I read this back at the start of the jam but forgot to leave a review, sorry! It's stuck with me, though, and it was nice to read a nonfiction entry. There's so much to explore on the topic of antiromance—which of course isn't necessarily against romance but against the prioritisation of it—and it's really interesting how you look at it from different angles here. The idea of assessing relationships that aren't romantic or don't even involve other people in the same terms as romantic relationships sticks out to me. I think the assumption that we have to find this ultimate happy ending is a romantic and toxic ideal and it's interesting to apply that more broadly. We're never going to make any one thing work perfectly forever, and nor should we, right? "I’ll never love anyone or anything enough that my love for them will solve all my problems" is such a powerful realisation. As you highlight throughout, we're taught to solve our problems on an individual level, but often it's our society that lets us down. And as you say at the end, knowing all this doesn't mean we have nothing to gain from trying to make it work.
In any case, thank you for sharing, and I hope you're doing okay!
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I read this back at the start of the jam but forgot to leave a review, sorry! It's stuck with me, though, and it was nice to read a nonfiction entry. There's so much to explore on the topic of antiromance—which of course isn't necessarily against romance but against the prioritisation of it—and it's really interesting how you look at it from different angles here. The idea of assessing relationships that aren't romantic or don't even involve other people in the same terms as romantic relationships sticks out to me. I think the assumption that we have to find this ultimate happy ending is a romantic and toxic ideal and it's interesting to apply that more broadly. We're never going to make any one thing work perfectly forever, and nor should we, right? "I’ll never love anyone or anything enough that my love for them will solve all my problems" is such a powerful realisation. As you highlight throughout, we're taught to solve our problems on an individual level, but often it's our society that lets us down. And as you say at the end, knowing all this doesn't mean we have nothing to gain from trying to make it work.
In any case, thank you for sharing, and I hope you're doing okay!
Thank you for sharing this <3