Love is a fascinating concept, in part because of the dichotomies that it can often be defined by. Some have asserted that the universal language is that of love. We as humans connect with one another and all innately know this complex and nuanced concept. However, while we may all relate to the concept as a whole, I believe that the love we, as individuals experience and apply in a variety of situations in distinctly unique. What I mean to say is that love is so personal and subjective that while we may be able to convey the general idea of love, we cannot ever truly describe or convey in a way that is accurate the feeling of love that is uniquely our own. For example, it is easy to assert that the weight and importance of the love …show more content…
Love is a meaningful and dynamic concept. Love seems to be the product of some relationship between one’s self and another entity of some form, and because people, as well as places, things ideas etc., are hardly ever static and unchanging, there is a plastic quality that I associate with love. The second tension within the meaning of love arises when this idea of a plastic love mixes with my understanding of love as unconditional. Love, in my eyes, is constantly evolving and refining as the relationships and parties involved change. Love is full of meaning and life because of its nuance and complexities, resulting in my concept of love as less of a definitive, and more as the balance of the tension that lies between love as a common language yet also uniquely personal, and between love as unconditional yet dynamic and …show more content…
However, when only concerned with living a happy life, I argue that a delusional sense of happiness is as real to the person experiencing it as objective happiness (if there even is such a thing), and therefore is just as valid. It seems to me that it matters not the situation or circumstance of one’s life but only the habitual quality and framing of their thoughts. I specifically point out quality of thought as opposed to simply positivity of thought when thinking about the mindset for happiness because of my appreciation of Nettle’s described Happiness 3. This is the feeling of content that comes from when one lives a “good life”. Living well in this sort of way involves the filling of a potential and the rising to meet a purpose outside of yourself. While Happiness 1 and 2 are initially most attractive, I believe where true happiness lies is in living the life granted to you through achieving a higher purpose and a sense of completion through Happiness 3. For me to live a truly happy and meaningful life, I need to feel as if I am doing with my life what I was meant to do, striving for a higher