I got interested in the idea that love is often used as a…
““I got interested in the idea that love is often used as a kind of blanket explanation for things. I mean, battered wives, for instance: "Why did you go back to him?" "Oh, I loved him." "Why did you embezzle fifteen million pounds and run away to the other side of the world?" "Oh, well, because I was in love." All that and then you don't ask anything else. I thought if I just say, these people needed love and they found it, then it kind of explained it away. I wanted to look at their behaviour and how love can inspire the best and the very worst in human behaviour but love itself is not behaviour. So I avoided the word 'love' until the very end and it's the last word in the novel. I wanted to explore what people will do when they're in such terrible need of love. If there was a big idea then that was it. Then, of course, I hope that if it's a story worth reading it's the characters themselves who make you want to read it, not the big idea. I don't think a big idea drives a novel usually. Something else has to engage you on a much more kind of personal level. ””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
The author examines how love is used as an excuse for harmful behavior, revealing its limits as a motive.
In simple terms: Love is often blamed for actions, but it isn’t a behavior itself.
Key Takeaway
Question the “love” justification in extreme cases.
Themes
psychology
human behavior
motivation
relationships
Mood
reflective
critical
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- relationship counseling
- legal defense
- character study
- literary analysis
Key Concepts
love as excuse
psychological need
ethical responsibility
Questions to Reflect On
- What drives people beyond love?
- When does love become a harmful rationalization?
A Different Perspective
Love may mask deeper issues like power or desperation.