“Free love? As if love is anything but free!”

— Emma Goldman , book Anarchism and Other Essays

Anarchism and Other Essays (1910), Marriage and Love

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Emma Goldman 109

anarchist known for her political activism, writing, and sp… 1868–1940

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“Love, the strongest and deepest element in all life, the harbinger of hope, of joy, of ecstasy; love, the defier of all laws, of all conventions; love, the freest, the most powerful moulder of human destiny; how can such an all-compelling force be synonymous with that poor little State and Church-begotten weed, marriage?
Free love? As if love is anything but free!”

Emma Goldman (1868–1940) anarchist known for her political activism, writing, and speeches

"Marriage and Love" in Anarchism and Other Essays (1911)
Context: Love, the strongest and deepest element in all life, the harbinger of hope, of joy, of ecstasy; love, the defier of all laws, of all conventions; love, the freest, the most powerful moulder of human destiny; how can such an all-compelling force be synonymous with that poor little State and Church-begotten weed, marriage?
Free love? As if love is anything but free! Man has bought brains, but all the millions in the world have failed to buy love. Man has subdued bodies, but all the power on earth has been unable to subdue love. Man has conquered whole nations, but all his armies could not conquer love. Man has chained and fettered the spirit, but he has been utterly helpless before love. High on a throne, with all the splendor and pomp his gold can command, man is yet poor and desolate, if love passes him by. And if it stays, the poorest hovel is radiant with warmth, with life and color. Thus love has the magic power to make of a beggar a king. Yes, love is free; it can dwell in no other atmosphere.

“… love given without free will or truthfulness wasn't love at all.”

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“Love is that which is without condition, it requires nothing in order to be expressed. It asks nothing in return. And it is free. Love is that which is free, for freedom is the essence of what God is, and love is God, expressed.”

Neale Donald Walsch (1943) American writer

“You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.”

Thich Nhat Hanh (1926) Religious leader and peace activist

“The truth is cruel, but it can be loved, and it makes free those who have loved it.”

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Source: Little Essays (1921), p. 107

“My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for free.”

Tom Robbins book Still Life with Woodpecker

Bernard to Leigh-Cheri, in Phase III, Ch. 46
Still Life with Woodpecker (1980)
Context: Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won’t adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. Instead of vowing to honor and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. That would mean that security is out of the question. The words “make” and “stay” become inappropriate. My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for free.