Those “Jumbotron” proposals? Those big grandiose gestures in public spaces with hundreds to thousands of strangers looking on? That’s not romance. That’s attempted coercion.
It’s not for me personally, but if both parties have discussed and agreed upon the next step ahead of time, I can see it being romantic. I’m sure there are cases where it’s done specifically for the coercive force, but I wouldn’t write off the whole idea. If a couple met at or bonded over a sporting event, I can see how a proposal at a game would be special. It’s not my taste, but to each their own in my opinion.
I’m sure it can be done without being coercive, especially via the discussed and agreed upon thing you mention. But when I see it done in real life, I look at the woman’s facial expressions and body language. It doesn’t seem rehearsed or agreed upon in advance. It looks like it’s genuine shock, and in many cases the body language is intriguingly … defensive. Shoulder in and forward. Arms crossed. Head down.
It’s clear that this was sprung on them by surprise in a lot of cases and that it wasn’t particularly welcome, at least initially, as well.
Large-audience public proposals.
Those “Jumbotron” proposals? Those big grandiose gestures in public spaces with hundreds to thousands of strangers looking on? That’s not romance. That’s attempted coercion.
It’s not for me personally, but if both parties have discussed and agreed upon the next step ahead of time, I can see it being romantic. I’m sure there are cases where it’s done specifically for the coercive force, but I wouldn’t write off the whole idea. If a couple met at or bonded over a sporting event, I can see how a proposal at a game would be special. It’s not my taste, but to each their own in my opinion.
I’m sure it can be done without being coercive, especially via the discussed and agreed upon thing you mention. But when I see it done in real life, I look at the woman’s facial expressions and body language. It doesn’t seem rehearsed or agreed upon in advance. It looks like it’s genuine shock, and in many cases the body language is intriguingly … defensive. Shoulder in and forward. Arms crossed. Head down.
It’s clear that this was sprung on them by surprise in a lot of cases and that it wasn’t particularly welcome, at least initially, as well.
Shout out to the How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) movie for calling this out