Happy VD! So What Is A Rose?

It's Valentine's Day and hopefully you've all gotten cards and chocolate and flowers from/for loved ones. If not, then you better get hopping. This raises a question though. Why do we give roses? What exactly is a rose that it deserves this place of honor?

Obviously, a rose is a flower. It is an expensive flower that sucks water like it's going out of style, but it's also a beautiful flower. And its more than that. In Ancient Greece, the rose was considered sacred by followers of the goddess Isis. In the novel "The Golden Ass," (which should be the name of the Kardashian story) a rose saved the hero from being bewitched and spending his life as a donkey. Clearly, Obama was not so saved. The rose was then identified with the goddess of love Aphrodite (and then the Roman version Venus). So it became ass-ociated with romance. ;-)

Not to be outdone, Medieval Christians associated it with the Virgin Mary, though what a virgin knows about romance is beyond me, and they attributed the five pedals to the wounds of Christ. The rose then became the symbol of England, because the British are natural romantics (just like the Germans and grizzly bears). Others adopted it as well, like socialists.

In any event, despite a few dubious connections, the rose remains the symbol of romance today. Is this why we give it? Perhaps. But let's think about this a little more closely. What is the point in giving a rose? Ultimately, a rose is pretty worthless. It will wilt and die in a couple days and suddenly your gift is lost. So wouldn't you be better off buying something that will last like a book the person may enjoy or a dishwasher?

Maybe not.

See, advertising works on a strange principle where both the company and its target market know that any spending the company makes on advertising will be lost if the company misbehaves. Essentially, advertising spending becomes a bond the company offers the public: if we perform, then our advertising has value, if we fail, then it becomes worthless. And the more a company spends, the greater the bond.

Perhaps giving a useless gift like a rose is the same thing? By throwing money away on a non-practical gift, you are essentially offering a bond. You are putting your money to use to buy something that only has value so long as your target continues to care about your relationship. If you bought that dishwasher, by comparison, then you could presumably split it if you broke up and get some value out of it, you can't do this with a long-dead flower. So maybe that is what is going on here? Maybe, you are telling your beloved that you are willing to waste money to prove to them just how much your relationship is really worth it.

Interesting.

In any event, remember your loved ones today because they are what count in your life. So go do something nice and let them know how you feel about them. And if they aren't sufficiently appreciative, then remember that Commentarama loves you more. :D