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The ancient Greeks define pragma as “enduring love.” In other words, it’s almost the opposite of Eros (sexual love). Eros tends to burn out quickly because of its passion
and intensity. However, Pragma is a love that has matured and developed over a long period of time.

The kind of old married couples who have been together since their teenage years and still hold hands, well, that’s a great example of pragma. Unfortunately, this kind of
love is somewhat rare to find – especially in society today. These days, low self-esteem, selfish neediness, lack of communication and unrealistic expectations mean that
people rarely have the tolerance, patience or desire for love to grow over time. They aren’t prepared to wait, they want perfection and they want it now.

Example of Pragma love: Think about your grandparents, and how they have endured so much, but have always chosen each other. The love which endures in sickness
and in health. The love which makes a friend care for their former school friend who has become vulnerable in later life.

8. Mania: Obsessive Love

Mania is not necessarily a good type of love, because it is obsessive. It’s the type of love that can lead someone into madness, jealousy, or even anger. That is
because the balance between Eros (sexual) and Ludus (playful) is terribly off.

Many people who experience this type of love suffer from low self-esteem. They fear losing the object of their love, and this fear compels them to say or do
some “crazy” things in order to keep them.

If not kept under control, mania can be very destructive.

In closing, there is, of course, a kind of crossover between the seven positive types of love, which keep on seeping and passing into one another. For Plato,
love aims at beautiful and good things, because the possession of beautiful and good things is called happiness, and happiness is an end-in-itself. Of all
beautiful and good things, the best, most beautiful, and most dependable is truth or wisdom, which is why Plato called love not a god but a philosopher: ‘He
whom love touches not walks in darkness’.

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