Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake. Chris Pratt and Anna Faris. Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez. Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris. And unfortunately, Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum are the most recent uber-famous couple to call it quits subsequent to almost a decade of marriage.
When I was a gross little twerp in middle school, I was distraught when my favorite couples broke up. Internet couples, any member of One Direction and their respective partners, and probably many more pairs that I have subconsciously blocked to protect my psyche. The point is: I was a shy kid who was able to loudly live vicariously through celebrity couples and their impossible happiness. I looked up to these people who I actually didn’t know anything about. So, this article is not coming from a condescending place of judgment. I was right there with you. But when we learn the updates of the newest celebrities who broke up, it affects the general population way more than it realistically should.
Let’s be real, breakups are only supposed to hurt those who are directly involved. (i.e. the “Dumper”, the “Dumpee”, and perhaps the children that they have together). But this gets muddy in Hollywood. Here, romantic separations seem to hit the (likely young) impressionable fans the hardest. When hearing the sad news of two people no longer being in a relationship together, heartbroken fans automatically take to social media and proclaim that “love has officially died”.
And, even as a person who is guilty of being upset by news like this, I’ll just say it: screaming “love is dead” after a celebrity breakup is really dumb. Or, at least counterproductive.
Let’s try to rationalize this irrational reaction in three ways:
1. We must realize that the media sees famous relationships, especially heterosexual ones, with some very rose-tinted glasses.
In turn, we romanticize and idolize these normal people, who are just trying to make it work like the rest of us.
2. The extra attention of these celebrities’ platforms further complicates their communication in relationships.
They already have the cards stacked against them.
3. I should add this as a final rational technicality, famous people are (probably) complete strangers to you.
So, next time (and there WILL be a next time) that a celebrity couple breaks up, we should not lose hope of love. We should not even be placing our entire concept of love in people who we don’t know in the first place. Instead, it would be more constructive to work on our own relationships. Pour into the actual people around you – your buddies, your family, or your significant other. If Hollywood relationships can teach us anything, it’s this bottom line: relationships are challenging, no matter what.
We definitely should take a massive step back and view breakups in Hollywood with a healthy dose of critical thinking, so as not to become mindless consumers of manufactured drama. This greatly assists in redirecting our focus to nurturing our loved ones and living our best lives.
Despite what people on Twitter say, love will never be deceased. However, it will always be hard work.