Agape is the Greek term for charitable or self-giving love discussed by C.S. Lewis in The Four Loves.
Lewis organizes his discussion around four Greek-derived categories: storge, philia, eros, and agape. He uses affection for natural fondness, friendship for companionship between equals, eros for romantic love, and agape for a self-giving form of love associated with divine charity.
The categories are explanatory rather than a simple ancient Greek dictionary. Lewis’s book is a Christian reflection that uses classical vocabulary to explore how different loves can enrich human life or become distorted when treated as absolute.
Agape is often confused with eros because both are prominent in Christian discussions of love, but Lewis treats them as distinct. Eros concerns romantic desire, whereas agape represents a deliberate, generous love that does not depend solely on attraction or reciprocity.