Quote · TED Talks Daily
Talks on Love Playlist (5/5): Why friendship can be just as meaningful as romantic love | Rhaina Cohen
Where this was said
Portraits from the Frontier: Real Stories of Deep Platonic Bonds
At 6:55 · chapter starts 5:25
Cohen moves from the personal to the reported, introducing the cast of people she met while researching her book. Natasha and Linda became Canada's first legally recognized platonic co-parents. Joe and John have been best friends for decades — when Joe struggled with addiction, John got him into recovery, then became sober himself purely to support his friend. [1] — Rhaina Cohen "Platonic co-parents in Canada. A man who got sober for his friend. A woman who flew across the country and watched her friend's chest rise …" 05:13 Joy cared for Hannah through six years of ovarian cancer, flying to New York for treatment, sleeping in hospitals and watching her friend breathe through the night. Some of these friends had their platonic bond alongside a romantic partner; others had it instead of one. What unites them is that they refused to cap what friendship could be — and in doing so, they became, as Cohen puts it, the frontier of what platonic relationships are capable of.
Natasha and Linda became the first legally recognized platonic co-parents in Canada, illustrating that some legal systems are beginning to acknowledge non-romantic partnerships.
Ancient Romans called friends 'half of my soul.' Sworn brotherhoods formalized platonic bonds across China, Jordan, and England. A century ago, friends posed in tender embraces for portraits. The language of deep love for friends is ancient — romance stole it from us.
