People groan at the use of clichés in every life situation, yet they are somehow so much worse when they are about love or relationships. People in relationships say these things all the time, but to single people like me, they make no sense.
Maybe when I start dating someone, I will understand what these phrases mean, but for now, they’re just terrible to deal with.
1. I’ll always choose you
Does this mean that if you have a lifelong dream of, say, owning your own business and your partner tells you that’s a terrible idea, you’re supposed to stay with your unsupportive jerk boyfriend and give up something you’ve wanted your whole life?
2. You’re my whole world
To me, this has always sounded like the only thing valuable in your life is your partner. But what about your family, friends, job, hobbies, or really anything good in your life? Don’t all of these things — including your partner — come together to make your life worth living?
3. Love is blind
This sounds like asking people to ignore obvious faults in the other person and just roll with it.
4. You’ll find love when you stop looking
It seems like a Catch-22. If you don’t look for love, how will you ever find it? Also, there are enough romcom plots that center around the woman who has focused so much on her career that she has no love life. She clearly stopped looking, and love never found her.
5. The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach
This is honestly disappointing for those, like me, who have no culinary skills. I guess I’m doomed to be single forever since I can’t make mac and cheese from scratch.
6. Opposites attract
You mean I’ll fall in love with a guy who has no similarities to me and therefore no foundation to build a relationship upon? Sounds realistic.
7. Marry your best friend
I think this cliché assumes that you have no other meaningful relationships in your life besides your partner. Also, it seems obvious that your marriage should have a foundation other than lust or physical attraction.
8. Love means never having to say you’re sorry
Actually, love means that you are humble and care about the other person enough to admit that you have screwed up. No one is perfect.
9. There are plenty of fish in the sea
Sure, there are plenty of other people out there that you haven’t dated, but that doesn’t mean that you want to date them all. Some fish just aren’t desirable.
10. Love like you’ve never been hurt
And here I thought there was a lesson to be learned from every failed relationship that you are supposed to apply to future relationships.
11. It was love at first sight
No, it was "attraction" at first sight. You clearly don’t know what love means if you think you will literally love someone you see for 1.3 seconds.
12. You complete me
Does this mean that all single people are just half a brain, heart, and soul limping around until they find their “other half?” When I look in the mirror, I see an entire human being who has the capacity to be happy and satisfied until she finds someone cool to share it with.
13. Relationships are 50/50
The only way I can imagine this being true is if you and your partner are in the exact same situation in life at the exact same time, which will literally never happen.
14. Love conquers all
Actually, you need much more than love for a relationship to be successful. For example, if you don’t trust your partner, your relationship won’t get too far.
15. Love the one you’re with
If I don’t love the person I’m dating, why should I stay with them? Why leave my partner trapped in a relationship with a person who doesn’t love them? Don’t we both deserve to be with someone who loves us?
16. Love knows no boundaries
Love should not be used an excuse for doing stupid stuff.
