When we hear of the word love, we may have experienced it before, but could be a challenge to put it into words, or create a definition of it. “Enduring Love” by Ian McEwan presents many types of “love” throughout its story line, and each of them present distinctive natures of love. It also makes clear of what love is made up of. There are two main love relationships formed throughout the novel. One is the love between Joe and Clarissa. The love between the two is mutual. However, while Joe is a rational scientist, Clarissa is more emotional, and their perceptions towards the other differs significantly. Clarissa has admiration towards Joe’s rationality and intelligence. On the other hand, Joe often talks of love as sex, and has a sexual desire towards …show more content…
Because one feels love, doesn’t determine that his or her partner also feels completely the same as him or her. Love is not equivalent to sex, or attraction, or possession [3]. It is, of course, easily misunderstood, because they all are interpretations and expressions of love. Love is finding out the difference of each other. We are able to become conscious when we find out that we think, act, and feel different from others. Love is the finding out of the difference from others, and by recognizing and accepting it, mutual love is possible. Sharing the differences between people enables us to feel security, which is an emotion created by love. The title of the book, “Enduring Love”, is deeply intertwined with the love that is presented in the plot. From the appendices, Clarissa and Joe’s love could be seen as one that is imperishable. On the other hand, Joe scrutinizes the love from Parry as one he has to bear through. Parry still loves Joe even in the appendices, and is also the last love portrayed in the novel. The title of the book itself displays the ambiguity of love, how it is impossible to define it with