[dropcap]I [/dropcap]remember when ‘90s TV shows used to made fun of matchmaking services. They would show various scenes of men introducing themselves in their best outfits to potential mates that left my braces-laden teeth exposed as I sat cringing, wondering if people really took part in those dating videos.
Now that I’m all grown up (and with straight teeth!) I find myself, and the majority of my friends, signed up for the online version of these dating technologies. It is no longer taboo to use dating apps for help finding someone to get to know, but is this advancement necessarily a good thing?
Various dating apps make it easier to find people who are close to you that are — more often than not — single. Some argue it’s taking all the fun out of dating. Countless couples now have stories in which they openly admit meeting on Tinder. Or better yet, they come up with a half–assed lie, remarking that they met at The Keg. Some people even go on to get married. Are we all going to be 80 years old telling our grandchildren that we met their grandpa or grandma by swiping right?
The concept of talking to someone based almost entirely on his or her pictures is allowing us to become more superficial than before. To compare and contrast men and women’s dating habits on Tinder, it has been found that women are very selective, declining nearly every opportunity, whereas men barely even look and swipe right until a match is formed. Is selecting a partner based entirely on the quality of a few pictures really an adequate way to approach dating?
Without these apps, however, one really has to put oneself out there to swing a date. Tom Greaves, a man in Britain, documented his adventures in approaching women on the streets to ask them out on dates in The Daily Mail. Most women laughed and declined, not because they were being rude, but because they seemed almost embarrassed.
A personal friend of mine admits she appreciates when someone puts the effort in the traditional way. She tries to make the experience positive for both parties while being polite and courteous to the one putting themselves on the line. I since have adopted this ideal and if someone has the gusto to appropriately approach me on the street, I give them the benefit of the doubt and don’t simply blow them off. If women keep rejecting men in the physical realm, why would there be any reason to keep trying?
No matter how you feel about dating apps, the truth is that everyone is using them now. Once a technology is put in place, it’s very hard to retract it. I doubt anyone would be in favour of the messenger pigeon in a time when the telephone took off.
That being said, I think it’s important to uphold the sanctity of actual spontaneous human interaction. You never know who you’re going to meet when you turn off your phone and leave the house, and it is guaranteed to result in a better story than “Oh, we met on Tinder!”
