My Issue with Valentine’s Day

First off, I would like to say that I do love rom-coms just as much as the next person, but the idea of a holiday for love, not so much. I find that Valentine’s Day is an overrated, superficial holiday that glorifies the idea of love on such a high level that it actually has the opposite effect because it causes people to stress out to find the perfect gift for their significant other. The holiday is usually loved or hated based on if someone is in a relationship or not, but I have never really cared for it regardless of my relationship status. I find it a completely pointless holiday that is just a money-grabbing commercialized holiday. I was always taught that gifts for partners or significant others should not need to have a purpose.

 I feel as though the holiday is so superficial because people expect such a great, loving gift from their significant others, creating this high standard that is so hard to achieve. I don’t think there is anything wrong with taking the time to show one’s appreciation towards a significant other, but the act of this should not be shown through obligation. People should not feel pressured into publicly showing their love! They should give affectionate gives because they want to, not because they feel a societal pressure to follow everyone else on this holiday. The random acts of thoughtfulness should come from a good place in your heart because it shows that you truly care rather than just doing it due to Valentine’s holiday. I find that random acts are more intimate than a national holiday. Randomly bringing home flowers for a significant other just because speaks more volumes to me. It shows that they are thinking about you and went out of their way to show their affection. 

Also taking into account the numerous holiday origins that Valentine’s Day has it doesn’t seem all too hyped up to celebrate either. An NPR article explained that the holiday originated from the ancient Romans who would celebrate the Feast of Lupercalia from February 13 to the 15. The Romans would sacrifice a goat and a dog and would whip women with the animal hides. After publicly whipping women, who believed this would make them fertile, there would be a matchmaking process where the men would draw a woman’s name and be paired with them for the rest of the festival, and if they were a true match then they would stay together. As for the name Valentine’s Day, the history was said to be derived from when the Catholic Church martyred three saints who were named Valentine or Valentinus after being executed by Emperor Claudius II.

The most well-known explanation for the romantic holiday is due to the rise in greeting cards in the mid 18th century. It was common for people to exchange little tokens of affections, such as written notes. However, when the 1900s rolled, and this little thing called the Industrial Revolution happened and printed cards quickly replaced the written ones due to advancing technology such as the printing press. It was quickly a big business for card companies such as Hallmark, flower companies, and candy companies who commercialized the holiday and made millions each year. 

The acts of love should not be to fulfill the expectations that have been forced upon society because of big businesses like Hallmark or the romanticizing of old traditions. They should be out of the true feelings one has and decides to display to their significant other. People should try to always make their partners feel special and appreciated throughout the entire year instead of just on the designated holiday of love.

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