Hannah Hitchcock

Humanities 2010 B

Mr. Diehl

January 30, 2023

What is love? This is an extremely broad question that can be answered in many

ways. Furthermore, I have decided to interpret the song “And I love her” by The Beatles to

identify the love being represented in this specific context. “And I love her” falls under the

Greek type of love known as Eros a deep and meaningful romantic love. However, this song also

has many lyrics pointing to the mania or obsessive and dark type of Greek love. For example, the

first two lines are as follows, “I give her all my love, that’s all I do” and at first you think it

would be very romantic and sweet to dedicate your time to making sure your significant other

feels loved but looking deeper it feels like what you describe as “love bombing”. Throwing all

your love onto your partner all the time can be overwhelming and “dedicating all your time” as

in it has taken over your life completely as what seems to be a mission is simply neurotic and

deranged. This is significant because it foreshadows that what on the surface is romanticized

may not always be as grand as it seems but that can always be clarified deeper using love

languages, elements of the music, and overlapping themes amongst the bands' other pieces.

Quality time, physical touch, and words of affirmation are the three main

represented love languages in the song “And I love her” by The Beatles. Of course, quality time
 together goes hand in hand with indulging in physical touch, and there are countless instances

where physical touch is mentioned or implied throughout the song. Such as the lines “She gives

me everything, and tenderly, the kiss my lover brings, she brings to me” and “As long as I, have

you near me” gives the audience insight to the extensive amount of quality time these lovers

spend together as well as the intimate contact they share. The examples of words of affirmation

in this song could simply be defined as how many times Paul McCartney repeats the phrase “I

love her” which comes out to be an amount of four times. The significance of learning and

understanding the love languages of this song instead of just the type of love being represented

reveals that though it can seem excessive the love is purely meant in a romantic way to express

the admiration felt for their lover.

The mood of “And I love her” is very soothing, happy, and dreamy. This comes

from the help of the uncommon use of certain instruments such as the bongos and claves. The

strumming of the guitar and slow-paced vocals makes this song seem very innocent and

peaceful. Also, on the topic of vocals, the harmonies are more apparent in certain areas such as

the end of every line giving it a longing and echoing effect emphasizing the romantic love type

of eros being depicted for the woman in his life he is evidently serenading. Of course, the lyrics

support the love being illustrated but depending on how the tone used to bring such lyrics to life

really depicts the effect the song will have on the audience, and Paul does a respectable job of

delivering in a sweet and genuine young love sensation.

 “And I love her” closely relates to the song “Something” also written by The

Beatles because it also represented the two love types of eros and an underlining of mania. In

“And I love her” there is a line that states “The kiss my lover brings, she brings to me, and I love

her” but there is a line in “Something” which is as follows, “Something in the way she moves,

attracts me like no other lover.” Both lines express a romantic and physical attraction coming

from someone considered to have their love. There is another example of overlap such as in

“And I love her” Paul sings “As long as I, have you near me” and in “Something” where it is

sung, “I don’t want to leave her now” exposing the importance of physical presence in this

relationship of romance and physical satisfaction but also displays the mania love of constant

need and longing for the other partner they mention.

“And I love her” by The Beatles or any song written by any artist can be picked apart into many

different explanations based on whoever is listening. Therefore, is love a physical attraction? A

romantically based relationship? Love can be represented in many ways, shapes, and forms but

that is all depicted based on oneself. Your personal experience and type of relationship that you

associate with the term love would answer the broad question of what is love because it is a

personal resolution.