The philosophy of love is an age-old question; Romeo and Juliet and the theme certainly shows up in Persian love poetry earlier than that. I haven't gone through Greek comedy/tragedy, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's a theme there as well. It's society-shattering because of one's own relationship to that society. For some, the ties of family/friends/local culture/career can be VERY strong binds indeed; careful what you say, careful what you do; a game of very local politics, not causing offense... litterings of little white lies to keep people's illusions about their reality intact. It's a minefield and hard to navigate. But when you want to do something controversial to your social group, breaking their illusions down... there is often a strong backlash, especially when you are breaking from others' preconceived notions of "who you are" and your role to play. It's one of the annoying parts of living in society, at least for me. I try to be the neutrino and have minimal impact on matter/energy and just pass on through when I can