Honors College Art & Science of Emotions Fall 2017 (1:20 p.m.) Love Journal | Page 4

The Bachelor: A Portrayal of Love
The way humans experience emotion is affected significantly by society. People from different societies communicate in different
ways, and since emotions are a form of communication, acceptable ways of displaying emotions vary across different societies. Society, culture,
and art all play roles in how we understand love and what is expected of us in everyday situations. One of the prime examples of how a work
of art has impacted an emotion, in this case love, is when examining the development of the show ‘The Bachelor’.
‘The Bachelor’ tries to paint a perfect picture of love. The seasons always take place in beautiful places and the sets are always
appealing to the eye. The activities that the contestants participate in are dream dates to most people. The rose is commonly thought of as a
symbol of love, and in the twisted reality ‘The Bachelor’ presents, it turns the rose into an object of superiority. The very symbol of the
rose in this show is twisted. It separates the haves and have nots; it is the very opposite of what love is supposed to symbolize. It is clear
that a lot of the things done on ‘The Bachelor’ are done for ratings, but for young teenagers, this is the only love they are able to connect
with. The amount of drama and conflict that occurs on a week-to-week basis is almost unbearable and definitely not sustainable in the real
world or in a real relationship. The commercials for this show are the perfect example of this; only the most dramatic or heartbreaking
situations are allowed to be presented in order to gain a larger audience the following week. For a show that is said to be about love, it sure
does a lot of capitalizing on heartbreak
. It doesn’t get any more American than physically competing for another individual’s love while the whole country is able to
watch. Finding love is challenging enough without the expectations and additional physiological effects that are produced by putting a camera in
the room. When examining Western culture versus Eastern culture, one of the first things that stands out is the West’s ultra-competitive
attitude. Some of this competitiveness spills over into our emotional manifestations of love. Think of some things couples do, such as going back
and forth saying “I love you more” or when couples are talking on the phone and are reluctant to hang up first. These are examples of the
competitiveness that is involved with love. Even in a relationship between two people, the love one person feels for their significant other must
be greater than what is coming back in return. We are competitive in nature because of the way our society taught us to be. Another obvious
example of the competitive spirit American’s possess is when it comes to love can be observed when examining wedding receptions. Americans
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