In today’s generation, many people in the United States, possibly even all around the world think that age doesn’t matter in a relationship, unknowingly they are somewhat wrong. Back in older times, it would have been an immense deal dating someone who is twice your age. Today people fail to take age into consideration as long as the person is of age (eighteen or above; twenty-one in some states) and as long as the two partners truly love one another. A lot of people believe in the saying “Age doesn’t matter in love” which is mostly because they are dating or have dated someone who is a lot older than they are. Consideration needs to be put on other present factors that come with age, which will be discussed later on. Approximately two years ago, I had run into a guy at a National Park who was about eight years older than I was, his name was Daniel. We had an instant connection, our conversations went on for hours as we talked about our likes, hobbies, favorite music, the high school we each attended, etc. Not too long after, my family was getting ready to leave, so we immediately exchanged numbers and also found out from one another that we lived fairly close; about a ten minute drive. Daniel called me that same night eagerly asking when he would get the chance to see me again. He had bought me a bouquet of roses and had asked me to be his girlfriend, roughly a few weeks after socializing. Our relationship was going great, I knew that within three months I was madly in love with this guy and nothing was going to stop me from being happy with him, not even my parents. They had sympathy for him but weren’t too happy to know he was eight years older than their daughter. From our endless conversations and closeness, we both... ... middle of paper ... ...wyerment.com/library/articles/Relationships/4145.htm>. Crawford, Colleen. “Handling Big Age Difference in a Relationship” Health Guidance. Health Guidance. 12 Nov. 2013 . “So, how old are you, anyway?” Conversely. 2013. Conversely. 14 Nov. 2013 . “Cougars, Sugar Daddies and the Real Impact of Age Differences in a Relationship” TwoOfUs.org. 2008-2013. National Healthy Marriage Resource Center. 16 Nov. 2013 . “Why Maturity Matters” TwoOfUs.org. 2008-2013. National Healthy Marriage Resource Center. 17 Nov. 2013. .
Dating back to the early 1900’s and all the way through to the present, romantic relationships have been viewed differently. From strict unwritten dating regulations to not having regulations at all, recent generations have become more liberated in making their own decisions. The progressing times have made us become a more accepting society and have caused a decrease in the strong practice of religion and class. Even though differences such as religion and class in relationships were more than an issue they were not always a complete deterrence.
Medcohealth. Women and Aging: Our lives due change (2002). Retrieved November 18, 2002 from the World Wide Web: http://www.medcohealth.com
Rupp, D. E., Vodanovich, S. J., & Credé, M. (2005). The multidimensional nature of ageism: Construct validity and group differences. The Journal of Social Psychology, 145(3), 335–362. http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/SOCP.145.3.335-362.
Weinberger, M. I., Hofstein, Y., & Whitbourne, S. (2008). Intimacy in young adulthood as a
Age plays a major role in overall mental maturity. In the short story, “Where are you going, Where have you been” by Joyce Carol Oates, describes how a young naïve teenage girl gets herself in a peculiar situation. The fifteen-year-old girl meets a few older guys that appear to look younger but are not. Connie experiences a traumatic moment when she encounters an older stalker and doesn’t know what to do. At that moment, Connie was easily manipulated and persuaded. As a growing teenager, she yearned for the attention of older guys; which put her in situations in which she was not mature enough to understand what was happening. This story portrays a level of slut shaming, because Connie felt she had to look a certain way to be noticed
Kecskes, Alex. "Marrying Too Young Can Cause Divorce." Divorce360.com. 2013. n.p. Web. 01 May 2014. .
Without question, the concepts of attractiveness and age are both important considerations to many individuals within Western culture. Age itself, is often viewed as a component of physical attractiveness. Arthur H. Perlini, Susan Bertolissi and David L. Lind performed an interesting study that incorporates the well-recognized factors of age and attractiveness. Moreover, the study used these two factors as variables, and evaluated if their absence or presence effected the way an individual was perceived by others. Specifically, the researchers studied if a person's attractiveness and age have an effected whether or not others perceived them as being socially desirable.
Wilcox, W. (2012). The state of our unions 2012 marriage in America : the President's marriage
I was awful young enough to not fully be aware of the entire situation. What I did know was that I didn’t want to move into a new house, attend a new school, and definitely not live without my dad. Adapting to my new and different surroundings was very hard for me. I was upset with my dad for his actions because he was the cause of all the changes. I was mainly angry with my mom though for her decision. To my eight year old self, I felt as if it wasn’t fair. I was her precious girl and entire world and I knew she would do anything to see my happy. For that particular reason was why i couldn 't comprehend her decision. I wasn 't happy with the outcome, I hoped she would forgive him and we could be a family
Hanson, Richard R. "Optimizing Marital Success: The Conscious Couple Uniting Process." Humboldt Journal of Social Relations 32.1, TRANSLATIONAL APPLIED SOCIOLOGY (2009): 158-83. JSTOR.Web. 11 May 2014.
Arnett (2000) explains the nature of romantic relationships in adolescence as tentative and transient where dating has more of a social component rather than romantic. He also describes dating in adolescence as often taking place in groups, where “adolescents share recreation such as parties, dances, and hanging out” (p. 473). It is evident that romantic relationships in adolescence are unstable, short-lived, and lack the mature component seen across adult romantic relationships. Arnett conveys that exploration in love becomes more serious and intimate during emerging adulthood. As opposed to adolescent romantic relationships, dating in emerging adulthood “is more likely to take place in couples, and the focus is less on recreation and more on exploring the potential for emotional and physical intimacy” (473). For instance, an adolescent in high school may seek a romantic partner to gain some sort of social status or experience in the process of romantic exploration whereas a senior in college may seek a long-term and mature partner to build a life with in adulthood. Exploration in the area of love during emerging adulthood “tends to involve a deeper level of intimacy, and the implicit question
When I began my lessons with Ken, they took place at school, but then somewhere down the line, he wanted them to be at his house. He was the teacher, and I was told that you never argued with what the teacher had to say. Our next lesson, I showed up at his house at 1:00 sharp, ready to sing. I had never been to his house before, and I was a little nervous about seeing it. However, when he opened the door and greeted me with his cute little smile, I knew there was nothing to be nervous about. We started our lesson by singing a few songs for fun (we always sang duets together). He said that I wasn't singing my best and asked if I was stressed. Of course I was stressed! I was the lead in our school musical and it would open in two weeks. "One can never reach their full potential when they are stressed," he said, as he began to rub my shoulders. This was weird for me, but like I said, he was the teacher, and you never argue with the teacher. We finished our lesson, I thanked him and I was on my way out. Before I left though, he took my face in his hands, and he kissed me goodbye. I didn't really know what to do. Had that just happened? Did he just kiss me? Did I kiss him back? Is that wrong? He's too old! I'm too young! He's my teacher! We spoke on the phone several times that week, but never brought up the kiss.
...e,” because he didn’t want my senior year to revolve around someone I can barely see. His detachment reached the point of no response, and he ceased communication all together, saying “It was needed for us to move on until college.” To this day I still love him, and I know he still loves me. He wants the best for me, and although it is painful because I cannot hear his voice, it’s truly what I need. “I will be there at the airport the day you arrive at your future college, I love you forever and always.” These were the last words that I heard from him, harsh, yet caring. To this day I still love him, and try to move on, but no one seems to even come close to this amazing person. “Love at first sight” I once believed as a fools quote, but today I see it as the most amazing thing in the world, something that is achieved by pure chance and luck, only experienced by few.
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. “Pathways to Adulthood and Marriage: Teenagers’ Attitudes, Expectations, and Relationship Patterns” Aspe.hhs.gov Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
Fingerman, K., & Lang, F. (2004). Growing Together: Personal Relationships across the Life Span. New York: Cambridge University Press.