Greetings, You ask the greatest question that cannot be answered by science.
Love, by virtue, cannot be quantified. So. You asked for the definition your responder's used. I can give you several, but, what sort of love are you referring to? The love of one's self? The love for one's "mate"? The love of one's children/family? The list goes on. You left the door wide open. If you mean all of those, I reply- "Love is something eternal- the aspect may change, but not the essence. There is the same difference in a person before and after he is in love as there is an unlighted lamp and one that is burning. The lamp was there and it was a good lamp, but now it is shedding light, too, that is its real function."-- Vincent Van Gogh As far as love goes in other animals, I can give one example that is very familiar to me. The love that exists between myself and my dog (Kit). I would gratefully defend him, with my life, as he would defend me. I feel the same love for him as I do my family: mother, father, brother... Not all humans feel this way, so (of course) there is not a scientific endeavor to quantify this relationship. However, I know that should worst come to worst, we would die for each other. How does Kit feel? I couldn't tell you definitely as he does not speak English. Now, Kit's feeling may be quantified as a "die for the greater good of the pack" instinct that comes with pack animals, not realizing that he is part of a pack of another species. He may or may not know. However. That is the greatest difference. Love, much like religion and God, cannot be reached by science. I am a scientist, I also believe in "God". I love my dog as though he were my child, but these are not things that inter-cross. According to my religion the animals are below us. Obviously, I see beyond those constraints. Science is knowledge. Its purpose is to remove all feeling, subjectivity. While this may be impossible to carry out, it is important in the definition of science. Love is a feeling, the same as religion, faith or belief, do not intertwine them or you will come out dry. The matter of other organisms feeling love is irrelevant to science in itself. Act as though everything feels like you do. Love is a feeling, not a fact. I feel that a Creator exists and that my mother loves me. This may be because it is true, or because I do not accept a world without a Creator and I choose to see my Mother's instincts to prolong herself through me and my children as a "motherly love". Science is the knowledge of facts, not what feelings are in existence. Leave it be and feel as you were meant to feel. Deal with science as it was meant to be, as factual information, not feelings. MCC Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is that little voice at the end of the day that says: "I'll try again tomorrow." -- Anne Hunninghake ________________________________________ From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [[email protected]] On Behalf Of John Swaddle [[email protected]] Sent: Monday, December 06, 2010 6:47 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Non-human love survey I am conducting some research on concepts of love in non-human organisms. To that end I would be very interested in receiving individual responses to the following two questions. 1. Do you think that non-human organisms can experience/feel love? 2. In thinking about your answer to #1, how did you define "love"? I am keen to hear individual opinions rather than collective responses and rebuttals, so please email me off-list at [email protected] All responses will be treated confidentially and not reported with any aspects of individual identity. Many thanks, John Swaddle Professor, Biology College of William and Mary Williamsburg, VA
