Modern Romance

Everybody sets off on a romantic trip at some time. Our goal when we meet new people, go on dates, enter and exit relationships is to find someone with whom we can really connect. Although it appears commonplace now, this is quite different from even a few decades ago. More romantic possibilities are available to single individuals now than ever before in human history. Our ability to interact with and navigate these alternatives is astounding thanks to technology.Why then are so many individuals dissatisfied?

A few of our issues are specific to the present day."Why did this guy just send me a pizza emoji through text?"Even though she named combos as one of her favourite snack foods, should I still go out with this girl?Combines? "Some guy named Nathan just sent a message to my girlfriend. Which Nathan is? Was it only a picture of his penis that he sent her? Shall I double-check to be sure?

But technology by itself is not sufficient to explain how our love lives have changed. In a little amount of time, the whole society around finding love has undergone a significant shift. A few decades before, one may locate a good individual who lived in one's neighbourhood. When their families finally decided that none of the individuals seemed to be murderers, they would get married and have a child before turning twenty-four. People get married later in life than ever before and dedicate years of their lives to finding their true partner.

Aziz Ansari has been directing his humorous observations towards contemporary romance for years, but with his book Modern Romance, he felt he had to go beyond. Together with Eric Klinenberg, a sociology professor at NYU, he created a vast study project that included hundreds of focus groups and interviews held in cities ranging from Wichita to Tokyo. They developed their own online research forum on Reddit, which attracted hundreds of responses, and analysed surveys and behavioural data. The top social scientists in the world, such as Andrew Cherlin, Eli Finkel, Helen Fisher, Sheena Iyengar, Barry Schwartz, Sherry Turkle, and Robb Willer, were recruited. The end product is unlike any humour or social science book we have ever seen.

In Modern Romance, Ansari gives us a fascinating overview of our new love environment by fusing cutting-edge social science with his irreverent humour.