By: Verónica Terán (Translated by Susan Brand)
Valentine’s Day is one of the most significant dates of the year because it celebrates love, friendship, affection, and the importance of giving and receiving love. It is one of many days of love in which to remember our loved ones and friends, and above all, another opportunity to tell them how much we love them! To thank them for being in our life!
As we commemorate this date, let’s consider the relevance of literary works that marked a milestone in the history of love. It is important to remember their contribution to the subject, which includes the love of art and the love of life.
Chilean writer, Alejandro Zambra explains that the main theme of literature is always love and belonging. Thus, there are an infinite number of topics on that theme: love, mystery, science fiction, sadness, hatred, revenge, and death.
Great Authors on Love and Belonging
Let’s look at the work of three more literary authors and their perspective of love and belonging.
As Lope de Vega, one of the most important poets and playwrights of the Spanish Golden Age wrote: “The root of all passions is love. From love is born sadness, joy, and despair.”
Victor Hugo offers a contrasting perspective: “When love is happy it leads the soul to sweetness and goodness.”
Quoting Oscar Wilde, writer, poet and playwright of “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, he has a character give advice to Dorian:
“I don’t laugh, Dorian; at least, I don’t laugh at you. But you must not say, ‘the great love story of your life’. You must say ‘it is the first’. They will always love you, and you will always be in love with love.”
Dorian thinks that the depth of his moral fiber is question, so the other character clarifies, “My dear boy, the people who love only once in their lives are really the shallow people. What they call their loyalty and their fidelity, I call either the lethargy of custom or their lack of imagination. Faithfulness is to the emotional life is what consistency is to the life the intellect–simply a confession of failure. Faithfulness! I must analyze it someday. The passion for property is in it. There are many things that we would throw away if we were not afraid that others might pick them up.”
Wilde, in this way, is exploring morality vs. hedonism, and indeed, real love itself.
Our Insights
As we in the dialogue circles reflect on art, life, love, and belonging, we find that: Life is too short to bear the brunt of others’ mistakes. Each person spends his own life and love, (or lack of love), and pays his own price for it.
We also see that in its dealings with human beings, Love and Fate will never close accounts.
The Opportunity
This Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to connect with your loved ones and friends. To remember them because they are important in your life. No one has assured tomorrow. The only sure thing is the present, and what better way to enjoy it than to write a message of love that you have in mind for that special person in your life. Celebrate love by saying, writing or shouting, “I LOVE YOU!!” – today and every day.
“Pearls of Inspiration” are insights and topics that arise from our Ecuadorian neighborhood dialogue circles that are taking place, virtually through
Zoom. ID 278 275 0942
If you speak Spanish, we hope you will join us! All are welcome.
In the future, we hope to offer dialog circles in English. Follow this space.
