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THE LOVE THAT
SATISFIES
T
o
be loved is the most desperate of human needs.
In
an age
of dizzying change and frustrating lone–
liness, the need to flnd the /ove that satisfles ts
one
W '
uvt
in a dislocated, roor–
less and rransient world.
Ir
is a world taxing our abil–
ity ro maintain sanity. Ir is che age of
Alvin Toffier's
Fut11re
Sbock.
Western
man "muse search out rorally new
ways ro anchor himself," says Toffier,
"for all che old roors - rcligion, na–
rion, community , family or profession
- are now shaking."
One may disagree wirh sorne of
Toffier's solucions, bur there is no
doubt thar all che old roots are being
shattered by che impact of a world
that threatens ro isolate che individual
and ro buffer him abour wirh endless
changes.
That new way to anchor ourselves
is wirh che love rhat sarisfies, che sub–
ject of chis anide.
The Search for Love
Every human finds himself a pare
of rhe hunt ro find chis meaníng.
Psy–
choanalyst Erich Fromm sees chis
hunt for union in love as man's most
basic quesr.
PlAIN TRUTH
December 1972
of
man'
s most basic searches.
by
Poul Williom Kroll
"The deepest need of man," says
Fromm, "ís che need ro overcome sep–
arareness, ro leave rhe prison of hís
aloneness.
"*
Humans in every age and culture
are faced wírh díscovering che solu–
tion to one basic quesrion. In
Fromm's words, iris "the question of
how ro overcome separareness, how
ro achieve union, how ro rransccnd
one's own individual life and find ar–
one-mcnt."
In our age, che !ove that can shat·
ter chis prison of separareness is a
mosr basic need.
To experience che kind of love chat
will rruly give meaning ro our lives.
we muse firsc undersrand which !oves
or pseudo-loves do nor permanenrly
saris~· ·
They have blínded man's eyes
ro rhe onl)' love rhat can bring com–
plete saósfacrion.
Our mísdirecred search for rhe !ove
that sarisfies is reflecred in che norion
• All9uores arrriburcd
10
Ench Fromm are from hi'
book.
The Arto[
l.omlf!..
Bancam Book.>. Ncw York.
19%.
of romanric !ove. In che lasr few gen–
erarions, che ideal of romanric !ove
has caprured che imagination of che
Western world. Romanric !ove is
uscd as a gimmick ro sell rrinkers and
coilcrrics. Produce advercisemenrs run–
ning thc gamut from breakfast cereals
ro brcach sprays inserr a hefry porrion
of romance into rhci.r hard seJl.
We sing abour chis romancic love
in rhe chousands of popular songs
ground ouc in che pase severa!
decadcs. Turn on che radio and you
may hcar:
SHE: "l don't know much about
chis rhing called love."
HE:
"I don'r know much abour ir
eirher. bab)'. but l'm willing ro rry.''
THFY: "Ler's find love rogerher,
bab). you and me ... thar's rhe way
ir's gorro
be."
The words of chis popular Ameri–
can song aprly express che human
pursuir for sorne kind of !ove rhat
will sarisfy.
Songs ovcr many decades from
"Some Enchanccd Evening" ro
25