I'm one of those people that cannot stomach a love declaration, I either have to skip over it or press a cushion to my face. It's pathetic. In contrast, I think at least part of the problem is the horrible realization that while I'm watching it I am just filled with a horrible jealousy that this will never happen to me. But I think it's more of a problem for some people, who believe that Romance (with a capital) is inevitable. The reason for this is that we are constantly surrounded by these perfect love stories, that are, well stories. These fictional heroes make us believe that we are entitled to a passionate affair, which in turn means that we turn down perfectly reasonable 'suitors'.So In this piece I will judge the Top Ten Romances of All Time, and even if I'm personally a fan, this is an attempt to destroy them to make me feel less like Neville Longbottom.
10.Romeo and Juliet
Ahh the world famous 'Romeo and Juliet' written in the early stages of Shakespeare's career, the tragic romance has inspired countless adaptions, such as the brilliant modernized version by Buz Luhrman. According to famous literary critic Harold Bloom, Romeo and Juliet "is unmatched, in Shakespeare and in the world's literature, as a vision of uncompromising mutual love that perishes of its own idealism and intensity" (Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human, 197), yeah, I got that quote from Google, don't hate. The balcony scene alone is one of the most memorable and recognizable moments in all of Western literature. The tale of the 'star-crossed lovers' has caused heart ache for centuries, and in modern culture inspired the naming of one of the Beckham clan (Romeo Beckham). Romeo's a bit fickle, he was in love with a nun to be (Rosalind), however, during the course of the next 15 minutes he manages to suddenly switch his obsessive affections to Juliet. That coupled with the fact that his affections greatly increase when he realizes that she is an enemy, a Capulet, it makes me think he's simply loving the unattainable, as he did with Rosalind, the wannabe nun. The little drama-queen thrill-seeker.
For Juliet, Romeo is symbolic of an escape; her home life is dreary, with a pushy mother and only her nurse for company, and also with the an arranged marriage on the horizon, to a Guy named 'Paris', she is probably a bit desperate, this caged feeling of aggression caused her to idolize Romeo, Romeo is not the object of her love, freedom is. A young girl who is sheltered from everything is not going to know what love is. It feels a kind of like the news story recently, where a 13 year old girl stole her parents car and ATM card to drive for thirteen hours to Kentucky to meet a young chap called Dylan (turned out he most probably doesn't exist) that she had a 'relationship' with via Xbox live, teenage girls can get obsessive for no good reason, just look at 'Bieber fever', says it all. However the fact that they commit suicide in order to not live without each other at the end, shows they are obviously quite fond of one another. I just find it really annoying that the reason for their deaths is ill timing. Being in mind that Romeo's love is perhaps just an expression of his thrill seeking teenage hormones, its also possible that Romeo and Juliet's love is not genuine; their `love' lies not in their hearts, rather in their eyes (cheeky Friar Lawrence quote to end there.)
Dorothy
So it appears that Dorothy isn't a huge fan or our fated lovers and their heart-wrenching, untimely demise. All I can say is, why the bloody hell not? The point isn't that they died and it was all a bit wimpy and teenage, or that they are fickle and annoying, it is so much more. Firstly, of course Romeo is infatuated with anything on legs, he is a teenage boy, it doesn't mean that something beautiful can't come of it, she brings a ray of hope and love into his dark, teenage-angst-filled life. He treats her pretty well (minus the cousin killing but yeah bygones be bygones and all that) and the nurse approves for the most part - we all know best friend approval is pretty heavy. But the real poignancy of Romeo and Juliet is that everyone forgets to look at the bigger picture, they become motivated by things that don't matter: feuds, rumours, social hierarchy and honour. When what really matters is allowing happiness and love to flourish, and the horrible irony in that peace is achieved out of their tragic death (it definitely deserves a better position than tenth). Well, frankly, if their love and death were due to 'thrill seeking teenage hormones' I will always aspire to live like a thrill seeking teenager, because I don't want to waste a single day of being in love or loved.
Daphne
Coming soon, Number Two, Pride and Prejudice....
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