Why do we so desperately want Brad and Angelina to split?
January 24th 2010 22:22
It's the same old rumour that we've been hearing for years, and yet this time it's really gained momentum. Not only are the usual trashy magazines and websites crowing about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's rumoured separation: now, even so-called 'credible' news sites like smh.com.au are reporting that the hottest couple in Hollywood have split. Naturally, sources close to the couple have shot back at the rumours, declaring them "totally false". Maybe they are, maybe they're not. For me, the question is not: "Is it true?" or even "Why should we care?" - it's "Why are people so desperate for Brad and Angelina to be unhappy?"
Is it a simple case of schadenfreude, or what we Aussies would call Tall Poppy Syndrome (that is, wanting to bring down those who are more successful than us)? Are people so miserably envious as to want others to be unhappy, just because they don't believe they can attain the same level of happiness? Or does it go deeper than that?
While there would certainly be a large number of cold-hearted people who would love to see the pair split, simply to make themselves feel better about their own sad lives, I suspect that for the majority of people it's far more intrinsic: that the reason they want to have them separate is because the relationship was one born out of adultery. To see a couple succeed after such beginnings shakes some people's belief systems to the very core, and so they want nothing more than to have those beliefs confirmed for them once again.
The media seems to know this, painting Brad's ex-wife Jennifer Aniston as being a real underdog: the innocent victim of the evil Angelina; the sweet and lovely everygirl who had her husband ripped out of her arms by a scheming femme fatale. How many times have you seen photographs with a halo drawn around Aniston's head, and devil's horns on Ange's? The Jennifer-Brad-Angelina scenario has all the elements of a crappy, mass produced romance novel, and after five years of Brangelina happiness, the public is beginning to get impatient for what they consider to be the 'right ending': which is, of course, Brad and Angelina breaking up.
But of course, five years is a long time to wait for a breakup, and people are beginning to get scared that it may never happen. And if it doesn't happen, what then? Will they be forced to re-adjust their rock solid views on life? Will they have to accept that, sometimes, things don't go the way you think they should? That real life rarely reflects what happens between the pages of a Mills and Boon novel, or in the scenes of a second-rate, fluffy romantic film? For some, the idea is truly unthinkable.
As for me, I hope that Brad and Angelina go the distance: not only for their six children, and to prove the nasty gossip mongers wrong, but to show the world that not every life situation is drawn in black and white. The sooner people realize this, the better off they'll be. Not everything happens for a reason, or in keeping with some pre-destined 'grand plan': sometimes, things just happen!
And that's all I have to say about that.
Perfect as always, at Cannes in 2009
Is it a simple case of schadenfreude, or what we Aussies would call Tall Poppy Syndrome (that is, wanting to bring down those who are more successful than us)? Are people so miserably envious as to want others to be unhappy, just because they don't believe they can attain the same level of happiness? Or does it go deeper than that?
Angelina: loved by many, hated by more
While there would certainly be a large number of cold-hearted people who would love to see the pair split, simply to make themselves feel better about their own sad lives, I suspect that for the majority of people it's far more intrinsic: that the reason they want to have them separate is because the relationship was one born out of adultery. To see a couple succeed after such beginnings shakes some people's belief systems to the very core, and so they want nothing more than to have those beliefs confirmed for them once again.
Looking very much in love
The media seems to know this, painting Brad's ex-wife Jennifer Aniston as being a real underdog: the innocent victim of the evil Angelina; the sweet and lovely everygirl who had her husband ripped out of her arms by a scheming femme fatale. How many times have you seen photographs with a halo drawn around Aniston's head, and devil's horns on Ange's? The Jennifer-Brad-Angelina scenario has all the elements of a crappy, mass produced romance novel, and after five years of Brangelina happiness, the public is beginning to get impatient for what they consider to be the 'right ending': which is, of course, Brad and Angelina breaking up.
Our hero: still under the 'spell' of the femme fatale...
But of course, five years is a long time to wait for a breakup, and people are beginning to get scared that it may never happen. And if it doesn't happen, what then? Will they be forced to re-adjust their rock solid views on life? Will they have to accept that, sometimes, things don't go the way you think they should? That real life rarely reflects what happens between the pages of a Mills and Boon novel, or in the scenes of a second-rate, fluffy romantic film? For some, the idea is truly unthinkable.
Their union has lasted nearly as long as Brad's relationship with Jennifer Aniston
As for me, I hope that Brad and Angelina go the distance: not only for their six children, and to prove the nasty gossip mongers wrong, but to show the world that not every life situation is drawn in black and white. The sooner people realize this, the better off they'll be. Not everything happens for a reason, or in keeping with some pre-destined 'grand plan': sometimes, things just happen!
And that's all I have to say about that.
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Comment by Raoul Duke
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Ask her father.
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Comment by Luke
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Comment by Journeywoman
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Good to see you as always Peter!
Luke, I wish they didn't care but this story is what sells magazines time and time again..... people care WAAAAY too much. You'll note that this article was not about Brad and Ange themselves, but people's reactions to their situation. Hope you enjoyed it, if you read it....
Thanks for the comments all.
Comment by LucyMoran
Brad needed someone like Angelina after that cold, fake Jennifer Aniston.
Ofcourse he wanted Angelina, she was warm and caring, exciting and real.
I don't know why anyone would feel bad for Aniston, she seemed so boring. Ofcourse Brad fell out of love with her. And also, they looked very creepy together, like brother and sister.
And Angelina didn't STEAL Brad away. And even if he hadn't left Aniston when he fell in love with Jolie, it would be bizarre to stay with someone you don't love anymore!
It's a simple equation. If he had stayed with Aniston, three people would have been unhappy. Now at least Brad and Angelina became happy, and eventually Aniston was too.
Comment by Journeywoman
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I guess I agree with your sentiments re: the apparent compatibility of these two in the relationship, but I really don't care so much, it's their business only and I'm more interested in the public response to their relationship. Besides, no-one really knows what another couple is like within their partnership - it's all just an outsider's speculation. Thanks for commenting.
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Comment by Raoul Duke
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I rest my case.
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