Possessive love
A form of love in which the lover seeks to control, dominate, or exclusively possess the beloved, often characterised by jealousy, possessiveness, and treating the beloved as property. Possessive love is often presented critically as destructive.
Real World
Othello's obsessive surveillance of Desdemona mirrors documented patterns of coercive control in abusive relationships, where the abuser justifies jealousy as love — a dynamic explored by domestic violence charities like Refuge.
Exam Focus
When analysing possessive love, always link the lover's language of ownership to specific literary techniques — verbs of control reveal ideology.
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