Dating in college may seem like a taboo topic: everyone is constantly working hard and playing hard, and it seems like very few people are in actual relationships.
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However, the use of dating apps can be seen everywhere: Tinder, Bumble, Grindr, and more! This is the age of flirting through texting and the occasional phone call or FaceTime.
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It seems like there’s a constant pressure to go out, hookup with a guy, and continue on your way.
There also seems to be a un-discussed pressure to conform to the same, size two model for women. But your body is your body, and beautiful for what it is! As Sierra said in the intro scene “You are a magnificent beast.”
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Yet life in the real world isn’t always applicable to Netflix Rom-Coms. Bullying is not so outward and verbal in school, but rather a underlying societal expectation creates these negative stereotypes that people self-subscribe to. Cyber-bullying has caused even the most resilient to crumble around continuous scrutiny. We shouldn’t strive to be like a protagonist in any Rom-Com, because they are flawed characters as well. Sierra Burgess pretends to be deaf in an offensive attempt to sign language and cyber-bullies her new friend Veronica after making a large assumption. Rom-coms are fun to indulge in, like scratching the itch of a good laugh and cry all at once, but it is important to still raise questions about the main characters.
“Nobody’s perfect” as Hannah Montana once said, and that phrase still stands in today’s setting. Although it may seem like everyone on campus is partying and hooking up, if that is not your scene, you will find like-minded people. Plenty of people date on campus with the cheesy flowers, phone calls, and hand-holding sometimes included. So if you ever feel pressured to be who you’re not, take a step back and consider: Am I the only one feeling this way? The answer is … most definitely not.