European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 14, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse When cupid Aims hearts and glands Are set men All want to be a woman s first love women like to be a Man s last Romance. Oscar Wilde by Sid Schapiro it s Valentine s Day and hearts Are . 14 generally is conceded to be the red letter Day for sweethearts and lovers. It s the Day when lovers celebrate love scientists an Alyze it and merchants make Money on it. The modern sophisticate who selects dates by computer seems an unlikely candidate for the hearts and Flowers routine. And yet the phenomenon persists. It seems almost that urbane americans take ref Uge in romantic love As the last bastion of spontaneous humanity in a world of computers and pro Grams and plans noted an observer of the social scene. Being in love is one of the few remaining excuses for behaving like a human being instead of a polling people on the subject of Romance 1990s style yields the conclusions that it has the same con notations As always love intimacy specialness but expresses itself differently for different people. On a topic so personal and yet so Universal Asro Mance generalization tends to be meaningless. But you can say one thing about Romance in the 90s the urge is healthy its expression is alive the poll concluded. The sexual revolution May have smothered it temporarily but Romance has survived perhaps stronger than so what better time than Valentine s Day for cupid to get into the act. The naked Cherub with wings and a Bow and Arrow is cupid god of love to the romans. The romans believed that if he winged you with one of his special arrows you would instantly fall in love. The romans took him from the ancient greeks and changed his name from Eros to cupid. To both he was the son of Venus goddess of love. Oddly though the romans had Little love for their god of love. They thought he was a meddlesome matchmaker who took impish Delight in causing the wrong peo ple to fall in love. Over the centuries love has remained a relatively uncharted territory through which the traveler goes without Compass or guide following Only the dictates of his heart. Uncharted that is until now. Enter the love scientists. They re armed with statistics and Laboratory data and boast a Range of discipline from chemistry to psychology to sexology All aimed at taking a More objective look at that old Black magic. Love is not All ethereal mystery they argue but follows definable Laws and patterns that if under stood can help us better understand Why we fall in love and with whom and perhaps can even help us form better love bearing in mind that psychologists and psychiatrists say love tends to Render humans helpless it matters not whether you win or lose but How you play in a variety of ways. The tuned in crowd will find cupid playing right along. After All the message is Clear be my romantic love is an enchanting experience say some marriage and family Counselor. In the Book mating they say romantic love some times is a swirling blend of tempestuous passion and Sublime suffering. At other times they say it bub Bles with a cheerful they go on to say it comes in a wild variety of forms and shades and it acts on people in Many different ways. When you think about it probably the worst time of All to choose a mate is when we Are in that con fused and euphoric condition called being in love. How can we be expected to make rational decisions with our perceptions so far out of focus feel ing As if we could do anything even deliver the Moon or make pearls out of de admiring our True loves perched up there on the pedestals we have so thoughtfully provided. Our glands Are doing funny things to our Bod ies rearranging our blood distribution causing us to gasp and sigh and occasionally Pant dizzy with excitement heart pumping and dry mouthed Why under these conditions it s almost impossible to de cide what to have for breakfast let alone a to doctors and scientists love is a bodily syn drome to be studied like any other. Doctors Cay loss of appetite a tendency to be Blind to the loved one s faults and a general sense of euphoria have a physiological basis. Romantic love involves special intense forms of brain arousal triggered by Contact with or thoughts about some specific person one researcher wrote in the chemistry of love. There is even medical evidence that love is Blind. If Strong attraction involves the same Scuro chemical circuits that Are set aglow by stimulant drugs this could account for the bad judgment that both amphetamine users and lovers sometimes show the researcher penned. This affliction of the body and soul that intrigues scientists and inspires poets has Given birth to a multimillion Dollar Industry in the United states. Across the country lovers arc exchanging traditional private tokens of affection Valentine cards Flowers and chocolates. And of course jewelry and assorted trinkets. Sid Schapiro stars and St Newt new York Bureau retire Delight in playing cupid in print that a. February 14,1993 sunday Page 7
