Thankful for Love

11/18/2019

Love is commonly known as the most powerful emotion, one that is said to overrule hate. The word “love” is defined as “noun; an intense feeling of deep affection. noun; a great interest in pleasure in something. verb; feel a deep romantic or sexual attachment to (someone)”. But we also can take this word and define it with our own feelings and experiences we’ve endeavored.
But by the different definitions provided, it leads us to the idea that there can most definitely be different types of love. There is love for doing things such as activities like sports or art, love for the family members you have, love for your significant other, and the list goes on. Although we can distinguish the different types of love we can feel/experience, we still have the power to define them in our own way. Maybe this is what makes love so much more powerful than any other emotion.
Hate still stands as a strong emotion, along side love. As I mentioned previously. Hate is defined as “verb; feel intense or passionate dislike for (someone). noun; intense or passionate dislike”. But we still have the same ability to define hate, just as we do love, with out own experiences and feelings. With that, hate could easily become more powerful than love if one let it. But can love really always overpower hate? Also, imagine a world without hate, or without love. There would be no balance.
That being said, my questions to you are, what do you believe is the strongest emotion? How do you define love? What experiences and feelings have led you to define love? Do you believe hate is stronger than love? How do you define hate? And lastly (in honor of Thanksgiving) what about love makes you thankful?

Sources:
https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/love
https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/hate

36 Comments

Aiden

11/20/2019 03:03:51 pm

I don't think there is a definitive answer on what emotion is the most powerful. I think we have all our feelings to balance our lives. Without hate, love couldn't exist. This may not make sense but when you think about it, if we never suffered then we'd never be happy. There needs to be opposition in all things. I think that love is shown and felt in so many ways. There is the obvious love of another that we often term falling in love that is shown differently than a family love. Also I think people act differently to people they are in love with. Some people are very affectionate while others don't like to show love to their significant other. I think the way you love depends on how you were loved. My parents don't really hug me because they aren't those kind if people. I am not really a person who loves hugs because of this. Love could be defined very differently depending on the person. I think that loving someone includes a deep caring and appreciation for them. Hate on the other hand can be a deep resentment and anger towards someone. Like I said earlier it is not weaker or stronger than love but I think equal. Hate can cause people to do things they would never usually do. I've never been able to harbor dislike for anyone for very long, even if I try. I always forget how they wronged me and continue on life. I am thankful that we have love as an emotion to convey to our friends and family that we see and appreciate their acts and sacrifices for us. This allows us to form strong bonds with people we want to be close too. I'm thankful for the people in my life who I can enjoy being around and love their company. They are a true blessing in my life.

Faith

11/24/2019 10:15:44 am

You made a lot of good points. Everyone defines love very differently.

Andy Gebhardt

11/24/2019 01:52:29 pm

Your point about ho much it can strengthen bonds is so true. Long-lasting friendships come from loving relationships and those ones are worth going through the struggles with. Is there an opposite emotion to every single one we have? If so why?

Ezra

11/24/2019 06:17:42 pm

If you ever need a hug I got you bro. Everyone needs a hug sometimes

Madicyn

12/2/2019 05:55:41 pm

One of the things you mentioned is how people show their love, many people call this their “love language”. There is five of them, acts of service, physical touch, words of affirmation, gift receiving, and quality time. In many cases, if people in a relationship don’t have the same love language or ones that compliment them, the relationship can fail or be more difficult.

Ezra

11/24/2019 10:37:30 am

Love and Hate are both very powerful, and it really depends what people are feeling. There are times when a person is stressed and hate can be easier to show, or there might be a time someone did something for another and love is easy to spread to others. Love for me is when I want to hangout with a person or people more than anything else, or when I go out of the way to hang out with someone then that is love. Since I live out of town I'm not going to drive all the way in and waste gas unless I want to spend time with those people. I hate people who are exactly opposite of my personality. For Thanksgiving I am thankful that people invented all these great traveling technologies, so our loved ones can visit. Even though they are poisoning the world they are still good for one thing.

Andy Gebhardt

11/24/2019 01:54:45 pm

You mentioned hate and love being easier to show in some circumstances. Are these powerful emotions really so touch and go or is that a different emotion?

Tori Weir

11/24/2019 02:57:28 pm

Hate and love are strong emotions that can make a person feel and behave differently towards something. You said that you hate people who are exactly opposite of your personality, would you act differently with them?

Aiden

11/24/2019 03:06:46 pm

We definitely use sacrifice as a way to show appreciation for people I agree, even our precious gasoline.

Brax Kauffman

11/24/2019 03:20:47 pm

Besides wanting to hangout with someone over other people, what are other ways you believe establishes love in your life?

Alyssa Farnworth

11/24/2019 06:10:34 pm

I agree that other emotions may get in the way of showing how we feel. What is your definition of hate? Do you just dislike a person or not get along with them, etc. as you said you hate people who are the opposite of you?

Andy Gebhardt

11/24/2019 01:50:02 pm

The emotion that is the most powerful can be somewhat dependent on the person. In a lot of people, the love for something or someone is one of the biggest motivating factors. However, the opposite can be true as well with hate. I believe these two emotions are the most powerful because they often imbalance our rational thinking by want or revenge. As I have grown up the love from my family is one of the best examples I have. There are hard times when we do not get along but overall we are supportive, caring, and enjoy each other’s company. I have seen what hate does to people but it can often be gone in an instant. That is why I believe love is so much stronger. You can go through struggles that make it harder to love but the feelings are still there and it will never be gone. I an thankful for love because it is such an important emotion to have. Sometimes it gets in the way of clear thinking but maybe risks are worth taking sometimes. What would the word be like without love?

Tori Weir

11/24/2019 02:50:12 pm

I always found it interesting how people show their feelings. Some may express them in silent ways while others verbally say how they feel. Does personality directly influence their emotions? Such as love and hate.

Aiden

11/24/2019 03:05:10 pm

I agree it’s about the person. Sometimes it’s a time period as well. Hardships can control our emotions.

Brax Kauffman

11/24/2019 03:23:04 pm

How easy do you think it is to develop the connection of love with a new person? Along with that, how easy do you think it is to break a connection you have already had with someone such as a family member or friend?

Tori Weir

11/24/2019 02:41:42 pm

It is easy to act based on emotions due to that they hold a huge influence on how a person feels and react to it. I believe there is no single emotion stronger than any others, because if someone is passionate about something they will feel that emotion the strongest. Although love and hate are one of the strongest feelings, because they have a higher influence where people can act on them. For somebody to love another they would have to have complete trust and share a bond with that person. There are different types of levels of love depending on the person and the relationship with the other person. How I view love is always showing that people love them, never giving up, and supporting them. Another experience I have seen with my family is someone doing something for another person even though they do not like it. Even though my family and I have some struggles we are always there to support and love each other. I am always grateful for my family loving me unconditionally and never giving up on me when I make a mistake. When it comes to hate, I define it as someone who is resenting and despise something. It is not as strong as love but it can make people do something they may regret in the future.

Faith

11/24/2019 04:25:40 pm

It’s amazing that family can love you unconditionally and still accept you no matter your faults. What is one moment in particular you can recall?

Alyssa Farnworth

11/24/2019 06:04:16 pm

I am grateful for love for the same reasons it is always comforting to know your family will love you no matter what. I also like what you said about hate. Do you think people always regret what they do out of hate?

Brax Kauffman

11/24/2019 03:14:13 pm

Both emotions can be powerful given certain circumstances. In both cases they can lead to irrational thinking which can be beneficial or detrimental depending on the situation. I believe that hate can lead to more happening over love. While there are great acts of love around the world, we see most of it throughout literature rather than history. Hate is seen more throughout history over any other emotion. Different variations of hate are what lead to wars, discrimination, and other problems seen no mater what time period you look in. This is a sad thought but the reason for this is because people remember the negatives in history more than the positives. This is crucial because it is the fact that we remember these instances, we have the opportunity to learn from them.
If the world did not have love or hate in our lives then like we have previously said, history would become much easier to predict. We wouldn’t have to acknowledge that someone would do something out of character since everyone would think rationally and efficiently.

Ezra

11/24/2019 06:20:41 pm

I have never really thought about the lack of love in history, it is an interesting point. It is very true though.

Paige

11/24/2019 06:35:50 pm

I think hate is more prevalent in history because of the detrimental effects it caused to society. It is important to note these events so they do not reoccur. I feel that love is not as focused on and if it was then we would be able to see more acts of love and kindness in society

Madicyn

12/2/2019 06:01:37 pm

You made a really great observation about the difference of love and hate shown throughout history. We really are not taught about many positive events that had happened.

Alyssa Farnworth

11/24/2019 06:00:56 pm

I believe both love and hate are very powerful emotions and both have changed the world. It would not be fair to say one is stronger than the other as it is different for each person. Most would like to think that they are driven by love though. Many would argue that their is more hate than love in our current and past societies, but it could also be argued that we focus more on the negative. I cannot remember the last time I saw a positive news article but I see a murder, kidnapping, etc. on a daily basis. It may be sad to see these things daily but we can also learn from them. We can learn how to prevent and or stop certain events from happening. We can learn from the positive ones as well which is why I feel they should be highlighted more often. Due to the power love and hate do hold it is important to manage those emotions.
I believe love is stronger than hate. Personally, I don’t have one definition for each. This has been developed because of my different relationships with people that have been in my life. I am grateful for love because it allows us to form closer relationships with friends, family, etc.

Paige

11/24/2019 06:31:18 pm

I did not think how it would be unfair to define which emotion is greater. I'm glad that you mentioned this and noted how society tends to focus on the negative. How do you think the world would be if society was more positive?

Sabrina

11/24/2019 06:58:08 pm

Would this mean casting these news stories in a better light or keeping them hidden to focus on the good?

Kately

11/24/2019 07:10:23 pm

I agree, it’s difficult to put words to them, let alone definitions. I believe emotion to be on a spectrum, I might feel more strongly to one emotion to a certain person, or a lesser one. Love truly allows us to form relationships more fully.

Paige

11/24/2019 06:26:30 pm

Love is most certainly stronger than hate. It just takes someone to understand the meaning of love for them to overcome the hate that they carry. Hate and love are both intense emotions. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs explains the importance of belonging. Once that need is fulfilled an individual is able to feel and develop love.
I feel the most monumental experience that has brought me to the understanding of love is the relationship I have with my parents. From the time I was born my parents have loved me unconditionally, and as I grew and gained knowledge I was able to reciprocate those feelings.
I also believe that there are a variety of forms of love and romantic love is just slim among all those forms. I am grateful for the variety that comes in love and how it brings families and friends together.

Sabrina

11/24/2019 07:01:51 pm

When we talk about love, people usually think that romantic love is at the peak of that topic, but I like that you claimed it was just a slim part of it. I love my family, my dog, George Washington, and its not romantic.

Erykah

11/24/2019 07:25:44 pm

It's interesting that humans have developed more than one type of love. Numerous species require some element of love and care for survival. Do you think humans could adapt or evolve to live without love?

Kately

11/24/2019 06:44:37 pm

Emotion is strong ammunition and initiative. It can push you to do something you may never have considered, in either a negative or positive context. It can fuel a person effectively, but they must take care in how it is used.

Kately (continued)

11/24/2019 07:04:34 pm

Love makes the world go round as they say. It’s love that prompts a mother to look after her children, that prompts their father to go to work every day. It’s what prompts people to be charitable to their fellow man, because if it was their loved one, they would hope someone would show them the same. A world without love is a dead one, even if it still operates, it does so without purpose.

Erykah

11/24/2019 07:21:54 pm

I agree that love gives us purpose. The reason why we stress over school is because we love our parents and don't want to disappoint them. In a world without love, do you think we would be left to fend for ourselves?

Sabrina

11/24/2019 06:56:43 pm

I think love and hate are equally powerful. "There are two wolves inside you..." and it depends on the person which one is stronger. Love is easily corrupted and turned to hate. Humans hate inconvenience so when someone isn't perfect we dislike them. As creatures with empathy, it is also easy to understand others. Hate and love are two sides of the same coin. I'm not sure there is a way to describe either. They are both powerful feelings either in favor or in disdain of something or someone that make you act out in what seems to be irrational ways to other people. Love and even hate help you gain relationships. Relationships based on love can become unbreakable while relationships based on hate, usually a mutual disdain, are selfish and easily betrayed. I am very thankful of the relationships that I have because of love. I'm also thankful that I love myself because that might be the most important relationship in my life.

Kately

11/24/2019 07:06:39 pm

The ability to love ones self comes very hard to some, being able to do so can inspire others to do the same. How else can you help others who struggle with self love?

Erykah

11/24/2019 07:14:34 pm

Love is the emotional connection between two people, or a person and an activity or object, who immensely care about each other. This connection can be between parents and children, siblings, partners, or even humans and pets. It’s difficult to define love although it’s experienced often. Everyone has a different view of love, which is why I made my definition broad. My family has always demonstrated unconditional love towards me and my sister. Although there are times when my parents are not happy with me, I know that they just want the best for me. I am incredibly thankful for my strong relationship with my family because I will always have a group of people who love and support me no matter what.

Hate, on the other hand, is when a person loathes another person or thing. I find hate more straight-forward, but it’s still different for everyone. I don’t believe hate is stronger than love. If this were true, the world would be an unhappy, lonely place, and I am forever grateful that it isn’t our reality.

Madicyn

12/2/2019 05:52:24 pm

I don’t believe that love or emotions is something that can be defined as one specific thing. As people we are constantly changing, therefore our emotions are as well. Regardless of that, each emotion as a different level, or type. I love my mom differently than I love my dogs or my ex boyfriends. Another example, I love food differently than I love my sisters. We have family love, materialistic love, maternity love, romantic love, and so many more sorts of love. Each and every one of us has a type of love language as well. It’s just another organizational structure we’ve put onto ourselves to understand each other better. There’s many different types of love languages and in many situations, If one doesn’t correspond well with another’s, the relationship usually falls and burns. Now hate and love do go hand in hand. You can’t hate without love, and you cannot love without hate. It can be a very complicated concept to grasp.

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