The Four Types of Love

Since early civilizations, Greek philosophers such as Socrates and Plato have debated on the subject of love; Plato thought of love as an emotion that exists in a hierarchical form, whereas Socrates argued that love is a combination of many elements. It is difficult even many years later to truly understand the complexity that love seems to exist as. Throughout the years, though, scientists and philosophers have discovered that there is an organizational method to a successful marriage and that the ideal marriage can be achieved with a strong foundation and specific wants that have been clearly communicated. While there is certainly not reliable, universal formula for the development of a relationship, it can be beneficial for partners to seek the four types of love in each other and to develop a sense of understanding, commitment, and principle. Husbands and wives should understand that loving is an experience that involves effort to improve and development in the presence of several vital needs and wants.

The Huffington Post (2013) reports that the average length of an American marriage is just over eight years; even so, of marriages that exceed eight years, enough end to rank the U.S. the third most-divorced nation. This high rank in divorce rate is not something to be proud of and despite the countless amounts of research invested into understanding this rise in separations, no concrete explanation has been found. Richard Weissbound (2013), an author featured in the Harvard Education Letter explains that a “widespread failure” in romantic love, constant marital conflict, and “quieter” marital misery all contribute to these ever-growing divorce rates (p. 4). The media often reinforces profound and pervasive cultural misconcepti...

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