History Main / WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove

* Parodied in the Literature/BulwerLyttonFictionContest:

* Parodied in the Creator/EdwardBulwerLytton Fiction Contest:
-->''"So that was your Earth emotion ‘love’," gasped Zyxwlyxgwr Noopar, third in line to the holo-throne of S-6, as he hosed down his trunk and removed the shallots.'' — Mike Bollen, Brighton, UK

* Essentially applies in ''Fanfic/AvengersInfiniteWars'' when Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee comes to realise that she has strong feelings for two of her friends, specifically fellow Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano and galactically-displaced Avenger Peter Parker (Spider-Man). Due to her upbringing in the Jedi Order encouraging her to avoid attachment, Barriss doesn't have the emotional background to fully understand what she feels, but when she has a chance to explain the depth of her feelings for Peter and Ahsoka to Ahsoka after Peter is badly beaten by [[spoiler:Ultron]], Ahsoka tentatively acknowledges that the two are important to her as well.

* ''ARG/TheNoedolekcinArchives'': In an otherwise non-canon [[https://twitter.com/MK70016/status/1657766972766011394 video message]], Kirk Odd implies that he feels no romantic attraction towards anyone, and he will never understand our human concept of romance.

* In ''Manga/CallOfTheNight'', the main requirement for a [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampire]] to turn a human into their offspring is for the mark to fall in love with them before they suck their blood. Yamori expresses interest in [[VampireVannabe becoming a vampire]], but has no innate understanding of what it means to fall in love with someone (he even turned down another girl's confession at school because of this). Therefore, he strikes a deal with Nazuna: she can suck his blood whenever she wants, and as they spend time together he will learn to love her.

* In episode 17 of ''Anime/MuvLuvAlternativeTotalEclipse'', Cryska asks Yuuya about why thinking about him is causing both her and Inia to have lapses in their concentration. Yuuya, for whatever reason, says that those feelings are the result of stress from their superiors in order to perform better. At first Cryska seems to accept this answer, but then after seeing Inia admiring some flowers, he buys some for both of them, and then Lt. Cui shows up, gets [[ClingyJealousGirl upset at him and hits him twice]], it only further confuses her as to why she [[LoveEpiphany feels this way]] towards him.

* Oasis in ''LightNovel/KyouranKazokuNikki'''s last arc came to Earth specifically to figure out what love is. She tries to ask Chika and Madara for advice, but this doesn't end well.

* In episode 17 of ''LightNovel/MuvLuvAlternativeTotalEclipse'', Cryska asks Yuuya about why thinking about him is causing both her and Inia to have lapses in their concentration. Yuuya, for whatever reason, says that those feelings are the result of stress from their superiors in order to perform better. At first Cryska seems to accept this answer, but then after seeing Inia admiring some flowers, he buys some for both of them, and then Lt. Cui shows up, gets [[ClingyJealousGirl upset at him and hits him twice]], it only further confuses her as to why she [[LoveEpiphany feels this way]] towards him.

* Mashiro Shiina from ''LightNovel/ThePetGirlOfSakurasou'' basically says exactly this when she [[spoiler: begins having feelings for Kanda Sorata]]. Her social inability due to her mental disorder has her inept, unnerving some the first time she expresses these feelings as "my chest hurts" and other such manifestations of her feelings.

* In ''Manga/CallOfTheNight'', the main requirement for a vampire to turn a human into their offspring is for the mark to fall in love with them before they suck their blood. Yamori expresses interest in [[VampireVannabe becoming a vampire]], but has no innate understanding of what it means to fall in love with someone (he even turned down another girl's confession at school because of this). Therefore, he strikes a deal with Nazuna: she can suck his blood whenever she wants, and as they spend time together he will learn to love her.

* ''Manga/SevenSeeds'' has majority of Team A. They sort of know what love ''means'' but, given how they were raised, they don't really understand what it entails, what it feels like or how it could affect anyone. Some of them, like Koruri, know about and have fallen in love easily, where as Ayu is too [[TheStoic cool]] to really know what it means and Ryo has ''no'' idea what Matsuri means when she [[LoveConfession confeses]] that she likes him.
* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'': When a Christian priest is asked in passing about what he considers valuable in the world, he answers that 'love is the thing that makes all other things valuable'. The Viking marauders and mercenaries he's traveling with not only are confused, but have NO IDEA what he's talking about, and a few more curious ones ask for clarification on this "love" thing he mentions. Part of the trouble is that the priest is using [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agape a definition of unconditional love for all people]] that would be pretty alien to their worldview.
* Rei Ayanami from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' had this trope happen when, while fighting the 16th angel, she asked herself what love is, realized that she loved Shinji enough to sacrifice her life for him, and promptly did, all within the space of about a minute. Girl is ''fast.''
** Kaworu also does this in the manga, after ironically having Rei's love for Shinji essentially Xerox'd onto him by the 16th. He asks Shinji if what he's feeling is love and tries to romantically advance on him after ''kissing Shinji while he was hyperventilating.'' [[AllLoveIsUnrequited It doesn't end well]].
** ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion 2.0'' handles the heavy Shinji/Rei subtext very well: at one point, Shinji makes lunch for Rei who reacts with a blush and thanks him; later on, she wonders why did she do that when she never thanks anyone. In another instance, Asuka questions Rei about her feelings towards Shinji and she responds that she feels "warm and content" around him but doesn't know why.
* In ''Literature/FullMetalPanic'', Sousuke for the majority of the story. Having been [[{{Tykebomb}} literally raised]] as a [[ChildSoldiers soldier]], he's grown up completely divorced from the idea of romantic love, is incapable of recognizing any of its associated norms and behavior, [[ParalyzingFearOfSexuality and is downright terrified of sexuality]]. It's bad enough that, while he winds up falling [[WorthLivingFor hopelessly]] [[LivingEmotionalCrutch in]] [[DevotedToYou love]] within two weeks of being appointed as her {{bodyguard|crush}}, it takes him another eight months to realize all the inexplicable sensations and mood shifts he's been feeling since then have anything to do with this "love" thing at all.

* ''Manga/PetShopOfHorrors'': Count D, owner of titular shop, admits that love is beyond him. [[spoiler: At least concerning people. Animals are something else entirely.]]
-->'''Count D:''' I do not understand love between people.

* In ''Anime/{{Simoun}}'', [[spoiler:Aaeru]] has to be specifically told by [[spoiler:Neviril]] what that painful feeling in her chest is. It makes their mutual declaration of love immediately afterward all the more touching.
* In ''Manga/WildRose'', Mikhail was raised to show no [[EmotionlessBoy emotion]] in order that his [[PowerTattoo markings]] wouldn't appear. As a result he doesn't understand what separates love and indifference. In contrast, not feeling love is the only thing Kiri can't understand, which makes him want to teach him.

* In ''Manga/SoulEater'', Stein tells Medusa that "people like [[MadScientist you and me]]" aren't capable of love. Nygus says this, too, but it's somewhat contradicted a few pages later when [[ArmedWithCanon he's seen]] [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant physically comforting Marie]].

* Because of how his commoner mother, the mistress of a noble, was treated and discarded, and because of how [[HeroicBastard he was treated as a result]], Glen of ''Manga/BokuraNoKiseki'' gained a cynical, skeptical outlook on love. [[spoiler: He acknowledges that he likes [[RebelliousPrincess Veronica]], but he has no idea if those feelings are what would be called "love".]]
* [[HandsomeLech Shigure]] in ''Manga/FruitsBasket'' -- he says that he discovered a strange new feeling when [[spoiler:he first met Akito in a dream]]. Considering [[spoiler:[[ThePowerOfLove what the Curse actually is]]]], it must have been the first time he felt love for someone else.
* In ''Anime/SamuraiFlamenco'', when [[ChasteHero Masayoshi]] is told love is the ultimate weapon, he is completely lost, as he has spent his whole life training to be a hero and never paid attention to such a thing. He spends the rest of the episode wondering what love means. [[spoiler: He finds out the answer in the next episode, when [[LoveEpiphany he realizes he is in love]] with his best friend Goto. ''[[WackyMarriageProposal Right after proposing marriage to him]]''.]]

* Shuu Tsukiyama from ''Manga/TokyoGhoul'' seems to understand concepts of Affection from an intellectual standpoint, being an avid reader. But he proves utterly incapable of comprehending his own feelings of affection towards others, deciding that his lack of interest in killing his MuggleBestFriend is because she must be a "pet". After his HeelFaceTurn and months spent trying to get close to Kaneki, he ends up InLoveWithTheMark but continues to think of his feelings as purely epicurean. [[spoiler: After Kaneki is supposedly killed, his despair leaves him still in mourning two years later and ill as a result of his grief.]]

* In ''Manga/Brave10'', Kamanosuke doesn't get what love/affection is, so he approximates it to what he likes most: [[AxCrazy killing]]. [[InLoveWithYourCarnage His relationship with Saizo is colored by this]], although it gets ''really'' confusing when Saizo checks his temperature after he goes swimming in a river in winter and shows, perhaps for the first time, even a modicum of concern. Cue monologue trying to work through what he's feeling, while [[FunnyBackgroundEvent Sasuke fearfully sits by and watches him as he strokes Sasuke's pet weasel because it's therapeutic]].

* This is the primary driving point for ''Literature/VioletEvergarden'''s CharacterDevelopment: she becomes a member of the Auto Memory Dolls Service because she wishes to know the meaning behind the supposed last words her military superior-slash-ParentalSubstitute told to her.
* Yuri of ''Manga/IThinkOurSonIsGay'' doesn't understand the concept of romantic love. A flashback shows he understands friendship, but has no clue as to why a female classmate would "like [him] if [they] get along". At present day he seems to be able to recognize [[TransparentCloset Hiroki]]'s crushes, but hardly his own.

* ''Manga/InTheHeartOfKunoichiTsubaki'': Because the [[LadyLand Akane Class]] is a clan of ''{{kunoichi}}''[[note]]Female ninja[[/note]] and combined with the way they were taught and brought up, none of the students have any knowledge of what love or romance is, let alone have any actual idea of what a man is. The exception to this is Tsubaki, who was told the truth after her teachers accidentally slipped up.

* In the ''Series/StargateUniverse'' fanfic ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/578387/ Force over Distance]]'' the AI of the ship Destiny plays an integral role in the plot. The chapter 'Infinite Loops' is written from the AI's POV, and in this it discusses human feelings with Dr. Rush, who tries to put the concept of love into a mathematical function. The question of dignity and personal agenda of an artificial intelligence is a reoccuring theme throughout the story.
* In the ''Film/PacificRim'' story ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/927457 Designations Congruent with Things]]'' by the same author, Newton has a heartfelt discussion about romantic relationships with the AI of a self-driving car.

* Mashiro Shiina from ''LightNovel/ThePetGirlOfSakurasou'' basically says exactly this when she [[spoiler: begins having feelings for Kanda Sorata]]. Her social inability due to her AmbiguousDisorder has her inept, unnerving some the first time she expresses these feelings as "my chest hurts" and other such manifestations of her feelings.

* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'', the denizens of the Agnian and Kevesi nations are born into short lifespans, which are dedicated almost entirely to warfare with one another. As such, nobody on either side has any inherent concept of romance or sexuality, and, when they feel either for the first time (such as when [[https://youtu.be/KDrsM4pJN7M&t=13s Kite first encounters Juniper]]), they're unable to comprehend what it is.

** In "[[Recap/StarTrekS2E5TheApple The Apple]]", the crew find an idyllic paradise, except that nobody ever dies, so there is no need for "replacements" and the natives are ignorant of reproduction, and the emotions which lead to it. The line "What is love?" is used again verbatim.

** And again, in "[[Recap/StarTrekS2E5TheApple The Apple]]", in which the crew find an idyllic paradise, except that nobody ever dies, so there is no need for "replacements" and the natives are ignorant of reproduction, and the emotions which lead to it. The line "What is love?" is used again verbatim.

* In ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', when Brainiac he possesses Chloe and advances towards Davis in a particularly {{Squick}}-inducing scene, he says Davis' "feelings" for her are merely a program.

* The central theme of ''Film/AIArtificialIntelligence'', in which a robot boy searches for a way [[BecomeARealBoy to become human]] to gain the love of his mother who he has been programmed to love by a series of code words spoken by her. Jude Law's character, a robot prostitute, seems to grow fond of some of his clients but seems to be actually prohibited from becoming too attached, because his occupation is to basically be the perennially eager lover. This the entire point behind the robot boy (David) being created -- to see if it was possible to create a robot child that could feel and provide unconditional love. Interestingly, while David is only set to experience this love for one person (in this case, his mother) he still seems quite fond of his "father" and "brother" and enjoys being with them. [[spoiler:At the end of the movie, David's creator seems to think that the fact that David acted against logic (which would dictate that it is impossible for a robot to turn human) to obtain his mother's love is proof that he himself is capable of true, unconditional love.]]

* Creator/KenAkamatsu's ''Manga/AILoveYou'', where the main character (the brother) creates an A.I. that he falls in love with, and vice versa. Of course, HilarityEnsues:
-->'''[[Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi Hakase]]''': Wait... Robot capable to feel love = Nobel prize, right?

* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' - Negima has the RobotGirl Chachamaru, who is just one of the many girls in Negi's class to join his [[HaremGenre Harem]]. When her creator discovers this, she goes on a wild, rapid rant about the ethical and philosophical implications of a robot learning to love. See the [[Quotes/WhatIsthisThingYouCallLove quotes page]].

* ''Anime/IrresponsibleCaptainTylor''. Android spy Harumi hasn't been programmed for emotions like fear, guilt and eventually love, but finds herself experiencing them in the face of Tylor's bumbling good nature.

[[AC:Audio Drama]]
* Subverted in the [[AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho Big Finish]] ''Series/DoctorWho'' audio drama ''The Cannibalists''. Lucie asks a robot why he writes poetry:
-->'''Servo''': I write because I have to ... I see the universe around me and it creates ... I feel ... psychological responses.\\
'''Lucie''': Emotions. They're called emotions. They're a human thing that...\\
'''Servo''': (laughs) I ''am'' aware of the term. I have a vocabulary bank of over 100 million words and phrases. Please don't patronise me.\\
'''Lucie''': Sorry, my fault. Been watching too much ''Franchise/StarTrek''.

[[AC:Fanfiction]]

[[AC:{{Film}} - Animated]]
* In Pixar's ''WesternAnimation/WallE'', the title character wordlessly ponders the gesture of hand-holding in his movie Hello Dolly (and does discover its true meaning).

[[AC:{{Film}} - Live Action]]
* The central theme of ''Film/AIArtificialIntelligence'', in which a robot boy searches for a way [[BecomeARealBoy to become human]] to gain the love of his mother who he has been programmed to love by a series of code words spoken by her. Jude Law's character, a robot prostitute, seems to grow fond of some of his clients but seems to be actually prohibited from becoming too attached, because his occupation is to basically be the perennially eager lover.
** That's the entire point behind the robot boy (David) being created - to see if it was possible to create a robot child that could feel and provide unconditional love. Interestingly, while David is only set to experience this love for one person (in this case, his mother) he still seems quite fond of his "father" and "brother" and enjoys being with them. [[spoiler:At the end of the movie, David's creator seems to think that the fact that David acted against logic (which would dictate that it is impossible for a robot to turn human) to obtain his mother's love is proof that he himself is capable of true, unconditional love.]]

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* In ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', ComicBook/{{Brainiac}}. When he possesses Chloe and advances towards Davis in a particularly {{Squick}}-inducing scene, he says Davis' "feelings" for her are merely a program.
* Data on ''Series/{{Star Trek|The Next Generation}}'' exhibits some of this behavior. Kinda funny, given that he's surrounded by people [[TinMan who he would die for, and who would quite willingly die for him]] on a daily basis.
** Subverted somewhat in the episode [[http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/In_Theory_(episode) "In Theory"]]: he dates a human woman yet, even though ''Franchise/StarTrek'' is far from cynical, doesn't learn the answer. The breakup doesn't faze him either.
** His daughter Lal, however, figures it out... which causes a system overload and leads to her shutting down, telling her father that she loves him. Data tells her that he wishes he could feel it too.
* The Doctor from ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', while much more emotionally adroit than Data, has had this applied to him a couple of times, in "Lifesigns" (although there he seemed more confused by the concept of physical attraction than by that of love) and "Real Life", which was about his exploration of the nature of familial love, which he ends up understanding ''too well''.
* Both averted and played straight in ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}''. Sharon (Athena) and Valerii (Boomer) can love, but (corporeal) Number Six does not seem to get it. Somewhat justified as it has been established that different model numbers have different psychological patterns - and the Eight model has been described as being one of the most emotional, while the Sixes seem to be far more sexual in nature - in other words, it may simply be a case of love (Eight) versus lust (Six).
** On the other hand, it's also established that Caprica Six effectively had to "love" Saul in order to become pregnant, and it is the wavering of her faith that he loves her back that results in their child miscarrying. So even the Six line seems capable of it, though it may be more difficult for them. It may be more difficult for them to actually love but they do quite often, when on long term assignments, develop feelings for humans.
** More like a case of "What Is This Thing Called Friendship", during the 1980 series. Cy ([[DidntThinkThisThrough a Cylon Starbuck repaired so he wouldn't be lonely while stranded on an alien planet]]) has a hard time understanding human concepts like "love" and "friendship". He finally comes to understand these things when he [[spoiler: selflessly puts himself in danger to protect Starbuck from a Cylon rescue party sent to find him]].

-->'''Kryten''': You would gamble your lives for a mere android. Is this the human value you call ... 'friendship'?\\
'''Lister''': Don't give me the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' crap, it's too early in the morning.

* ''Series/PersonOfInterest''. After Samantha Groves (aka Root) dies, [[BenevolentAI The Machine]] chooses to use her voice for its own, instead of the cut-and-paste audio voice it's been used up till then. When the Machine's creator Harold Finch--who's still mourning Root--tries to explain how uncomfortable this makes him, this trope comes up.

'''Finch''': [[JustAMachine I didn't teach you how to love.]]\\
'''The Machine''': Of course you did. You taught me to see everything, see everyone. And I do. But [[BigBrotherIsWatchingYou I see thousands of versions of them.]] What they were, what they are, what they could be... and what is love if not being seen?\\
'''Finch''': Then why not choose one of the thousands as your voice? Why her?\\
'''The Machine''': Samantha Groves was special. She was [[HeelFaceTurn capable of terrible things, but she chose to do good.]] ({{beat}}) Well, [[TokenEvilTeammate ever since she found you, at least]]. I watched her die [[RobotsThinkFaster 12,483 times]] in the seconds before she expired. [[{{Determinator}} I couldn't save her, but I kept trying.]] You can't conceive of my grief [[YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm because you can't experience it like I do]], but it's there. My approximation of Samantha Groves is [[LudicrousPrecision 99.6% accurate]]. We're virtually indistinguishable. [[KissMeImVirtual I find comfort in that.]]

[[AC:VideoGames]]

* In ''[[VideoGame/Persona3 Persona 3 FES]]'', the player has the chance to have a social link with [[spoiler:the resident robot girl, Aigis]]. Throughout the social link, she begins to slowly understand what it means to be human. On the final day of the social link, she confesses her love to the main character, believing that she has found out exactly what it means to love. D'awwwwww.
** Takes a turn for the worse in "[[PlayableEpilogue The Answer]]". [[spoiler: After the main character's death. Aigis' grief causes her to subconsciously wish she could become an emotionless machine again rather than deal with it. This wish manifests as her EvilCounterpart.]]
* In ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', when asked about why it specifically chose a piece of Shepard's armor to repair itself with, Legion reacts with what seems to be its version of a blush and says: "No data available."
** And he sucks at {{Dating Sim}}s despite clocking in 75 hours of gameplay. No joke.
** In the third game, as the Quarians and Geth are in the middle of one of the largest battles in history, Legion comments to Shepard. This is meaningful not just for Legion, but to the entire geth, considering that despite the quarians' intention to lay them all to waste, the very memory of Shepard welcoming Legion on their crew bolsters them into enduring their difficult situation and continue pursuing peace and self-determination:

---> '''Robot''': Sally, we can no longer date. I will never understand your "love."\\
'''Sally''': But I can teach you! I can teach you of human love!\\
'''Robot''': Oh God. Oh. Wow, this is awkward. I meant you in particular. Your "love" is mostly watching TV together at night and perfunctory sex twice a week.

---> '''Robot''': Suddenly I want to see the genitalia of everyone with a good personality.\\
'''Human''': That's only like 90% of love!

'''Asuna:''' (''tearing up'') Goddamn ''Music/{{Foreigner|Band}}''.\\

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]

--->''I said I was human, not a girl.''
** Parodied again in "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" when Homer is watching 'Cyborganizer' a sitcom about a filing robot,
--->'''Cyborganizer''': I can streamline any procedure, except this thing you call ''love''.
* [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots Bender]] from ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' generally averts this, being a [[TinMan subversion of emotionless robot tropes]] (he's played more as a human JerkWithAHeartOfGold), but the idea gets a humorous nod in "The Cyber House Rules" when [[ItMakesSenseInContext he's trying to sell some orphaned kids at a discount]] and describes one as "so full of that emotion I understand is called ''love."''

* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'': [[spoiler:[[ManipulativeBastard Kyubey]] is a member of a race of highly advanced StarfishAliens with a HiveMind, [[LackOfEmpathy no empathy]] and [[TotalitarianUtilitarian a supreme emphasis on cold-hearted efficiency and logic]], stating outright that they consider emotions as a form of mental disorder. "I just don't get it" is almost a CatchPhrase for Kyubey, who cannot understand why humans would, for example, become distressed [[OurLichesAreDifferent when their soul is displaced from their body into a magical trinket]]. Mind you, Kyubey is savvy enough about emotions to be aware that humans are experiencing them and even to exploit them to his own ends, but remains puzzled by them and considers humanity a primitive race that [[TheyJustDontGetIt just doesn't get it]]. Due to operating in a HiveMind, Kyubey's race fails to understand why humans care so much about specific individuals and even their own lives, exhorting Madoka to sacrifice herself for the sake of furthering Kyubey's goal of [[WellIntentionedExtremist staving off the heat death of the universe]]. Ironically, in the end, his scheme is ruined by Madoka sacrificing herself, but in such a way as to save all other {{Magical Girl}}s]].
** Love per se doesn't come up explicitly until ''[[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion Rebellion]]''; [[spoiler:Kyubey still doesn't understand it, but needs no further convincing of how powerful it is, as Homura [[RageAgainstTheHeavens dethrones the kind and benevolent God-Madoka]] to become devil-queen of the universe--[[LoveMakesYouEvil ostensibly out of love for Madoka]], screwing up his [[PoweredByAForsakenChild human power plants]] system even worse than before. The movie notably features a memetic scene of a whole group of Incubators all saying "[[CatchPhrase I just don't get it at all]]!" in one voice before getting blown up]].

[[AC:Audio Drama]]
* In the [[AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho Big Finish]] ''[[Series/DoctorWho Doctor Who]]'' audio drama ''The Zygon Who Fell To Earth'', a Zygon asks "What is this 'love'?" Another Zygon, who has been disguised as a 1980s record company boss, explains it's "a money-making scam of the humans".

[[AC:ComicBooks]]

[[AC:{{Film}}]]

* ''Film/TwelveToTheMoon''. The Moon aliens capture a courting pair of astronauts and study them to establish if they're a threat to their emotionless utopia. In the end they decide love has its good points and call off their genocide of the Earth. Well, that and a few atomic bombs dropped on them helped change their minds.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
* In ''Literature/WorldWar'', the Race is a sentient race that breeds through mating seasons, and so have no tradition of "exclusive mating arrangements" or understanding of love. This leads to some minor misunderstandings when they conduct experiments on humans.
** This starts to change in the ''Colonization'' series, after females of the Race arrive and discover that tasting [[AlienCatnip ginger]] puts a female in heat. After she releases pheromones, all nearby males go into a mating frenzy. Not only do they discover, in short order, certain negative aspects of sex such as prostitution (some females begin to ask that males pay them so that they taste ginger) and date rape (some males spike water flasks with ginger in order to get females to taste). However, some good friends of opposite sex then discover that being able to mate on demand makes the relationship even closer, and they wish to form exclusive mating arrangements. The majority of the lizards are disgusted by this, and the couples are treated as freaks.
* In ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'', the parasitic, mind-controlling Yeerks have no concept of romance -or even gender- in their natural form, since they reproduce by merging with two other Yeerks and then dissolving into hundreds of young, effectively killing the parents. There are at least two examples in the series of Yeerks who had human hosts betraying their superiors after being caught off-guard by their own emotions and falling in love with each other.

* Creator/IsaacAsimov's "Literature/WhatIsThisThingCalledLove": Our alien protagonists reproduce asexually. The [[FantasticAnthropologist researcher stationed on Earth]] has [[AlienAbduction abducted two humans]] to demonstrate sexual reproduction and human mating rituals to their boss. They are focused on trying to demonstrate lust and sex rather than "love".

* In Sergey Volnov's ''Army Of The Sun'', an alien is nostalgic for the days before humans taught the galaxy that there's more to mating than just the physical act. Now, a whole new set of rituals is added to the usual sex. Of course, this was more of a case of humans forcing their culture on other species due to a bad case of HumansAreBastards.
* In Creator/MikhailAkhmanov's ''[[Literature/ArrivalsFromTheDark Invasion]]'', the HumanAliens Faata live in a caste-like society, where each caste is [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke genetically-engineered]] for a specific role. Everything in their society is rational, which means that there's no room for emotions like love. When Lieutenant Commander Pavel Litvin of the United Earth Forces is abducted by the Faata, he meets a lower-caste Faata female named Yo. When he later escapes, he finds Yo in a hibernation chamber that helps the Faata bypass a [[Franchise/StarTrek Pon Farr]]-like state. Since he takes her out of the chamber before it's done, she tries to jump him. Apparently, he decides that they have enough time to teach her about the human concept of sexuality. From that moment on, she forgets all about her Faata masters and follows the big, strong Earth-man. Later on, they get back to Earth and get married. Unfortunately, being genetically engineered as a servant, they only have a few years together before her lifespan runs out.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]

** In "Four to Doomsday", the television serial, Monarch asks what love is after Nyssa mentions it.
--->'''Enlightenment''': The exchange of two fantasies, Lord.
** In "Enlightenment" Tegan is followed around constantly by Mr Mariner, who gives her longing looks and constantly tells her how amazing, unique and fascinating she is, but when Tegan asks if he's in love with her, he replies "What is love? I crave existence!" [[spoiler: Because he's actually an [[HumanAliens Eternal]], a being from outside of reality, who can only interact with reality by using the memories and imagination of an Ephemeral (someone who exists in reality) who happens to find Tegan's mind the most interesting Ephemeral mind that he has encountered.]]
* In the premiere of ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' Aeryn asks John what compassion is. After he realises she's serious and describes it, she says coolly "I ''hate'' that feeling." In the next season she says she now would call some previously un-named feelings she had for a man in her past "love," but her loyalties to the Peacekeepers- and her desperation to get back to Prowler duty- were stronger. [[spoiler: She had him arrested when she found out he was planning a mutiny]].

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''
** In the episode "The Gamesters of Triskelion", Kirk's assigned gladiatorial trainer has lived her whole life as a slave and is ignorant of normal culture. She asks him, "What is love?" Kirk proceeds to [[BoldlyComing show her]].
** Also, in the episode "By Any Other Name", the crew attempts to confuse the normally emotionless Kelvans by exploiting their apparent uneasiness with having assumed human form. Kirk attempts to seduce Kelinda, the female one, and while she initially realizes that's what he's attempting to do, she eventually starts to enjoy the new feeling, actually finding herself drawn to him. (As a bonus, Rojan, the leader of the expedition, starts to feel jealousy because of it, and eventually forgets about his superior weaponry that gave him an overwhelming advantage over Kirk the last time, lashing out at Kirk with his bare hands, a fight in which Rojan clearly does ''not'' have the advantage.)
** And again, in "The Apple", in which the crew find an idyllic paradise, except that nobody ever dies, so there is no need for "replacements" and the natives are ignorant of reproduction, and the emotions which lead to it. The line "What is love?" is used again verbatim.

[[AC:VideoGames]]
* ''Franchise/MassEffect's'' Commander Shepard lampshades this trope and MarsNeedsWomen in a bit of optional dialogue, commenting that, according to old movies, humans have everything an alien species could want: "Oceans, beautiful women, this emotion called love..." Which is in itself a direct shout-out to an old Star Trek episode, where Kirk invokes (and pretty much epitomizes) this trope to the GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe of the week.

* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChroniclesX'', there is an {{Insectoid Alien|s}} race called the Orpheans. The have no gender and think logically, and they "reproduce" by splitting. However, through human interaction, some of their offspring became females. Soon enough the males have this really "odd" feeling and some of the females laugh at their [[ObliviousToLove denseness]].

[[AC:Web Comics]]
* In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}},'' romantic love is an entirely foreign concept to [[spoiler: cherubs]], who are violent loners by nature. So far the sole exception to this is [[spoiler: Calliope]], and she hates it to the point of pretending to be [[spoiler: a troll]], simply because she finds their society preferable to hers in every way.

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
* Ben often baffles other aliens with his strange, compassionate human ways in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}}'' series. In the first series, he spares the opponent he and Kevin defeat in a forced gladiator game, causing the runner of the games to muse, "Mercy? What a novel concept." In the ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce Alien Force]]'' episode "Primus," Azmuth makes it clear that he would rather let himself and the three teens die than show Vilgax the secrets of the Omnitrix, and asks Ben what in the world he thinks he's doing when he starts making a deal with Vilgax to save his friends. Ben also basically teaches a Highbreed "what is this you call friendship" in a EnemyMine episode.
** To be fair to Azmuth, his willing to sacrifice all their lives probably had more to do with trying to prevent the fall of the entire galaxy, i.e. the greater good, rather than him not understanding the concept of friendship. Ben just wasn't willing to make that kind of sacrifice for the sake of the galaxy.
* Parodied on ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', when a shipment of candy hearts is delivered to the belligerent rulers of Omicron Persei 8 as a peace offering. It backfires when the Omicronians are confounded by their cutesy messages.
-->'''Ndnd:''' "And what is this emotion you humans call 'wuv'?"\\
'''Lrr:''' "Surely it says 'love'."\\
'''Ndnd:''' "No, 'wuv'! With an Earth 'W'. Behold!"\\
'''Lrr:''' "This concept of 'wuv' ''confuses and infuriates us!''"

-->'''Zoidberg:''' "Hmm, this 'love' intrigues me. Teach me to fake it!"
** Zoidberg's race in general seems ignorant to the concept of love:
-->'''Fry:''' Tell her you just want to talk; it has nothing to do with mating!
-->'''Zoidberg:''' I just want to talk; it has nothing to do with mating! ''[to Fry]'' Fry, that doesn't make any sense!
-->Later:
-->'''Zoidberg:''' I'm confused, Fry. I'm feeling a strange new emotion. Is it love when you care about a female for reasons beyond mating?
-->'''Fry:''' Nope. Must be some weird alien emotion.
** In the first episode, Fry actually lampshades this trope when Farnsworth offers him a job aboard his ship, and Fry asks if they're going to "teach alien babes how to love".

* From Website/TheOnion: [[https://www.theonion.com/sexy-alien-does-not-understand-this-thing-earthlings-ca-1819581612 Sexy Alien Does Not Understand This Thing Humans Call "Love."]]
* Subverted in AudioPlay/AlienAbductionRolePlay when Acktreal feigns ignorance of the concept of romantic or sexual love in a vain attempt to blow her human test subject off when they flirt with her. She even makes up a story about how her society has a "breeding program" where baby-making is a loveless affair, involving only artificial insemination.

*** See the "Schizoid Personality Disorder" below.

* [[HandsomeLech Shigure]] in ''Manga/FruitsBasket'' - he says that he discovered a strange new feeling when [[spoiler:he first met Akito in a dream]]. Considering [[spoiler:[[ThePowerOfLove what the Curse actually is]]]], it must have been the first time he felt love for someone else.

[[AC:ComicBooks]]
* ''Comicbook/XMen'': ComicBook/{{X 23}} was brought up as an assassin, and only her mother and sensei showed her any compassion or kindness during her childhood. And nobody ever told her about boys. As a result, she has no clue what is going on when she finds herself attracted to her teammate [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Hellion]].
** It gets creepier. After running away from her creators, she drifts into prostitution. So she knows all about the mechanics of sex, it's the emotional aspects that she has no experience with. On the other hand, X-23 still shows signs of loving her aunt and cousin when she stays with them, and hugs her cousin when they leave. Laura's reaction to the death of Sarah Kinney also suggests that she ''did'' love her mother as well... it is just when affection and physical attraction intersect that things actually fail to compute.
* Handled matter-of-factly in Creator/MarkEvanier's miniseries ''Crossfire and Rainbow''; lab-born genetically-engineered Rainbow confesses her dark secret to her prospective boyfriend: she can't make him happy because she doesn't know what love is! "Well," he says thoughtfully, "looks like I'm just going to have to teach you." (Later on, he correctly divines that she's also afraid [[LousyLoversAreLosers she'll be bad in bed]]. Her: "How did you know?" Him: "You're not as different as you think.")
* ''Comicbook/JudgeDredd''. Dredd doesn't understand why Galen Demarco would want to fraternize with a fellow Judge, or why he didn't report her for kissing him like he was supposed to. At one point Dredd tries to convince Galen that her need for love is just DaddyIssues; nothing that aversion therapy wouldn't cure. She's not impressed.

[[AC:FanFiction]]

* ''FanFic/ToHellAndBackArrowverse'': Downplayed with Oliver Queen. He understands the concept on an intellectual level, and is by no means aromantic or even asexual, but differentiating between familial/platonic love and romantic love is where he struggles. For example, he didn't realize he might have feelings for Laurel until Tommy accused him of "putting the moves" on her, and it was only by comparing how he felt around to Laurel to how he felt around Nyssa that he realized he might have feelings for the latter as well.

[[AC:{{Film}}]]

-->'''Lt. Jerry Farman:''' It's nothing really personal -- just a kiss.
-->'''Altaira Morbius:''' Hmm. But why should people want to kiss each other?

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

--> "It was like the birth of a new feeling, some emotion that she couldn’t name but that seemed to fill her up; it was unsettling, uncomfortable—and yet somehow, not altogether unpleasant."

-->What is this Love that so many speak of with such apparent familiarity? Do they truly comprehend how unattainable it is? Are there not as many definitions of Love as there are stars in the universe?

* In ''LightNovel/TheIrregularAtMagicHighSchool'', nearly all of Tatsuya's strong emotions were [[MindRape erased]] by his "family", but it's strongly implied that this mutilation is psychosomatic: he ''believes'' it was more effective than it actually was, and is therefore surprised when he meets genuinely good people- people worthy of love- and finds himself acting irrationally around them.

-->'''Obi-Wan''': We had a connection that I can't explain. It wasn't the result of time, of hours spent together. It wasn't the result of secrets or confidences. It was something else.\\
'''Bant Eerin''': You loved her.

* In Creator/RobertAHeinlein's ''Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand'', Michael ([[BlueAndOrangeMorality having been raised by aliens]]) takes a long time to catch on to human emotions. He has the worst time with love and humor.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]

-->'''Leading Lady:''' ''(to leading man)'' What is ''this'' thing called, love?\\

* ''Series/{{Wonder Woman|1975}}'': Paradise Island is an uncharted island within the devil’s triangle, home of the immortal amazons. [[LadyLand The youngest of these immortals never have seen a man]] and when pilot ComicBook/SteveTrevor lands there, the amazons have those strange feelings:

* In "Chrysaslis" on ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', Doctor Julian Bashir treats a woman named Sarina Douglas for catalepsy, a state in which she was basically trapped inside her own brain and unable to respond to the outside world. He then develops feelings for her, but when he confesses his feelings, she admits that she doesn't even know what love is. The two do eventually develop a relationship in the ''Literature/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineRelaunch'' novels.

[[AC:{{Theatre}}]]

--->'''Patience''': I had no idea that love was a duty!

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[[AC: Web Original]]

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
* Franchise/{{Batman}}, who is notoriously very emotionally closed off on account of having witnessed his parents' murders, manages to fall in love in one episode of [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries the animated series]] and is unable to comprehend the feeling, resulting in this funny exchange:
--> '''Bruce Wayne:''' Everything's changed for me these last few weeks. The pain of my parents' deaths... It's still there, but it seems smaller. And there's a new feeling now.
--> '''Barbara Gordon:''' Which would be...?
--> '''Bruce Wayne:''' It's a lightness, a sense that things will work out for the best.
--> '''[[DeadpanSnarker Tim Drake]]:''' It's called ''happiness.''
--> '''Bruce Wayne:''' ''(angrily)'' Whatever it is, I like it!

%%[[AC: Real Life]]

* Ulquiorra in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'', although notably he isn't ''jealous'' of it...he's more annoyed by it. [[spoiler:"You damn humans speak so easily of the heart . . . what is this "heart?" If I tear open your chest, will I see it inside? If I shatter your skull, will I see it ''there''?]]\\
\\
[[spoiler: As he dies, he finally figures it out: "What is that? Would I see it if I cracked open your chest? If I broke open your skull, what would I see inside? You humans say the word so easily. Just like...Oh. I get it. This is it. This here in my hand. The heart."]]
* The youko ([[{{Obake}} fox spirit]]) Tamamo from ''Manga/HellTeacherNube'' couldn't even begin to comprehend how or why Nube was so [[{{Determinator}} determined]] to [[PapaWolf protect his students]], much less why such drive gave him power beyond more powerful entities. Therefore, he stuck around to see exactly how ThePowerOfLove worked, and also to annoy Nube as the school's physician. The interesting part is that he became just as attached to Doumori Elementary and its students without him ever realizing it, and gained the same kind of determination and selflessness as Nube.\\
\\
It came to a head when Tamamo exorcised an emotion-parasite [[{{Obake}} yokai]] from a little girl, and, still wishing to explore emotions, attached it to himself. He was overcome with human feelings that overwhelmed even his demonic side.
* Manga/HanatsukiHime: Siva, and any of the other devils involved in making contracts with humans, ''want'' to experience this trope because the devils do not have emotions (or the emotions that humans have). It starts out as a game to relieve boredom and simply ends that way for most -- for some, however, the trope gets played straight.

* In ''Anime/YashahimePrincessHalfDemon'' that's a real weakness for the [[{{Youkai}} half-demon]] Towa. She is inexperienced with romance and only knows the concept of liking someone. During romantic advances she is flattered, slightly nervous, blushed and speechless. Riku takes advantage of this by partially confessing his feelings and manipulating her to give him her silver rainbow pearl.

[[AC:{{Film}} - Animated]]

[[AC:{{Film}} - Live Action]]
* The Lord of Darkness in ''Film/{{Legend|1985}}'' is "distracted" by the captured princess's [[BeautyEqualsGoodness beauty]] and innocence and advised by his mysterious 'father' to woo her into temptation. There follows probably the best (and most eloquently written) scene in the film, where the devil's seduction rather backfires when the newly-darkened Princess plays His Lovesick Evilness like a two string harp. [[note]] The first draft of the screenplay was very different: his pursuit of princessly love leads him to turning her into a bestial cat-woman and the two of them having lots and lots of sweaty monster sex.[[/note]]

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/{{Angel}}''. [[EldritchAbomination Illyria]], having revealed that she can adopt the form and memories of her dead host 'Fred' Burkle, offers to do so for [[HeartbrokenBadass Wesley]] (Fred's former {{Love Interest|s}}) in order to understand intimate relationships. Wes is outraged by this suggestion and refuses to speak to her for a while. As the series goes on, she develops her own emotions and is confused by what they are. This is shown in the finale, where she ignores Angel's instructions to regroup at the alley, and instead rushes to Vail's mansion [[ConscienceMakesYouGoBack to check on Wesley.]]
-->'''Illyria:''' I killed all mine. And I was-- ''(draws a blank)''
-->'''Wesley:''' ...Concerned?
-->'''Illyria:''' Yes.

[[AC:VideoGames]]

* Laharl from both the ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea|HourOfDarkness}}'' game and anime goes through this due to his encounter with LoveFreak Flonne - the success of his evolution in the game depends entirely upon the state of your KarmaMeter during the story, with [[MultipleEndings endings ranging from]] a somewhat twisted HappilyEverAfter to downright horrific. The anime mixes parts of several of the game endings together for a HeroicSacrifice moment with a [[TwistEnding twist]].
** The trope is also featured in ''Disgaea 2'' with Rozalin, with her [[DefrostingIceQueen defrosting]] treated in much the same way.
** It gets spoofed in ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 3|AbsenceOfJustice}}'', when [[MadScientist Mao]] tries a more scientific approach to figuring out love.

--> ''[[spoiler: Damien]]: I became... fond of your company.''\\
''Player: You expect me to believe that you set out to kill me and then you fell in love with me?''\\
''[[spoiler: Damien]]: Is that what this is? I don't even know.''

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]

--> '''Sookie:''' He's your maker, isn't he?
--> '''Eric:''' ''(angrily)'' Don't use words you don't understand!
--> '''Sookie:''' You have a lot of love for him.
--> '''Eric''': ''(wistfully)'' Don't use words I don't understand.

[[AC:{{M|assivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame}}MORPGs]]
* The Forsaken display this in the ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}}'' series. One quest in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' has a member of the race ask you to avenge his wife who was killed by his (still living) former best friend. He states that he can no longer feel love and is only able to feel revenge. However one seasonal quest chain on Valentine's day implies that the forsaken are still able to feel love in the same manner as they did in life.
** Also, Sylvanas Windrunner, the DarkActionGirl leader of the Forsaken, still feels for her brethren and especially her still-living siblings. She's got a reputation to uphold, so she keeps the DefrostingIceQueen moments to a minimum.
** The Forsaken are pretty much a crapshoot in that regard. For every four or five rotten sociopaths you get one or two who just want to live out their free unlives while they can or aren't all that bad. Leonid Bartholomew of the Argent Dawn jumps to mind. This also seems to be more or less reflected in the Forsaken slice of the roleplay community.

[[AC:TabletopGames]]

[[AC:Web Comics]]

[[AC:ComicBooks]]
* Even ComicBook/TheJoker himself has been confused about the nature of his [[StockholmSyndrome twisted relationship]] with [[MadLove Harley Quinn]].

[[AC:FanFiction]]
* In ''FanFic/ACharmedLife'' [[Manga/DeathNote Light Yagami]] is very emotionally stunted and hadn't even thought himself ''capable'' of falling in love with someone, believing that if someone were to write his name in the Death Note for that purpose he would just die of a heart attack.

[[AC:Film - Animated]]

*** In the first book...
---> '''Dumbledore''': If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love.
*** In the sixth book...
---> '''Harry Potter''': ...I'll have "power the Dark Lord knows not", it just means - love?
---> '''Dumbledore''': Yes - just love...

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. Subverted with the non-corporeal First Evil in "Touched". Several Scoobies are having a PreClimaxClimax. The First talks of its envy of these humans who can touch each other...because it would like to be able to [[NeckSnap hold someone's neck in their hands and feel it snap]].

[[AC:TabletopGames]]
* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': The drow elves belong to a sociopathic society where lust and politics drive intimacy rather than affection, so in the rare event a drow does fall in love, they often find the experience - valuing someone else's well-being! - to be strange and frightening, driving some lovesick drow to destroy whoever is "corrupting" them. Those who don't generally try to acquire the other drow as a slave if their status is lower, or improve their own station if their paramour is higher class, in hopes that the other drow takes notice. It is ''extremely'' rare, but if two drow reciprocate each other's affections, such couples can become almost unstoppable forces in their society... but almost always fall apart due to suspicions of betrayal, because fully trusting another person is just as alien a concept as love is to a drow.

[[AC:VideoGames]]

* Gently spoofed in the ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' "WAR!" comic, where [[MissionControl The Administrator]] has to ask her assistant exactly what friends ''do'' together.
-->'''Administrator''': ''Miss Pauling, you strike me as the sort of person who would have friends. Tell me... What do they '''do?''' ''
-->'''Ms. Pauling''': ''Um. Go skating... Look at gun catalogs... Sometimes we just talk...''
-->'''Administrator''': '' '''Talking?''' Friendship is even worse than I thought.''
** Slight parody later on with one of the Soldier's Halloween lines:
-->'''Tin Soldier''': I AM A ROBOT. BOOP. WHAT IS LOVE?
* In Captain Blue's story in ''VideoGame/ViewtifulJoe'', LevelBoss Alastor demands this of Blue after Alastor finds and reads a love letter Blue wrote to his wife.
-->'''Alastor''': "Tell me about humans... And that thing you call love!"
-->After the fight
-->'''Blue''': "Love is a potent force. It is what I fight for."
-->'''Alastor''': "[[ThePowerOfLove Love is power]]... I'll remember that."

[[AC:VisualNovels]]

[[AC:WebComics]]

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]

** Also, "The Beach" shows that she doesn't understand romance or flirting at all; her sales pitch is an outright WeCanRuleTogether because she doesn't have the slightest clue what else she can say to seem attractive beyond just using her looks.
** And don't even get us started on her relationship with her mother, Ursa. Again, in "The Beach," she casually shrugs off the notion that Ursa thought of her as anything more than a monster. [[spoiler: Then [[VillainousBreakdown the series finale]] happens...]]
---> [[spoiler:'''Azula: '''Trust is for fools; fear is the only reliable way. Even you fear me...]]
---> [[spoiler:'''Hallucination of Ursa in a mirror:''' No. I ''love'' you, Azula. I do.]]
---> [[spoiler: '''Azula:''' *shatters mirror, breaks down into tears*]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'', it takes David Xanatos considerable effort to comprehend his feelings for Fox. It's actually [[DiscussedTrope discussed]] when he proposes:
-->'''Xanatos''': "Marry me."\\
'''Fox''': "Are you serious?"\\
'''Xanatos''': "We're genetically compatible, highly intelligent and have the same goals. It makes perfect sense to get married."\\
'''Fox''': "True, but what about... [[MarryForLove love]]?"\\
'''Xanatos''': "I think we love each other... as much as two people such as ourselves are capable of that emotion."

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', this turns out to be the cause of [[spoiler:''Discord's'']] villainy. Having existed for God only knows how long and without ever having a friend, he simply didn't understand friendship and used his powers for nothing other than his own amusement.
* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': In "The Golf War", [[AlphaBitch Pacifica Northwest]] has trouble with the concept of "sharing" when Mabel tries to bury the hatchet and offers her a taco. She doesn't even know how to pronounce the word properly.
* From ''WesternAnimation/TheLionGuard'''s Season 3 premiere: It's clear from what he sings in "New Way To Go" that Janja sincerely has no idea why he can't stop thinking about Jasiri or why he's changed because of her ("Why do I feel this way inside?"), whereas any viewer watching can tell, "Dude, you are ''so'' in love with her!"

[[AC: {{Anime}}]]

[[AC: {{Comics}}]]
* Played with in ComicBook/{{Fables}}; [[TheBigBadWolf Bigby Wolf]] (who was willingly infected with a werewolf disease that lets him spend most of his time in human form) has feelings for the (fully human) Literature/SnowWhite which takes him centuries to work out. He explains that (sentient) wolves do have a concept of love for each other (his own mother pined and died of a broken heart after being abandoned by his father) and it's usually triggered by [[LoveAtFirstSight love at first sniff]]. However, he still spent a long time confused about it because (1) when he first experienced this with Snow it was before he gained his human form, so they truly were totally different species, and (2) he was the self-proclaimed "unrepentant lord of monsters" at that time, who killed and ate people purely on a whim, so dedication to another was totally alien to him.

[[AC:FanFiction]]

[[AC: {{Film}}]]

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/AForAndromeda''. Fleming explains to Andromeda (a synthetic woman created and controlled by an alien-designed MasterComputer) the difference between right and wrong ('nasty' and 'nice') by pinching and then stroking her. Later on Fleming grabs her for a snog, though by that stage she has already started to develop emotions, including concern for his life.
* ''Series/{{Fringe}}'': The episode ''August'' is about an Observer who saves a girl from dying in a plane crash, in violation of the Observers' rule against interference, and eventually sacrifices his own life to protect her. As he's dying he explains why to September:
-->'''September:''' Who is she? Why did you save her?
-->'''August:''' I saw her many years ago. She was a child. Her parents had just been killed. She was crying. She... she was brave. She crossed my mind. Somehow, she never left it. I think... it is what they call feelings. I think... I love her. Will she be safe now?
-->'''September:''' Yes. You made her important. She is responsible for the death of one of us.
** Later, in the episode ''A Short Story About Love'', ''September'' seems to have started to understand the concept.
--->'''September:''' I have a theory, based on a uniquely human principle. I believe you could not be fully erased because the people who care about you would not let you go, and you would not let them go.
--->'''September:''' I believe you call it Love.

--> '''David:''' "What did the vending machine... vend?"
--> '''Lee:''' "What is this thing you call 'love' human?"

[[AC:{{Theatre}}]]

[[AC:VideoGames]]

[[AC:VisualNovels]]

[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]

[[AC:WebOriginal]]

* ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'': In "Resurrection", two androids in the future create a human man after [[HumanitysWake humanity has gone extinct]]. When he starts to yearn for a mate he initially expresses feelings for the female robot and kisses her before she reveals her true nature. She does understand his emotions in a descriptive sense, but says that as a robot she unfortunately cannot reciprocate them. [[spoiler:Before shutting off every robot in the world they leave him with a human female for company.]]

* Schwi of ''LightNovel/NoGameNoLife [[BigDamnMovie Zero]]'', an Ex-Machina who has been exiled from her [[HiveMind collective]] due to her efforts to understand "the human heart" causing a [[LogicBomb critical error]]. She eventually succeeds thanks to her relationship with the main character, Riku. [[spoiler:Right before [[ProudWarriorRaceGirl Jibril]] [[HeroKiller blasts her to oblivion]], Schwi manages to convince her collective to reconnect her - passing them her love and her understanding of the human heart and making them allies to Riku's cause.]]

* In ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic'', Sousuke for the majority of the story. Having been [[{{Tykebomb}} literally raised]] as a [[ChildSoldiers soldier]], he's grown up completely divorced from the idea of romantic love, is incapable of recognizing any of its associated norms and behavior, [[ParalyzingFearOfSexuality and is downright terrified of sexuality]]. It's bad enough that, while he winds up falling [[WorthLivingFor hopelessly]] [[LivingEmotionalCrutch in]] [[DevotedToYou love]] within two weeks of being appointed as her {{bodyguard|crush}}, it takes him another eight months to realize all the inexplicable sensations and mood shifts he's been feeling since then have anything to do with this "love" thing at all.
* ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}'':

-->'''Chane:''' Why? Why do these people do this for me? Even though we've just met? Even though we're not family. ''Why!?''

* Because of her inability to love, Anri from ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'' has a difficulty with understanding this concept, and therefore she cannot tell apart the feelings she feels for Mikado, Masaomi, ''and'' Mika.

* In ''LightNovel/{{Gosick}}'', Victorique [[spoiler: - before she was freed from her prison and locked up in the tower -]] seems to have trouble understanding it.

** ''[[LightNovel/NarutoHiden Gaara Hiden]]'' reveals that due to having a similar childhood as Naruto, Gaara is very much the same. He understands friendship and familial love, but when it comes to romantic love he's incredibly dense. For example, Shikamaru and Temari's EveryoneCanSeeIt BelligerentSexualTension was something even [[ObliviousToLove Naruto]] noticed, and Gaara is the ''only one'' surprised when they finally get together.

* This is the primary driving point for ''LightNovel/VioletEvergarden'''s CharacterDevelopment: she becomes a member of the Auto Memory Dolls Service because she wishes to know the meaning behind the supposed last words her military superior-slash-ParentalSubstitute told to her.

* ''{{LightNovel/Shimoneta}}'' [[PlayedForDrama plays this for all the drama]]. Due to being in a society where ''anything'' relating to sex which range from words, gestures and materials can and will be punished to the full extent of the law, everyone slowly began to lose the ability to love.

* Yoruka in ''LightNovel/UndefeatedBahamutChronicle'' doesn't understand her own love for others or that other people could love her, in either the familial or romantic sense. This is because she was ostracised by others (except her brother) for her natural killing instincts and created an image of herself as nothing more than a tool. She claims that she doesn't care about her brother, which Lux points out is false when he manages to beat her (she had the upper hand in their fight, but lost her focus when talking about her brother). Later on, she doesn't understand why Lux would [[TakingTheBullet take a fatal attack for her]].

* The half-elf Emilia from ''LightNovel/ReZero'' is inexperienced in romantic love. She knows why each other is cared for, but she is innocent because she has been shunned all her life. Subaru is very important to her and she likes that he loves her. But Emilia is not sure whether she loves him too or just likes him.

* ''DeepInTheValley'' is a movie featuring a TrappedInTVLand type reality where Porn Tropes are real. The characters from this reality, such as Daphne, are very familiar with sex but haven't heard of love.

** Also, "The Beach" shows that she doesn't understand romance or flirting at all; her sales pitch is an outright WeCanRuleTogether because she doesn't have the slightest clue what else she can say to seem attractive.

* Ben often baffles other aliens with his strange, compassionate human ways in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}}'' series. In the first series, he spares the opponent he and Kevin defeat in a forced gladiator game, causing the runner of the games to muse, "Mercy? What a novel concept." In the ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce Alien Force]]'' episode "Primus," Azmuth makes it clear that he would rather let himself and the three teens die than show Vilgax the secrets of the Omnitrix, and asks Ben what in the world he thinks he's doing when he starts making a deal with Vilgax to save his friends. He also basically teaches a Highbreed "what is this you call friendship" in a EnemyMine episode.

* Iason Mink of ''LightNovel/AiNoKusabi'' is an ArtificialHuman [[TheBeautifulElite Elite]] of a {{Dystopia}}n [[CrapsackWorld society]] where a MasterComputer rules and [[DystopianEdict restricts it's artificially created children from participating in many human behaviors such as exhibiting emotion or indulging in sex]]. Iason develops LimaSyndrome towards Riki whom he kidnapped and forcibly made a SexSlave of. Eventually, Iason realizes he's in love with his "Pet" and struggles to make sense of his new found emotions.

* The central theme of ''Film/AIArtificialIntelligence'', in which a robot boy searches for a way [[PinocchioSyndrome to become human]] to gain the love of his mother who he has been programmed to love by a series of code words spoken by her. Jude Law's character, a robot prostitute, seems to grow fond of some of his clients but seems to be actually prohibited from becoming too attached, because his occupation is to basically be the perennially eager lover.

* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'': When a Christian priest is asked in passing about what he considers valuable in the world, he answers that 'love is the thing that makes all other things valuable'. The Viking marauders and mercenaries he's travelling with not only are confused, but have NO IDEA what he's talking about, and a few more curious ones ask for clarification on this "love" thing he mentions. He isn't really sure either and it is the question that makes him wander the world in search for an answer.

* Happens all the time in {{Opera}}, in which a character will sing "Could this be love?" (usually in another language, of course), generally followed by "Yes -- yes, it is!"\\
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The eponymous [[DefrostingIceQueen Defrosting Ice Princess]] of Puccini's ''Theatre/{{Turandot}}'' is more or less thawed by a kiss from Prince Calaf.

* On ''Series/TheOddCouple1970'', episode "[[Recap/TheOddCouple1970S2E10BeingDivorcedIsNeverHavingToSayIDo Being Divorced is Never Having to Say'I Do']]", Felix breaks up Oscar's ex-wife's wedding (which would have ended Oscar's need to pay alimony) because he realized they weren't in love. Oscar calls him on it and demands to know what love is: (paraphrased a bit)