Video site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnsauWgTMBs&feature=related
Two is better than one.
I know what you’re thinking: … It’s another love song.
No doubt. The title is just screaming out to you.
The title “Two is better than one” immediately tells listeners that a dyadic, interpersonal relationship is involved in the song. The song starts off with a guy singing “I remember what you wore on the first day”. This sort of shows the importance that physical appearance plays in the initiation and formation of a relationship. Of course the first thing anybody would notice about you is what you wear and how you carry yourself. That determines whether you would be significantly remembered or easily forgotten.
The physical appearance aspect is dominant in the song, like when they talk about how wonderful the other party’s face and eyes are and so forth. I would say that the song does not go deeply into the formation of the dynamics between the couple. It concentrates mainly on the initiation phase, and very quickly skips through the experimenting and intensifying phase, on to the integrating and bonding phase, where you get the idea that they would die without one another. It is rather shallow, and uses common phrases from every other cliché love song that has already been produced. But hey, it’s catchy so what’s not to like? We can’t expect much in a song after all. If we wanted to see the whole “coming together” stages of relational development bit, it might as well be an opera.
Exchange is all about getting what you want out of a relationship, like the costs and rewards. In this case, the obvious exchange is that: one party can’t live without the other, “…I can’t live without you”. I’m sure you all know that it’s nothing literal. Rather, that their lives would not be the same without each other present. Certainly they meet each other’s tangible and emotional expectations. This is where the saying, “They complete one another” comes about. Meeting each other’s relational need is imperative in relationship maintenance.
In sweet songs like these, you hardly or never see conflict arising in the middle of the song. The song writers know better than to spoil a perfectly romantic song. It throws people out of the “mood”, and chart ratings and popularity would thus not be so high.
By the way, I really like this song. I’m just sarcastic today. I can’t help it really. But I think that a lot of songs today can really warp a person’s idea of what a relationship should be like. It’s always about how “hot” this guy looks or how gorgeous that girl looks. We all know we can’t be that superficial all the time.
But here we are.
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I think romantic relationships are too complicating for my simple brain to comprehend.
ReplyDeleteIf we are drawn to the other party based on their appearance solely, people may think that we are superficial. If the relationship do not progress beyond stage 2, there wouldnt be much of an impact on either party.
However if we progress further, superficialities will get us nowhere. Right?
The song is not bad, but like you said, it pretty much sounds like how every other love song does with all the "I can't live without you" and mere descriptions of physical features of parties involved. However, it does allow people to connect with the feelings of the singers, eventhough listeners barely hear anything else beyond the things mentioned above.
ReplyDeleteThe superficial "aspect" of relationship building always occurs, simply because physical appearance is the first thing anyone sees out of an individual. In time, if a couple is still unable to look past just the "good looks factor", they would find that their relationship would end up strained and eventually broken.
A love song is always having catchy tunes and reinforcing the chorus part where the gist of the song is. Most of the times, love songs get people too emotional and thus, causing them to crave for love, which may not be a good thing if they have a wrong mindset in starting the relationship.
ReplyDeleteNonetheless, this song is sweet as it talks about how the relationship started with all the small details in the relationship. :))
Though is has some rather cliche lines, it's still a pretty melodious song no doubt. I guess cliche lyrics doesn't really matter if the singer is attractive(think Jonas Brothers).
ReplyDeleteBut I feel that songs that are able to relate to the masses are those that will have a greater impact on our lives, or at least top the charts.
Hi Gerald here. I do concur with you that in the first stages of any relationship, the physical appearance of a person does play a part in making the first impressions and affects whether it is a memorable or not so memorable one.
ReplyDeleteAlso, in most relationships, there is the element of exchange and in your post, it is the exchange of each others time and affection for each other as reflected in the phrase of "can't live without you".
About music, there is a relationship between the song writer and the audience. An exchange of product and consumer that really creates a culture of BUYING music all over the world. Of course the song has to be catchy and have some sort of meaning that the listener can relate to, making the song marketable and well accepted in popular music culture.
Nice song!!! It would sell because of the people who sang it of course =P Physical appearance is the ONE that starts the ball rolling. The number one starter for any relationship is: Attraction. What would we do without it?
ReplyDeleteThat simply means, no relationship.
Hi Audrey, Love the song! However, I do think that love songs are really merely touching on a superfical level. I guess it would apply better during the relational formation stage where the boy or girl starts going " gaga" with infatuation, hence the lyrics of the song.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, it totally warps the idea of how romance and love actually is...because if you go deeper into the relationship itself, it gets alot more complicated and messy.
Hey jie!!! love the song(like duh...i recomendered it to you). Although i agree that the lines are superficial and on the typical love relationship very much like "How Can I Live Without You" as Celine Dion most passionately belts out.
ReplyDeleteStill judge as much as you want but it's these cheesey/mushy rubbish that people fantasise and relate to hence songs like these sell very very very well.
This is where first impressions do matter. If you look good, speak good, act good, you'll be remembered. Relationships are wonderful support systems, but we all know that they are not perfect and they take hard work to maintain. Sometimes, songs paint a pretty picture of relationshps, and these songs sell very well. Probably because everyone wants or dreams about the ideal of romantic love that is sung in the song. However, I think that people should realise by now that this ideal is not realistic to follow all the time.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, i am really worried by how the media shapes our perception of romance and how people are ascribing to whatever the media have to offer. What's love? A superficial attraction between both sexes? A fashion contest with a "lover" as your prize?
ReplyDeleteAnd why are people shunning from the phrase " love is patient, love is kind"? Is it because it is no longer fashionable to follow such sayings anymore?
Maybe its time for us to rediscover the foundation of love.
To Yen Ling: Thank you for your comment! Looks only get you past the stage of making acquaintances. For a relationship to progress, looks cannot be the only factor that people consider. It's so silly =x
ReplyDeleteTo Amanda: Thank you for your comment! Once again, the superficial "looks" aspect is discussed. I guess we do have to think about how we would actually be able to start a relationship when good looks is not in our favour. Not everyone is fortunate enough to be blessed with perfect looks, but we certainly can have character to make up for it.
ReplyDeleteTo charlenetan: Thank you for your comment! Its true that people would crave to enter relationships for the real experience of it, rather than just listening to songs wail how wonderful it is to be in a relationship or how great it is to be love sick. Certainly, most people wouldn't want to enter a relationship based solely on that mindset. People need to see and do more than just dream that their relationship would be as perfect as those sung in songs. Be realistic, it's not always THAT perfect.
ReplyDeleteTo christopher: Thank you for your comment! Yes I agree with you about songs being able to relate more to the masses because they have a greater impact on our lives. When listeners are able to put themselves into a song, they're feeling alright. =P
ReplyDeleteTo Gerald: Thank you for your comment! Also, thanks for bringing up the point about the relationship between the song writers and their audiences. There is definitely an exchange and transaction when songs are able to sell well due to mass enjoyment.
ReplyDeleteTo =): Thank you for your comment! You brought up a good point there. Some songs sell well because of the artists who produced the songs. Also, you mentioned that attraction is the key to relationship initiation. I can't help but agree with you more right there. If people can't even get past the stage of going up to a person to start the ball rolling, sure they can't expect to have a relationship.
ReplyDeleteTo Priscilla Tan: Thank you for your comment! I concur with you saying that the song is merely touching on the superficial level. Relationships are definitely messy. They are not all fantastic and cannot be more difficult to manage and comprehend.
ReplyDeleteTo Ariel: Thank you for your comment! Yes its true. Cheesy music sells well for portraying the ideal that everybody craves. Ideal love and relationships. I will, however, say and criticise all I want, thanks.
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous: Thank you for your comment! Indeed, first impressions are very important. That determines whether or not you'll be remembered and dismissed as nothing. Most people would love for their relationships to go really well and be a piece of cake, but realistically we know that this is not true. Relationships do take alot of time and work. Like you said though, its worth it.
ReplyDeleteTo adrian: Thank you for your commment! The media is the main culprit behind warping people's perceptions of love and romance. We do have a right to worry about this issue because relationships no longer hold the value they had long ago.
ReplyDelete'It's always about how "hot" this guy looks or how gorgeous that girl looks. We all know we can't be that superficial all the time."
ReplyDeleteI do agree with that statement, however, we are indeed this superficial. According to Defleur et al, physical attributes are what we consider important, particulary during the initial stages. We may say that when we are looking for that significant others, the character is very much important rather than the looks, but we are hard-wired in such a way that we appreciate the attractiveness of a person before we will form any relationship with him/her be it a romantic or platonic one.
Then again, love is something everybody look forward too and hence the reason why many artistes uses loe as a theme for movies, songs, shows and every other things.
To Abi: Thank you for your comment! I do concur with you in saying that physical attributes are main things people look out for in relationship initiation. No doubt, attraction starts it all. But we must remember that beauty is just skin-deep, and that attraction can also begin on the character level.
ReplyDeleteCheesy songs always sell well. As most of you have mentioned, relationships are initiated first by attraction of some sort. Most people have the generalised idea then, that the prettier girls or the more handsome boys always get all the luck in relationships. I think that people should just be themselves, and let their character outshine the "looks factor".
ReplyDeleteTo d0t: Thank you for your comment! I agree with you in saying that a person's character could probably very easily outshine the "looks factor". However, getting to know a person's true character requires time and attraction hardly roots from character. The idea of "Looks" first would always prevail and we guilty humans cannot deny it.
ReplyDeleteMaybe love songs are cheesy, but there's no denying that they represent one part of love. Many love songs focus on the most emotional parts of love (falling in love and breaking up) because they sell well. And they sell well because people want to hear them. Maybe songs don't really focus on the parts in between, but it would be hard to write a song about life going on as usual. It would be even harder to bring that song to any crescendo. So instead of taking the less beaten yet considerably steeper path, it comes as no surprise that the media prefers the path well-trodden. This might very well cause the perceptions of teens towards love to be pretty skewed, but it's hard to suggest a better solution for the media.
ReplyDeleteSheesh... the opening of this song reminds me of the lines of Thomas Hardy's "The Voice" with the vivid rememberances of begining of the courtship.
ReplyDeleteI've long questioned why such stuff sells so well...It doesn't help that when you're depressed and turn on the radio only to hear a love sick Ne-Yo saying he's so sick of love songs or Jesse Mcarney belting out that "It's over, So over this time"
Why... why does such depressing heart wrentching stuff sell
It's a good song. Taylor Swift doesn't seem to do any other types of songs that go off the relationship and love genre. But well, it works. You hear people humming and singing songs like these everywhere. The media is a dangerous vehicle in making people see that looks are so very important when it is not. The illusion and message brought across is utopian, yet so very realistically influential on people's lives.
ReplyDeleteTo Zhi Yuan: Thank you for your comment! Well-argued point there. Songs never concentrate on the middle stages as it would be boring. The falling in love stages are exciting for the thrill of the chase. While the breaking up stages are suitable for the broken-hearted. While these songs sell well and will continue to be chart-toppers, I guess the media will remain to keep people's perceptions skewed for as long as people are in relationships. Which is like... Forever?
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous (23rd Oct): Thank you for your comment, Thomas Hardy reader! (: They sell because they're what people want to hear. The tunes are good, and people are able to relate their lives to what the artistes write and sing about. Depressing yet catchy.
ReplyDeleteSingers literally make depression sound good.
To ...: Thank you for your comment! I do concur with what you said. Illusions and ideas painted by the media often skew a person's perception of reality. It's inevitable as the media is ubiquitous. I do also agree that Taylor Swift has not yet moved out of her current "specialty". But well, give her time. She's only 20 this year after all and she still has quite a bright career ahead of her. If the music sells well now, why not stick to it? Sure people would get bored after a while so she might as well enjoy the prime time.
ReplyDelete