Emotions that are Conveyed by Song

In most of the songs, the authors and the artist usually communicate their emotions, feelings and ideas by the help of the lyrics, words and phrases which they incorporate in the song. According to Sternberg’s triangular theory of love, the emotion of love can be categorized into three different scales which include intimacy, passion and commitment. The three categories are not left out during the composition of love songs. In “Unpack Your Heart” by Phillip Phillips, “Angel of Mine” by Monica and “I Hate You Then I Love You” by Celine Dion and Luciano Parvoritti, the words and the phrases which have been incorporated clearly signify these three distinct scales of love as extensively discussed in this paper.

To begin with, in “Angel of Mine”, intimacy has been clearly brought out. As extensively elaborated in Sternberg’s triangular theory of love, in the composition of songs, intimacy is often symbolized by the use of phrases which basically describe “who the partner is to the artist”, what kind of a person the partner is to them as well as the roles that the partner have played in their lives. First, there is the refrain which has been repeat in most of the stanzas which reads “angel of mine” (Phillips, 2014). This simply implies that the individual to whom the song is being directed to is “an angel” Monica. Also, in the third stanza of the song, Monica indicates that her life has been significantly changed by the partner. In fact, she says that she is now a different person. On the same note, in the seventh stanza of the song, Monica says that she has only given the priority of making love with the partner alone. In the same composer, passion has not been left out. In the seventh stanza, the composer indicates that each moment which she share with her lover makes her feel as if she were new. However, the words which have been used in the composition of this song lacks sense of commitment. Classifying this song with the triangular theory of love in mind, it can be validly concluded that this genre is a depiction of romantic love, since it communicates both intimacy and passion.

On the other hand, the song “Unpack your Heart” portrays a high level of commitment. Throughout the song, the composer has depicted his readiness to assist the individuals to whom the song has been dedicated to. For instance, in the last line of the first stanza, Phillip says that he is ready to take all that his target party is scared to defend, which simply imply that he is ready for the commitment to defend them on behalf of the party he is dedicating the song to. This continues all along to the third stanza where he asks for the secrets, the scars, the glory, the daylight and the darkness of the recipient of the song. Further, in the last paragraph, Phillip clearly indicates that he is ready to tame the madness of the recipient of the song. The words and the phrases in this genre do not show evidence of intimacy or passion, with the concept of the triangular theory of love in mind. This simply implies that this song is a clear depiction of empty love, according Sternberg triangular theory of love.

Further, the song “I Hate You Then I Love You” opens up on a note of intimacy. In the first stanza, the composer says that leaving her partner would lead to her death. Additionally, in the second stanza, the composer has clearly indicated that her life could be empty if she was to part ways with her lover. Also, passion has significantly been depicted in this song. In the fourth stanza, phrases such as “you make me strong”, “you make me mad” and “you make me long for you” (Dion, 1997) have been included, which signify passion when evaluated with the Sternberg’s triangular theory of love in mind. On the same note, the phrase “…I could never live without you” can imply commitment. It can indicate that the author is ready for a commitment to live with the recipient of the love song. Here, it can be concluded that this song is a depiction of consummate love, since it portrays all the three scales of love which are commitment, passion and intimacy as described by Sternberg’s triangular theory of love.

In conclusion, the love that is experienced by or portrayed by any given individual can be gaged in terms of the level of intimacy, passion and commitment which is shown. As discussed above, the song “Unpack your Heart” only portrays commitment, thereby qualifying to portray empty love. The song “Angel of Mine” portrays both intimacy and passion, which takes it to the level of romantic love. Further, the composer of the song “I Hate You then I Love You” went an extra mile and depicted intimacy, passion and commitment in the song, thereby managing to depict consummate love.

Did you like this example?

736

31