I was having trouble finding a good image for this visual rhetoric project until I was scrolling through tumbler and stumbled upon this one. At first this image just made me laugh, for one reason being the inscriptions on these particular candy hearts are not what is typically expected. Instead of reading "Call me" or "QT" or "I love you" on these hearts, I was reading "It's not you, it's me". Since I ended up taking an unusual liking to this photo, I decided to web search similar images. I found pictures of candy hearts inscripted with even more unusual sayings. For example, "unblock me" and "swipe right". I then began to take a closer look into the real meanings behind these images. Obviously the creator of the image above has a problem with love, and when I read the little words a few more times, the imaged stopped being so funny. It then started to make me realize that several people, including myself, take the idea of love in a while different way than they did years ago. I have come to conclude a few different responses in analyzing all three images. One, that modern day individuals, again myself included, allow technology and social media to control what we think love is or how one is supposed to express love. Specifically, if one individual gave another a candy heart with the words "unblock me" or "swipe right" on it, he or she could be saying "I want you back" or "you're cute". (Assuming swipe right means "liking" an individual's picture on a dating application). It is unsettling to imagine these candy hearts would be appropriate in modern times to give to one another, yet they are. Couples DO block each other when they fight or break up, and singles DO swipe right on mobile applications such as "hot or not" and "tinder". I could do more research on the topic, however I know this is at least somewhat true from direct experience myself. I actually have been in both situations, therefor, those hearts are sadly appropriate. My second analytical response includes the possibility that either gender has become less infatuated with the idea of love, or even less familiar with what it really is. From the words above "not tonight", "like you as a friend", and "platonic 4-ever" I get the feeling that love is not as cherished as it used to be, or that the way one gender is expressing their love actually repels the opposite sex. I can agree with the top image for those reasons, especially since I believe modern attempts to pick up dates can be disgusting and result in a not-so-interested man or woman.
