Exploring Euphoria: Love's Comparable High

“Falling in love is the best high you can get without breaking any laws,” phycologist Shauna H. Springer writes to Alternet Magazine in regards to a study conducted by Dr. Helen Fisher at the Kinsey Institute. In this study, Fisher captures the idea that love can ignite the same euphoric feeling cocaine gives. Human nature drives an inevitable desire to find this drug and love induced euphoria. The poem, “Upon the breeze she spread her golden hair” by Francesco Petrarch and the song, “Northern Wind” written and performed by City and Colour both comparatively capture the feeling of true love as well as the pain that it can cause. Although these two selections differ in exact situation, both speakers use similar diction to explore the theme

Imagery in “Upon the breeze,” is demonstrated with the use of hyperboles and symbols when noting that she had “golden hair” with “a thousand gentle knots” (line 1-2). This captivating diction leaves the reader with an exaggerated image of her angelic aesthetics. The “sweet light” that “burned in [her] eyes” (3-4), also uses exaggerated language for the reader to better grasp how euphoric the love actually was. “Now that radiance is rare” (4) reflects on the opportunity he won’t be able to get back because what he once saw in her eyes is no longer there. The speakers desire to rekindle “love’s tinder” knowing that his “breast [will be] unburned” (7-8) symbolizes the passion he has for her going unnoticed because the feelings are not mutually shared. In contrast, the figurative language in “Northern Wind” uses similes and metaphors to express its imagery. In regards to euphoric love, “You’re the Northern wind sending shivers down my spine” (line 1-2), metaphorically demonstrates that just the idea of this woman’s love is powerful enough for him to experience an unconditioned physical response. Following each metaphor, the artist gives a simile also expressing what her love feels like to him. “You’re like the cold December snow in the warm July sun” (16-17), compares her love directly to the refreshing sensation of cold snow landing on you in the heat of summers day. The artist repeats this pattern with another comparative metaphor stating that this woman is a “lullaby… singing [him] to sleep” (5-6), inferring that her love brings him enough peace and tranquility to sing him into a deep sleep. He then finishes using a simile to state she is like the “missing piece” (8) of a puzzle, and he needs her to make him whole again. Petrarch and City and Colour each utilize the elements of figurative language in their own unique ways that