Characteristics
Puppy love is a very widespread experience in the process of growing up, and the person who proudly boasts '"I'm never going to act like a lovesick puppy dog...over some silly girl (or boy)"' may well be riding for a fall. The object of attachment may be a peer, but the term can also be used to describe the fondness of a child for an adult, for example, students being attracted to their teachers, their friends' parents, or children to older celebrities: indeed, some consider that in puppy love 'usually the object of such infatuation is some highly idealised person who is some years older - a teacher, an uncle or aunt, a friend of the family, an actor, or rock star' - and typically the sufferer 'greatly moved with emotion...spend much time in daydreams and wishful fantasies' about them.
On the positive side, 'Puppy love gives young people a new sense of individualism. For the first time, they love someone outside their family'. Others warn however that 'the old saying may be true: "if you marry on the strength of puppy love, you'll end up leading a dog's life"'.
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