For eons, age has remained a dominant factor in defining love and relationships. An older man with a younger woman or a younger man with an older woman, both manage to grasp the attention of the masses in society. However, should age or as a matter of fact anything else, ever be a barrier to finding true love?
Traditionally or conventionally, women have always been advised or told to find older men, who have the capability to protect them physically, emotionally and financially. Many women think that older men are more mature, wise and financially stable. But all stereotypes aside, when the age-disparity between the man and the woman goes over a decade, people cannot help but make it the talk of the town.
Many of these relationships ignite comments that are biased against women. Younger women are judged and considered to be ‘gold diggers’ and ambitious, while men seem to portray an appealing factor. Brian Collisson and Luciana Ponce De Leon (2018) researched the reasons surrounding negative backlashes and prejudices couples face, who engage in an age-gap relationship. In terms of gender differences, they found that the link between perceived relational inequity and prejudice was higher when the man in a relationship was older, rather than the woman.
Interestingly, relationships, that involve younger men with older women attract a similar amount of attention and critical commentaries. Although an older-woman/younger-man relationship can be seen as a positive-breach in the traditionally accepted man-woman relationship and a path towards breaking stereotypes, however, this too cannot escape the judgments of the society.
Today.com wrote a piece on why younger men date older women. They express that men who they interviewed, believed that older women seem to be self-assured, self-confident, and sharp conversationalists who are not just focused on starting a family. Also, some even said that the attention of an older woman uplifted their own sense of self-confidence and self-esteem.
Priyanka Chopra’s comment on her marriage with Nick Jonas on ETimes, seems to highlight how age is and should never be a hindrance in the path of true love. She says, “It doesn’t bother me. I think media gives trollers a lot more importance than we do. I don’t think we as celebrities or public figures discuss trolling as much as you guys do. I don’t want to change my life based on the opinion of 150 people and it doesn’t affect me.”
This leads us back to the idea of true love, age is never an issue. True love exists between two partners, irrespective of their sexual preference, age, caste, creed and religion. It looks beyond all the societal expectations, prejudices and stereotypes. Circumstances can and may differ. A younger man may fall in love with an older woman and similarly, an older man may date a younger woman. People will talk. The moment we start to care about what the society has to say, we will lose the true essence of love.
By – TIMESOFINDIA.COM