Sternberg’s triangular theory of love is one of the frameworks designed to explain the concept of love and how it can be applied to relations between individuals. From this perspective, the phenomenon consists of three different aspects such as intimacy, passion, and commitment (“Triangular theory of love,” n.d.). The combination of all these factors indicates consummate love (“Triangular theory of love,” n.d.). At the same time, liking, or intimacy alone, stands for friendship, infatuation implies only passion, romantic love rests on intimacy and passion, compassionate love includes intimacy and commitment, commitment alone introduces empty love, and passion with commitment can determine fatuous love (“Triangular theory of love,” n.d.). In such a way, the model can be viewed as an attempt to classify different types of love regarding the feelings that underlie them and promote an improved understanding of the given concept.
However, the given approach to structuring and determining love cannot be relevant to modern-day perception. This assumption can be evidenced by several factors. First, Sternberg’s theory was offered in 1986, but society and the view on relations had significantly altered since that period. Today, people are more open and build relations easier, which can be viewed as a result of the sexual revolution and less strict morals. Passion might be an indicator of love and serve as the basis for creating a couple. At the same time, the concept of love has also altered as nowadays, it is viewed as something that helps to satisfy a person’s desires (Giddens et al., 2021). In such a way, it became less complicated and more relevant at the same time. As a result, there is no reason for outlining various types of love and analyzing them using the dominant feeling. For this reason, Sternberg’s triangular theory of love loses its relevance in contemporary society.
References
Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R., & Carr, D. (2021). Introduction to Sociology (12th ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.
Triangular theory of love. (n.d.). Web.