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| The ancient Greeks had numerous expressions for love. Each of the 20 subtly differing emotions was captured through the use of semantics. One sort of love was meant to describe something to the effect of, �I�ll love you if you�� Another was �I love you because you�� and still another described a love above the rest: �I love you despite the fact that�� The Greeks certainly had a knack for putting everything in its artistic place. Incidentally, the archetypical Greek gods and goddesses encapsulate every conceivable emotion. Whatever we as a society now believe, each of us has indeed used the word more than once in our lives and conjure our own notions of what dictionaries define as: intense affection for another based on personal or familial ties; regard or shared experiences; certain desires; a feeling of kindness or benevolence towards humankind; or (in some cases, most importantly) a zero score in tennis� I once heard love defined as caring about someone more than you care about yourself. Whether that�s the case, to love another is to risk rejection. In my mind, nothing requires such a relinquishment of ego. Maybe that's why there have been so many broken hearts and bad lyrics throughout the ages. Love can be glorious, but as the saying goes: Love hurts. And, as exemplified here, famous lovers are more often recognized by the pain that results from submitting to that thing called love and succumbing to the pitfalls that might ensue. Without further ado, here are The B&E�s choices for the Great Lovers of All Time� |
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| Love. What is this many-splendored thing that keeps many young girls sighing and swooning and sustains careers for dead poets? Is it a cosmic connection between two individuals or biochemical reactions in our brains? Regardless, the notion has existed since the recorded history of the world began and lovers since Adam and Eve has succeeded in capturing an ideal found present in even the hardest of hearts. |
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