The media we consume massively influences the kind of love we view as acceptable or desirable. Whether it\u2019s the latest couples trend on TikTok, a Shakespeare play or a Picasso painting, we are guaranteed to internalise these depictions of love, and begin to form preferences for the love we wish to receive – be that romantic, familial or platonic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, we can also develop these preferences through love stories in the media that are unappealing (may a love like Ross Geller and Rachel Green\u2019s never find any of us), but these preferences will differ depending on which demographics we may fall into. Culturally, based on gender, age or sexuality, our perceptions of a desirable love story can\u2019t always align. While you may have loved the slow burn of Devi Vishwakumar and Ben Gross\u2019 academic rivals-to-friends-to-lovers trope in Never Have I Ever<\/em>, someone who appreciates the immediacy of an idealistic love-at-first-sight trope is guaranteed to find it tumultuous and dragged out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In recent years, there has been a surge of recognition that finding love in a relationship isn\u2019t necessarily the focal point of our lives anymore. The platonic love involved, particularly in female friendships, has made itself known across social media and the film industry. Conveying the motto, \u2018sisters before misters\u2019, the film adaptation of Wicked<\/em> has recently been added to the pile of classics like The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants<\/em> and Sex and the City<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Love, though, in the film industry, is definitely not always portrayed in the idyllic, pure way that we might hope for. Often it\u2019s transactional, financially or sexually fuelled. It seems that we generally accept these storylines in film that we wouldn\u2019t value so much in music. Judging by the 2025 charts, love songs like \u2018Die With A Smile\u2019 by Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, and Billie Eilish\u2019s \u2018Birds Of A Feather\u2019 appeal to us because they talk about having a deep love for someone that will last until death. The tune of the songs definitely balances out the morbid aspect, so we\u2019re left with a meaningful depiction of love which seems to be widely relatable to platonic and romantic love. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Gigi Perez\u2019s \u2018Sailor Song\u2019 went viral, and rightfully so, for being inherently romantic even with sexual lyrics that really resonated with the queer community online. Perez\u2019s artistry is an excellent example of the unique connection within queer relationships that don\u2019t traditionally gain the same traction as your average straight love song. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Modern perceptions of love have also been curated through the widespread awareness of the five love languages – words of affirmation, gift giving, acts of service, quality time, and physical touch, which undoubtedly all play a role in the traditional romantic relationship dynamic, but to me, it all seems a little cookie cutter. How you love and need to be loved is deeply personal and will change with you throughout your life – it’s a matter of self-discovery that won\u2019t necessarily be shown through the media, and that\u2019s perfectly fine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Words by Faye Gavin<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Picture credits to Bhamini Khandige<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The media we consume massively influences the kind of love we view as acceptable or desirable. Whether it\u2019s the latest […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":674,"featured_media":35263,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[3054,50,96,1206],"class_list":["post-35269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","tag-cardiff-student-media","tag-culture-2","tag-quench","tag-quench-magazine"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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