The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis
Week 3: Affection (Storge)
Read Chapter 2 of The Four Loves by C. S. Lewis ("Affection"). Key theme verse: Romans 12:10.
Previewing Week 3 of The Four Loves
Read 3 of 8 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 8-week guide when you’re ready.
Storge — affection — is the most humble and perhaps the most common of the loves, the quiet fondness that grows between people (and even animals) simply through familiarity. Lewis treats it with great tenderness, but also with clear-eyed honesty about the ways it can become demanding and even monstrous.
Discussion Questions
8 questions1.Lewis describes Storge as a love that grows almost unbidden through sheer proximity — we come to love what is familiar. Can you think of a relationship in your own life that is primarily held together by Storge? What is it like?
2.Lewis says that affection is the least discriminating of the loves — it can exist between people who would never have chosen each other. Why does he see this as one of its great virtues rather than a weakness?
3.He describes Storge as 'the humblest and most widely diffused of loves,' one that often goes unnoticed precisely because it is so ordinary. Do you think ordinary love is undervalued in our culture? Why or why not?