The Four Loves: Eros

I really enjoyed this writing by Lewis. Lewis talks about eros. Eros is a true love that comes from being "in love". It is also a kind of sexual love. At first This type of love is great. You dive right in and its wonderful. After a time though, you have to learn to keep swimming. That is an illustration that Lewis used. Eros is a powerful love that many mistake. A man who has eros in his heart will say that he would prefer to be unhappy and together with a woman rather than leave her and find happiness elsewhere. When a man firsts finds eros he doesn't want a woman for what he can obtain from her. He doesn't even really view her as a woman. He falls in love with her personality. I think this is an awesome point that Lewis makes. Too many people these days only look at women as objects. Lewis uses an example like this. When you buy a pack of cigarettes what do you buy it for? You smoke the cigarette and then when its burned down you throw it out. You don't keep the butt of the cigarette and you don't keep the package. You only want the cigarette for what you can get from it: the nicotine. The same goes for men who don't have eros. Eros is about the beloved. You want the woman for her companionship, not what you gain from her. In that companionship, once you get married then its okay to start developing your sexual relationship with her. You owe it to each other to satisfy each others needs. Within marriage Paul says that you shouldn't abstain from sex for too long. You are to bring pleasure to your partner as a sort of obligation. All of this is wonderful inside of marriage. But it should only be experienced inside of marriage and not outside of it. God commands us to take care of our bodies. We are to only share ourselves with one person.