Love and Romance in the 21st Century: Buckle Up
Ah, the good old days. They’re still the stuff of which most rom-com movies are made. Boy meets girl; boy and girl date; boy and girl face some challenges; boy and girl overcome those challenges; boy and girl live “happily ever after.”
A Little History Lesson
Even in the real world of dating and romance, things progressed generally the same, and marriage was the eventual outcome. The ideal was a home, 2.4 kids, two cars in the driveway, and perhaps both husband and wife working as we moved into the last half of the 20th century.
As the 21st century dawned, dating and romance began to change. The reasons were many.
- Women began to assert themselves as equal to men, especially in the workplace
- Women began to see the potential of substantive careers, as the larger economy began to recognize that they had much to offer in skills and talents
- Men and women both began to see value in delaying marriage and families in favor of pursuing their other career and financial goals first
- Society began to see other romantic arrangements, like living together, as acceptable and normal. This has resulted in the reduction of actual divorces, although the divorce rate among marrieds is still quite high.
- Student debt has meant that even married couples are delaying major purchases and starting families
- The COVID-19 pandemic significantly contributed to a stall in dating and romance, and singles took to online dating services to at least have digital relationships.
Where We Are Today
Love and romance are not dead by any means. But, just as the classic Bob Dylan song states, “The times they are a’changing.’” And they will continue to change as our notion of dating and relationships continue to evolve and expand.
Explosion of Online Dating
It’s obvious that people are dating and moving into long-term relationships at a later age. Visit this popular app to see how a huge number of people are still single and dating in their 30s. They’re in no hurry to settle down.
Online dating has exploded, as “consumers” demand speed and efficiency in every aspect of their lives.
Singles can join dating websites and meet people virtually 24 hours a day, chat them up, and get to know one another before ever putting in the time, trouble, and cost of an in-person date. And this phenomenon crosses all generational boundaries – young, middle-aged, and seniors.
Our concepts of what constitutes a relationship have expanded to include same-sex couples and other non-traditional matches. Consider, for example, the newer TV sitcoms and series that have become so popular. Check out “Modern Family” as an example.
Status of Non-Traditional Relationships
These newer relationship statuses have had an impact on the economic, political, and legal systems, as leaders and courts attempt to grapple with new societal norms. Case in point: It is now illegal for employers to discriminate against employees based on those employees’ dating and relationship choices.
Another case in point: What legal rights do couples have if they are not married, regarding such things as making medical and other decisions if a partner is incapacitated? These issues have given rise to an entirely new body of law that protects the wishes of non-married and non-traditional couples. However, many legal issues still remain.
Looking To the Future
The old ways of dating and relationships have been fading for some time now. Are there still traditional activities of courtship and dating? Of course, there are. But more and more, they are giving way to newer concepts of dating, romance, and types of relationships.
What the future holds is unknown. Suffice it to say, though, that it will continue to look far different from those rom-com movies and TV series that are also fading.