Dear Friends,
Just when we thought we exhausted the topic of love, Matilda opened a
new rich seam on the subject for debate. This Sunday we will be
discussing: Bye, Bye Love letters.
What makes love letters special? And more seriously has the digital age
destroyed love?
It cannot be the thoughts and ideas in love letters, as such, that makes
love letters special. An email can easily capture the feelings and
sentiments in prose of a lover as much as a hand written letter. I do
not think that the emotions and sentiments are lost or will be lost in
love emails, but I do agree that love letters do have a value which
emails do not have.
The unique quality of a love letter is that it is written in the hand
writing of the lover. The unique hand writing of the lover is
transmitted on to a piece of tangible paper and is a physical token once
touch by the lover. A text set in Ariel 12pt on a screen will never
transmit this physical proximity. Love emails are like fish in an
aquarium: pretty but they cannot be touched.
For extra effect a love letter can even be scented with a special
perfume which only the lovers can enjoy with a profound meaning. And
which part of the monitor or mobile phone does one kiss to send a tender
kiss to one's lover?
But does an email kill romance? I do not think that the digital age will
kill romance but it will certainly kill the love letter for the simple
reason that the love letter has today been replaced by the love chat
(including email). This is not only romantic but also intimate and more
importantly it is immediate. But there is an added advantage of the love
chat and that is it can be repeated at any time of the day or night.
This is a huge contrast to waiting for the postman in the morning; yes
at the time they were men!
Unfortunately, Newton's third law, for every action, there is an equal
and opposite reaction (Wikipedia), also applies to love emails or love
chats. A digital romance gone wrong can have serious implications. The
problem is not so much that these romantic digital exchanges can be
discovered, but once discovered they are potentially open for the rest
of the world to see.
Moreover, it's very easy to misdirect a love email to the wrong person
especially if you already have a partner and you misdirect your love
email to your partner. It's very unlikely that we address a love letter
meant for our lover to our partner.
An intimate photo taken under a spell of romance can easily ruin or
damage the reputation of a victim; it might even be a crime to publish
such photos. But then again photos today are part of the love email or
love chat which might not have been easy in the past.
The letters might have gone, but the world of love and romance is still
here; if, that is, we can get away from social media and the internet to
convert the digital world into a physical world.
Best Lawrence
tel: 606081813
philomadrid@gmail.com
Blog: http://philomadrid.blogspot.com.es/
MeetUp https://www.meetup.com/PhiloMadrid-philosophy-group/PhiloMadrid
Meeting
from Lawrence, SUNDAY PhiloMadrid meeting at 6:30pm: Bye, Bye Love letters
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