Being in love with being in love?

January 19, 2007 10:23 AM

Is there a term for being in love with the concept of love?

Back when I was in ninth grade, we were reading Romeo and Juliet, and my teacher went over some literary terms and descriptions (like Aristotelian tragedy, deus ex machina, etc.). One of them was a specific term or description of someone who is in love with the idea of being in love. I remember thinking it was a great word or term, and that I shouldn't forget it, but bam, there it is, forgotten. Anyone know what it is? Google fails me, and I am starting to think I just dreamed it.

posted by mckenney to writing & language (13 comments total)

Petrarchan lover?
posted by amro at 10:26 AM on January 19, 2007

Was it "courtly love"?
posted by interrobang at 10:31 AM on January 19, 2007

The simple Greek root mashup for "philophilia" shows up with the definition in google searches, but it really doesn't sound like a word any of my English teachers would've used.
posted by milkrate at 10:32 AM on January 19, 2007

"But I haven't learned yet
What love may be
But I love to love
And love being loved
And that is a whole lot
Of unlearnedness."
posted by GuyZero at 10:39 AM on January 19, 2007

Petrarchan lover sounds like it would be right, and after googling it, it would make sense that it would come up in English class.

You guys are awesome.
posted by mckenney at 10:41 AM on January 19, 2007

Ludus?
posted by Methylviolet at 10:44 AM on January 19, 2007

I dunno, but Rodgers and Hart wrote a song about it.
posted by briank at 10:46 AM on January 19, 2007

Philophilia?
posted by ontic at 11:16 AM on January 19, 2007

One of my teachers used that ("in love with love") as the definition of infatuation.
posted by timepiece at 11:33 AM on January 19, 2007

I had heard the term "erotomania", but looking it up on the internets, it appears that's more about being under the delusion that someone is in love with you who actually isn't.
posted by pazazygeek at 11:39 AM on January 19, 2007

Hopeless romantic.
posted by dragonsi55 at 2:23 PM on January 19, 2007

My ex-husband. In love with the idea of being in love. As soon as reality crept in, he was off on his next adventure. Meh.
posted by Corky at 4:51 PM on January 19, 2007

Isn't there a song about the "love jones?"
posted by altcountryman at 6:40 PM on January 19, 2007