The Spoke acknowledges that February 14th is a rough day to be single, but it’s also a hard day for the average Emory student.
“Ever since I arrived at Emory, I feel conflicted emotions every time I feel joy that isn’t related to empowerment and inclusion,” says Sophomore Bessie Granados. “So Valentine’s Day is going to be a rough day.”
Granados is interested in Art History but decided to take Introduction Women’s Gender Studies this semester because she had heard good things about it from friends.
“For Valentine’s day, my boyfriend and I have reservations at a fancy restaurant and it’s going to be a fantastic night,” Granados admits, “but in the back of my mind the whole time I’ll be thinking about how monogamy is an extortionary system which keeps women subservient to men and that heterosexual love has been romanticized to the extent that it seems inevitable.”
“I’m going to have an amazing time and he’s going to be great,” Granados continued, “but at the same time I’m furious that I fulfill all these restrictive societal norms.”
Junior Anna Johnson reported feeling similarly conflicted. While Johnson is in a committed relationship with a female partner and they plan on going on a adorable picnic in Lullwater park together for Valentine’s Day, she can’t help but wonder if her happiness is illegitimate.
“We know from Engels that monogamy was created to benefit men, but why do I enjoy it so much? I don’t want to be with anyone else, dammit!”
After completing Emory orientation last semester, Tom Harava now feels guilty for only swiping right for conventionally attractive, lighter women. “Before I came to Emory, I never would have noticed that I was repeatedly nixing heavier girls and darker women,” Tom told the Emory Spoke, “but now I have to contend with my new progressive outlook and try not to contribute to a larger societal problem. It’s exhausting to be part of a community of care.”
At press time, everyone was having a lovely Valentine’s Day and feeling miserable about it.
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