Egon Schiele, Friendship, 1913

"Oh, heart that I love so dearly, now that I have fully discharged my duties towards you, all that remains to be done is to bring my soul and unite it with yours." Giovanni Boccaccio, The Decameron

True love finds its way through all barriers.

What love stands for differs now than from a several hundred years ago.  High school students often use the word love as a hyperbole, not comprehending what it truly means.  They all say, "I love you, [insert name here]." In today's culture, love becomes meaningless.  People often use it insincerely, which detracts from its significance.  Not only do peopleuse "love excessively to each other, but also to describe their feelings of certain lifeless objects, incapable of returning their so-called "love."

Ghismonda and Guiscardo from Boccaccio's The Decameron have a "love for the ages"  that lasts through death.  Although her father kills her lover Guiscardo, Ghismonda still loves him despite his death.  And then she further surprises readers when she commits suicide through a toxic concoction of poisonous herbs and the blood from her lover's heart.  I cannot think of one person today who would do that if their boyfriend died. That is the definition of dedication.

Egon Schiele's Friendship depicts a lovers' embrace, one of endearment and intimacy, similar to Ghismonda and Guiscardo's love. The two lovers in Friendship share a bond deeper than love.  Love does not always mean infatuation, it also means  friendship as well.  Similarly to Guiscardo and Ghismonda, they would rather watch the world get incinerated than be separated.