the same work, where Paris says that his love for her came upon him before he had set eyes on her: ". See List of King Priam's children Paris ( Greek:; also known as Alexander or Alexandros, c This article is about the mythological figure Helen of Troy For other uses see Helen (disambiguation and Helen of Troy (disambiguation. . . you were my heart's desire before you were known to me. I beheld your features with my soul ere I saw them with my eyes; rumour, that told me of you, was the first to deal my wound. "[5]
Whether by "first sight" or by other routes, the passionate love concept of the classical authors often had disastrous results. In the event that the loved object was cruel or uninterested, this desire was shown to drive the lover into a state of depression, causing lamentation and illness. Occasionally, the loved objects — because of their sublime beauty — were depicted as unwitting ensnares of lovers (their beauty is a "divine curse" that inspires men to kidnap them or try to rape them). [6] Stories in which unwitting men catch sight of the naked body of Diana the huntress (and sometimes Venus) lead to similar ravages (as in the tale of Actaeon). In Roman mythology, Diana was the goddess of the hunt, being associated with wild animals and woodland and also of the Moon. Venus was a major Roman Goddess principally associated with Love, Beauty and fertility, the equivalent of the Greek goddess In Greek mythology, Actaeon (ækˈtiən (Greek Ακταίων) son of the priestly herdsman Aristaeus and Autonoe in Boeotia,
The classical conception of love's arrows were elaborated upon by the Provençal troubadour poets of southern France in the twelfth century and became part of the European courtly love tradition. Provençal ( Provençau) is one of several dialects of Occitan spoken by a minority of people mostly in Provence (in southern France A troubadour ( IPA:, originally) was a composer and performer of Occitan Lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100&ndash1350 Courtly love was a Medieval European conception of ennobling love which found its genesis in the ducal and princely courts of Aquitaine, Provence In particular, a glimpse of the woman's eyes was said to be the source of the love dart. [7] In some medieval texts, the gaze of a beautiful woman is compared to the sight of a basilisk. In European bestiaries and Legends a basilisk ('bæzɪlɪsk from the Greek βασιλίσκος basilískos, "little king"
These images continued to be circulated and elaborated upon in the Renaissance and Baroque literature[8] and pictorial imagery. The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere Baroque art redirects here Please disambiguate such links to Baroque painting, Baroque sculpture, etc Boccaccio for example, in his Il Filostrato mixes the tradition of the eye's darts with the metaphor of Cupid's arrow. Il Filostrato is a Poem by the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio, and the inspiration for Geoffrey Chaucer 's Troilus and [9]: "Nor did he (Troilus) who was so wise shortly before. Troilus (also Troilos, Troylus) ( Ancient Greek: Τρωίλος Troïlos Latin: Troilus is a legendary character associated with the story . . perceive that Love with his darts dwelt within the rays of those lovely eyes. . . nor notice the arrow that sped to his heart. "[10]
The oxymorons and rhetorical antithesis concerning the pleasure and pain from love's dart continued through the 17th century, as, for example, in the classically inspired images of If Love's a Sweet Passion from Henry Purcell's The Fairy Queen (act 3):
If Love's a Sweet Passion, why does it torment?
If a Bitter, oh tell me whence comes my content?
Since I suffer with pleasure, why should I complain,
Or grieve at my Fate, when I know 'tis in vain?
Yet so pleasing the Pain is, so soft is the Dart,
That at once it both wounds me, and Tickles my Heart. Henry Purcell (ˈpɜrsəl 10 September 1659 (? – 21 November 1695 was an English Baroque Composer. The Fairy-Queen (Z629 is a Masque or Semi-opera by Henry Purcell; a Restoration spectacular It was first performed on 2 May 1692
Eros in Plato's philosophy
Plato refined his own definition. Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Although eros is initially felt for a person, with contemplation it becomes an appreciation of the beauty within that person, or even becomes appreciation of beauty itself. Plato does not talk of physical attraction as a necessary part of love, hence the use of the word platonic to mean, "without physical attraction". Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Plato also said Eros helps the soul recall knowledge of beauty, and contributes to an understanding of spiritual truth. Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Lovers and philosophers are all inspired to tell the truth by eros, the god of love. The most famous ancient work on the subject of eros is Plato's Symposium, a dialogue among seven men (including Alcibiades), reclining in a Greek symposium, in which Socrates reveals his knowledge about the nature of eros, inspired by the teaching of Diotima of Mantinea. Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece The Symposium is a philosophical dialogue written by Plato sometime after 385 BC A dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog) is a reciprocal Conversation between two or more entities. Alcibiades Cleiniou Scambonides (ˌælsɨˈbaɪədiːz (pronunciation Greek:, transliterated Alkibiádēs Kleiníou Skambōnidēs) meaning Alcibiades The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Symposium originally referred to a drinking party (the Greek verb sympotein means "to drink together" but has since come to refer to any Academic conference SOCRATES is the European Community action programme in the field of Education. Diotima of Mantinea is a female philosopher who plays an important role in Plato's Symposium. Eros, in the Socratic logos, can be defined as the longing for wholeness or completeness, a daemon whose aim is to reach the knowledge without ever owning her and is used to describe fulfillment between man/woman and man/Gods. grc-Latn Logos (ˈloʊːgɒs ( Greek, logos) is an important term in Philosophy, Analytical psychology, Rhetoric and Religion
Thomas Jay Oord defines eros as intentional response to promote overall well-being by enhancing or appreciating what is valuable or good. Thomas Jay Oord (b 1965) is a Philosopher and Theologian who specializes in research related to love, relational thought (including relational
Eros and Sigmund Freud
In Freudian psychology, Eros, also referred to in terms of libido, libidinal energy or love, is the life instinct innate in all humans. In Freudian Psychology, Eros, also referred to in terms of Libido, libidinal energy or love is the life instinct innate in all humans Sigmund Freud (ˈziːkmʊnt ˈfʁɔʏt born Sigismund Shlomo Freud (May 6 1856 &ndash September 23 1939 was an Austrian Psychiatrist who founded Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Libido in its common usage means Sexual desire however more technical definitions such as those found in the work of Carl Jung, are more general referring to libido It is the desire to create life and favours productivity and construction. Eros battles against the destructive death instinct of Thanatos (death instinct or death drive). In classical Freudian Psychoanalytic theory, the death drive is the drive towards death destruction and non-existence
Eros and Carl Jung
Carl Jung used the term eros to denote the basic fundamental of feminine psychology: “Women’s psychology is founded on the principal of eros, the great binder and loosener, whereas from ancient times the ruling principal ascribed to men is logos. grc-Latn Logos (ˈloʊːgɒs ( Greek, logos) is an important term in Philosophy, Analytical psychology, Rhetoric and Religion The concept of eros could be expressed in modern times as psychic relatedness, and that of logos as objective interest. ” (CW vol. X, p. 123, pp. 255) This points to his theory of the anima/animus syzygy of the male and female psyches. In broadest terms Syzygy (ˈsɪzɪʤi is a kind of unity especially through coordination or alignment most commonly used in the Astronomical and/or Astrological According to Jung, men possess the anima in their unconscious, and this is a caricature of the feminine eros. It is a part of personal individuation for men to confront their anima, by accepting eros (a trait pushed out of phalocratic society). Also intrinsic to this is the ability to see beyond the projected ego and assimilate this into our conscious being. This is eros, as it is the 'desire for wholeness,' which is necessary for us to become in-tune with our selves. By understanding 'passionate love' and the 'desire for wholeness' as 'psychic relatedness,' Jung also demonstrates that the desire for love is a desire for interconnection and interaction with other sentient beings.
See also
- The Greek god Eros
- The Four Loves
- Greek words for love
- Limerence, a modern term describing the infatuation and romantic desires commonly associated with eros. The Four Loves is a Book by C S Lewis which explores the nature of Love from a Christian perspective through thought-experiments There are a number of different Greek words for love, as the Greek language distinguishes how the word is used Limerence, as posited by psychologist Dorothy Tennov, is an involuntary Cognitive and emotional state in which a person feels an intense romantic
- Eroticism
- "Greek love"
References and notes
- ^ Tallis, Frank (February 2005). Greek love is a relatively modern coinage (generally placed within quotation marks intended as a reference to Male bonding and intimate relations between males as practised "Crazy for You". The Psychologist 18 (2).
- ^ See, for example, the Amores and the Heroides of Ovid which frequently refer to the overwhelming passion caused by Cupid's darts. Amores is Ovid 's first completed book published in 16 BC. Amores was written in the elegiac distich. The Heroides ( Her) (“The Heroines” or Epistulae Heroidum (“Letters of Heroines” are a collection of fifteen epistolary Publius Ovidius Naso ( March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD was a Roman poet known to the English -speaking world as Ovid who wrote on many topics including
- ^ See Ovid's letter from Paris, below.
- ^ Ovid. Heroides and Amores. Translated by Grant Showerman. Second edition revised by G. P. Goold. Loeb Calssical Library. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1986, IV, 67-70, p 49. ISBN 0-674-99045-5
- ^ Ovid. Heroides and Amores. Translated by Grant Showerman. Second edition revised by G. P. Goold. Loeb Calssical Library. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1986, XVI, 36-38, pp. 199-201. ISBN 0-674-99045-5
- ^ For more on these tropes in the Ancient Greek novel, see Françoise Létoublon, Les Lieux communs du roman: Stéréotypes grecs d'aventure et d'amour, Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1993. ISBN 90-04-09724-4.
- ^ See the introduction by Nathaniel Edward Griffin to The Filostrato of Giovanni Boccaccio (New York: Bilbo and Tannen, no date. Il Filostrato is a Poem by the Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio, and the inspiration for Geoffrey Chaucer 's Troilus and ISBN 0-8196-0817-X): "This doctrine of the immediate visual perception of one's lady as a prerequisite to the birth of love originated among the beaux esprits de Provence. [. . . ] According to this description, love originates upon the eyes of the lady when encountered by those of her future lover. The love thus generated is conveyed on bright beams of light from her eyes to his, through which it passes to take up its abode in his heart. " (p. 76, note 2)
- ^ For a full discussion of the scene of "love at first sight" in fiction, see Jean Rousset, "Leurs yeux se rencontrèrent" : la scène de première vue dans le roman, Paris: José Corti, 1981. Jean Rousset (1910 Geneva – 2002 was a Swiss literary critic who worked on French literature, and in particular on " Baroque
- ^ Giovanni Boccaccio, The Filostrato (see supra): "In the desription of the enamorment of Troilus is a singular blending of the Provençal conception of the eyes as the birthplace of love with the classical idea of the God of Love with his bows and quiver. . . " (p. 77, note 2)
- ^ Ibid. , canto 1, strophe 29; translation by Nathaniel Edward Griffin and Arthur Beckwith Myrick, p. 147.
| The Four Loves according to C. S. Lewis' book The Four Loves | ||
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