Love is a social construct, I don't know why people get triggered when I say that. I'm not invalidating your emotions or saying what you feel isn't real. All I'm saying is that the idea of love itself, the prevailing idea of mush that has seeped itself into most modern minds, is something that originates from societal constructs.

The idea that one can give their life for someone else not only defies logic, but the survival instinct too. Which is our most basic, natural, primeval emotion. Which is (or should be) at the very core of our beings, much deeper than any other emotion. While most indeed don't act on such ideas and keep it confined to mere words thrown in the polluted air, there have been some exceptions, which made me want to examine whether 'love', as it is understood today, is actually existing in a perverted form that simply can't be met by most humans, leading to a dissatisfactory state of life in terms of relationships that is becoming increasingly common.

We all yearn for unconditional love, something that we can't even give to ourselves, much less others. Its impossible to love yourself when you acutely know you are a failure, and its impossible to love someone when you acutely know they are trash. Even a mother's love has limits. There was some movie where a mother asked their criminal son to give themselves up to the law, and supported his police officer brother trying to capture him. While I appreciate the sentiment, it shows that no love can be unconditional. Certain lines you cross, certain limits you break, then the love starts to fade and may even turn to hate. 

Yet our media and stories almost always represent this kind of love, which is annoying to see and only alters our psyche for the worse. Just like a hero is represented as pure good, instead of someone flawed and selfish who may even make morally questionable decisions, the idea of a lover too has been raised to too high a pedestal, which only actors and slaves can fulfill. Like once Nick Fury tried to cancel the nukes on New York, but if the scenario was more logical and the avengers failed, stopping the portal might be considered a 'heroic' act. Of course, the Avengers saved the day, but if they hadn't, the nuke might have been the bitter pill a realistic 'hero' has to swallow. But no, shield directors=outright villains, and team of unreliable random misfits=heroes. Outstanding. Real life doesn't always offer a zero sum game, and even a purely good person may have to make 'bad' decisions for the greater good. Like the Ancient One had to use dark/forbidden magic to prolong her life because she knew Mordo or Wong weren't the right successors. Like you might refuse to financially support someone you love because you yourself are in a dire strait, or want them to earn and do something for themselves instead of leeching on. Nothing comes in black and white, except the stuff you see on television. Which is ironically in HD color, but a mere 1d sketch in terms of the depth in their stories. 

Media creates an artificial illusion of perfect love, otherwise known as 'true' love, which leaves people only wanting the idea of love rather than the realistic version of it. After all, no one can keep your heart racing forever, at least in a good way. They are just human in the end; flawed, replaceable and changeable as anyone else. And aren't humans naturally selfish beings? In the realistic sense, I see love as nothing but a mutually beneficial contract of sorts. We selfish beings have our own wants/needs that can be fulfilled by another being, and in exchange we try to fulfill theirs as well. The conditions, indeed. Except few really say what they want outright. Some even don't know what they want out of another person. Yet if you are self-fulfilled by yourself, there is no use of a relationship. Some do it just for the desire of a connection more than anything else, though friendship is a much better way to know and connect with a person. Many pursue it just for the physical aspects of it, which matches the sentiments of our primeval form. 

Sometimes I wonder why did media create such an unreal idea in the first place. Perhaps its mere commercialism, knowing that 'love' is a feeling that is almost universal and has an instant effect on the audience. Perhaps its just a product of the imagination of the writers/authors, fantasies in their mind which they shared with others. Realism doesn't really have a big market, I guess. Yes, it sort of grew like a fantasy story, a fantastical idea of something almost otherworldly that settled itself in our minds. The idea of a knight/adventurer vs dragon and other creatures is so deep-rooted in the fantasy genre, that it'll feel pretty bare without it. Same must be with romance, the unrealistic idea became so deeply entrenched that its synonymous with the genre itself. And then romance is used as a side plot in other types of stories far too often, which doesn't leave room for much realistic depiction anyway. 

Whatever, I don't even know why I'm writing this. I guess I'm just airing out my cynicism for such things, and the fact that I have turned my back long ago from true love and soulmates and stuff. The only one I could perhaps not hate would be a clone of myself. Opposites attract in the case of magnets, not people. People who are polar opposites would only end up repelling each other, especially when there's no common ground. On the other hand, having too much common ground is a very rare thing, since we are all unique individuals with different life experiences and opinions. Everyone wants a connection, someone who 'gets' them. Which is most possible with similarites. And if a clone has my exact same brain and memories, our understanding of each other and what works for us would simply be unparalleled. Too bad cloning is extremely costly and illegal at the moment...

P.S. Any new topics to write long boring essays on please recommend