Some people want to fill the world with silly love songs. What’s wrong with wrong with that?
By Abby Paras '24
Photo Courtesy of Abby Paras '24
If you happen to be in any public place in Williamsburg, whether around Valentine’s Day or not, chances are, a love song is playing. Almost every artist, either modern or old, has at least one in their discography. Love songs are ubiquitous. From Motown girl group songs to 80s arena ballads to the bright, poppy songs of today, love has been written about in every era, every genre. It’s something that everyone can understand, something everyone can relate to in at least some sort of way.
So what exactly is a love song? Most people would agree that in general, love songs are written from the perspective of one person singing to another, usually about how much they love each other. This is different from a breakup song, which, as the name suggests, deals with love ending rather than beginning, and are generally sadder. While breakup songs often fall under the category of love songs, for the sake of Valentine’s Day, we’ll say that a love song should reflect the positive sides of love.
Love songs are also almost always used in a romantic context. However, I think it is important to point out that romantic love is far from the only kind of love. In fact, the ancient Greeks believed in eight different types of love. The first is philia, or platonic love. Essentially, there is no romantic attraction. It represents the love between two friends. One of my favorite songs that represents the concept of philia is Queen’s ‘You’re My Best Friend’. The song is about the pure joys of friendship and of having someone who understands you on another level. Though the world may be cruel, having friends to love makes it a lot easier to bear.
The next type of love the Greeks listed is pragma, or enduring love. This is the love that lasts forever, the love that has weathered the ups and downs of life. One of my favorite songs about this type of love is ‘This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)’ by Natalie Cole. The song is an ode to a relationship that has only just begun, but they will last together forever. These types of love songs are the ones you would usually find at weddings, often serving as an unspoken commitment between two people who are in it for the long term.
The concept of storge concerns family love, whether between siblings or between a parent and child. Oftentimes these are excluded from the category of love songs, but I think love between family members is just as important as any other kind of love. ‘A Song for Mama’ by Boyz II Men represents this type of love perfectly, emphasizing that, while other women may come and go, a mother is forever. If both the singer and the listener have a good relationship with their families, I think these types of love songs can be the most touching and heartfelt.
Onto the most common type of love song: eros. Eros, the idea of romantic love, is named for the Greek god of the same concept. Most love songs deal with this type of love, whether they’re about a lost love, falling in love for the first time, or anything in between. There are about a million songs I could use for this type of love, but for this one, I think I’m going to have to go with Taylor Swift. ‘Love Story’ rewrites one of, if not the most famous love story of all time, Romeo and Juliet, into a story of love at first sight that ends with a happy marriage proposal. These are the songs that come to mind when someone says ‘love song’, and they can be some of the most beautiful in existence.
Now, my personal favorite type of love song is the ones about ludus, or playful love. While the definition of this one is a little looser, these are the more lighthearted, upbeat songs, usually the ones about new love. ‘My Girl’ by the Temptations is not only one of my favorite feel-good songs, but it is a sweet, lighthearted love song about finding sunshine on a cloudy day.
Mania, or obsessive love, may fall in the range of ‘problematic’ love songs, or the love songs that aren’t quite love songs. These maybe aren’t the best representatives for Valentine’s Day love songs, but they can be fun all the same. One of the most popular obsessive love songs is ‘Every Breath You Take’ by the Police. Although many use it as a love song, it’s a little concerning to think that someone is watching with every breath you take.
Another type of love song that tends to be more upbeat are those of philautia, or self-love. These are the songs about being confident in yourself and learning that sometimes, the person that needs the most love in your life is you. All of this is perfectly summed up in Mary J. Blige’s ‘Love Yourself’, where she aptly sums it up as “You gotta love yourself before you love somebody else.”
Finally, there is agape, the idea of selfless love. This is less about person-to-person love or self-love and more about love as a concept. It’s the idea that the world might be a better place if everyone loved each other a little more. It’s the idea that you should put love out into the universe, even if you can’t say for sure that you’re getting any back. It’s the epitome of the ‘60s counterculture movement, and has perhaps never been summed up better than The Beatles’ ‘All You Need is Love’. Sometimes, love is all you need.
So perhaps the reason love songs are so common is that there are so many types of love to write about. Most people in the world, if they’re lucky, have experienced at least one of these types of love that they can relate to. Of course, there are the negative love songs, like the aforementioned breakup songs, but in the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to focus on the positive ones.
I surveyed students and teachers, friends and family alike to compile what William and Mary (and I) think are the greatest love songs. This playlist does tend to skew towards older songs, but according to the William and Mary community, these are some of the most popular, classic, and lasting love songs.