Abstract

I will discuss in this chapter the philosophical concept of romantic love. I argue that the narrative theory can contribute to a more complete understanding of romantic love. Since romantic love is a dynamic relationship, we can understand it as a story that may have different beginnings and ends. How a love story varies is dependent on changes of the self and perspectives in life, which comprise a narrative identity. The chapter consists of following sections: Philosophical Debates on the Concept of Romantic Love. In this section, I argue that conceptual analysis is inadequate and unnecessary as an explanation of romantic relationship. Romantic Relationship. Here I discuss some of the issues and complexities arising from being in a romantic relationship. I will also show that romantic relationship is different from other kinds of relationships. Love Story. I will discuss in this section how a romantic relationship can be explained in a narrative theory. By ‘narrative theory,’ I mean, essentially speaking, emplotment, i.e., an understanding events as narrative. Paul Ricoeur’s narrative identity has some aspects that enable lovers to understand each other in their love story. Conclusion. Here I will conclude and answer some possible objections.