Are you a hopeless romantic? Do you get excited by the idea of falling in love with the man or woman of your dreams? Does watching a romcom or a period drama on TV make you cry? Or are you someone who thinks romance is based on an idealised view of reality that doesn’t really exist? Well, you could be right!
你是無可救藥的浪漫派嗎?想到與夢中情人墜入愛河你會興奮嗎?你會因為電視裡的愛情喜劇和古裝劇情節而多愁善感嗎?又或者你認為愛情只是基於現實的理想化，其實根本不存在?好吧，或許你是對的。
I’m no romantic and more of a realist – taking a more practical approach to love - maybe that’s why I never had many girlfriends! But if you really are expecting the kind of love that makes your heart flutter with happiness you may be dissapointed.
我是理性多於感性的人——更看重物質。或許這就是為什麼我沒有很多女朋友!如果你期待電視裡演的那些讓人跌宕起伏轟轟烈烈的愛情發生在自己身上，你可能會失望。
Our expectation of what romance is, probably originated from the Romantic period - an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement that originated in Europe in the 18th Century. The notion of falling in love, getting married and living happily ever after were culturally held ideas formed during this period and still exist today.
我們對愛情的期望，或許來源於十八世紀浪漫主義時期——孕育出歐洲燦爛文化，藝術，音樂，思想的搖籃時代。這個時期流行的愛情是：墜入愛河，結婚，然後幸福快樂的生活。並且現在這種觀念依然存在。
Of course there’s nothing wrong with liking the idea of romance; it makes us feel good – but we must be careful not to use it as a benchmark for our own relationships. This idealised version of love leaves out the nitty- gritty of real-life relationships. There’s usually work, finances and other stresses of everyday life to deal with. You can’t expect romantic gestureslike a bunch of red roses every day – there are bills to pay!
當然那樣說也沒有錯。至少會讓我們好受一些——但是我們得注意不能按這種理想的標準來衡量我們現實生活中的感情。畢竟我們需要不斷的工作來減輕每日的經濟和生活壓力。你最好不要期待，每天都有一束新鮮的玫瑰花送給你之類的浪漫之舉——畢竟它們也是要付錢的!
Many popular love stories end at the point where the characters get together or tie the knot. That puts the focus on finding someone special. But very few show us how to keep that perfect catch over a long period of time. A relationship is hard work. It’s frustrating, messy and can be emotionally damaging.
一些有名的愛情故事，總是在主人公在一起或是結婚之後就戛然而止。他們更關注的是如何找到對的那個人。但是只有很少一些會讓我們看到愛情如何保鮮。經營一段關係其實很難，它們脆弱且不堪一擊，或許會讓你沮喪，混亂，甚至遭遇情感危機。
If you’re still convinced romance isn’t dead, how will you ever find it? Historian and TV presenter Lucy Worsley thinks nowadays, any idea of romance is dying because it has become "too easy" to meet new people via dating apps. She told the BBC the "slow exquisite torture of love in Jane Austen novels no longer existed in the age of Grindr and Tinder [apps]."
如果你仍然堅信浪漫不死，那你會怎麼找到它呢?歷史學家兼主持人路西認為現在浪漫不復，因為現在有太多約會軟體了，所以人們可以很輕易的去認識新的人。她告訴BBC的記者，像簡奧斯丁的小說裡那樣讓人抓心撓肝兒的愛情是不可能出現在Grindr和tinder(交友軟體)上的。
Perhaps romance is best left to the movies – a fantasy that makes us feel good – and instead concentrate on finding a good and healthy relationship with its ups and downs but one that is full of love. Do you believe romance really exists?
可能浪漫只存在於電影裡——自欺欺人的幻想——歷經千辛萬苦，去找到那個對的人，然後過上幸福快樂的生活.你認為浪漫真的存在嗎?
（編輯：何瑩瑩）