Please note: This article contains spoilers!
Netflix’s “Love is Blind” Season 1 reality show took the world by storm when the pandemic started. People were intrigued because the saying is so well-known, people have grown up with it, and perhaps never questioned it.
The show’s concept tests the theory of whether or not love is blind by having singles meet and speak to each other through a wall. They never meet until they decide if they want to marry the person – their engagement is the first time they will ever see each other physically.
Out of all the couples, one pair – Lauren and Cameron – was a fan favourite; they ended up getting married and are still together today. Lauren is black and Cameron white; and given traditional societal prejudices, they were the only couple that I feel represented the phrase ‘love is blind’; but also the reality is they are both good looking people. Do I think they would be together if they were not attractive people? I guess we will never know.
Because let’s be honest, people are shallow as we live in a shallow society. People nowadays have types; they are very specific about the type of person they want to date and most of the time is has to do with how they look. Also people have specific types when it comes to what they bring to the table: are they educated? Are they working? How much are they earning? If that’s reality, how is love blind?
It’s like love comes as an afterthought nowadays. I notice all the time how people clown Beyoncé for marrying Jay Z. Just because he doesn’t fit their beauty standards they cannot possibly understand why she married him, I guess it’s totally impossible to think it was because she loved him? The show ignited a conversation, because do you ever notice when people use the phrase “love is blind”? It’s usually with situations like Beyoncé, where they consider the partner of that person as not being good enough because of looks, status, height and sometimes even weight – but that’s a different conversation.
Is love blind? I don’t think so. Of course there are special occasions when people just genuinely fall in love with each other but I have seen too many situations where people rejected “love” because their potential didn’t fit their standards. I have even done it myself. Also, we have to ask ourselves whether the expectation of blind love is realistic or not. I refuse to date a partner that is racist, sexist, homophobic and the reality is that most of the world is exactly those things. For me, no matter how much I love them there are just important values I will never sacrifice for love because the reality is, after the honeymoon phase I have to live and continuously love this person every day.
Love is beautiful, its kind, its honest and its patient; if it was blind it can never be any of these things. So love will never be blind.
If you enjoyed this article, you may like “Do long distance relationships work?” Read Amber’s take here
Tell us: Do you agree that love is not blind?