I Never Had A Prom And I Turned Out Fine: Exploring The Expectations

This is a response to From Buying The Dress, To Finding The Perfect Date, Prom Is Worth It

Prom night is seen as the most significant event of your high school career, aside from graduation. It's a night to remember full of friends, dancing, and fancy dresses. However, only some people go to their prom. I did not go to mine. This was not my choice. You see, my senior year happened to be 2020 and we all know how that went down. Schools were shut down, graduations were made drive-thru and prom was canceled. As someone who never got to experience prom night, here is my perspective.

Prom to me seems like there is too much pressure set on having that “perfect night”. From buying the best dress to finding a limo to fit everyone in it. The biggest pressure of them all is the one thing that most teenagers struggle with: finding a date. Dating in high school is already complicated enough. I knew many people who proclaimed that they wouldn’t go to prom if they didn’t find a date. This adds to the expectation that you need to have a date to have that so-called “magical night”.

Another factor of prom is that it seems way more expensive than it's worth. You have to buy the ticket, and if you have a date in mind, make up a creative promposal and this is only the first part. After tickets have been purchased, you then have to buy your dress or rent your tuxedo. According to the breakdown on attending prom in 2023 by Amarra.com, the average prom dress can range from 85-700 dollars. Even after dresses and tuxedos, you still have to worry about shoes, jewelry, corsages, hair, makeup, and nails. And then, there is finding a place to have dinner beforehand and limo costs if you chose to rent one. While a person who attends prom may not do all that is listed above, it is still costly.

And last but not least, school dances are just kind of mediocre. Maybe it's just homecoming but the most memorable and notable thing there was what the students called the circle. The circle was basically a circle of kids grinding and teachers having to break it up. Maybe that didn’t go on at prom but once again, I never had one so I can’t be sure.

Overall, if you did have a prom, good for you and I hope you had a great experience. I just think that we should all take a step back and remember that this is a single-night event and that you shouldn’t have to stress yourself out over it. Just have a good time.