Why do you love the woman you're in love with? Because she is. And that, after all, is God's own definition of Himself; I am that I am. The girl is who she is. Some of her isness spills over and impregnates the entire universe. Objects and events cease to be mere representations of classes and become their own uniqueness; cease to be illustrations of verbal abstractions and become fully concrete. Then you stop being in love, and the universe collapses, with an almost audible squeak of derision, into its normal insignificance.

Summary

This quote suggests that the reason someone loves the woman they are in love with is because of her essence, her true self. It draws a parallel between this essence and the concept of God's self-identity as "I am that I am." The quote implies that the woman's uniqueness permeates the world around her, transforming mere objects and events into something special and individual. Falling out of love with her would result in a loss of this transformative perspective, causing the universe to return to its ordinary and insignificant state.

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