2

LOVE AND
ATTRACTION
Lovebirds mate for life, and
mating pairs are often seen
sitting close together for long
periods of time.

Warm Up
Discuss these questions with a partner.

1. What are some things that animals do to attract a mate?

2. What is it that makes one person attractive to another?

3. In what ways do you think science might explain

feelings of love?
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 Before You Read
A. Discussion. Check (✓) whether you agree or disagree with
the following statements about love. Then explain your answers
to a partner.
Agree Disagree

1. The idea of romantic love is a modern one.

2. The feeling of love is caused by chemicals in the brain.
3. Attitudes about love are basically the same in all cultures.
4. The feeling of romantic love usually only lasts a short time.
5. Arranged marriages are likely to last longer than ones
started in romance.

B. Scan. You are going to read about some specialists’ beliefs about love.
Quickly scan the reading on pages 27–29. Then match the people on
the left with their professions on the right.

1. Thomas Lewis a.  Swiss university professor

2. Claus Wedekind b.  Italian university professor
3. Donatella Marazziti c.  American anthropologist
4. Helen Fisher d.  American psychiatrist

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 2A
LOVE:
A Chemical Reaction?

 ewlyweds dressed in Han-dynasty costumes face

N
each other during a traditional group wedding
ceremony in Xi’an, China.

1 Some anthropologists1 once thought that In India, marriages have traditionally been
romance was a Western idea, developed in arranged, usually by the bride’s and groom’s
the Middle Ages.2 Non-Western societies, they parents, but today love marriages appear to
thought, were too occupied with social and be on the rise, often in defiance of parents’
5 family relationships for romance. Today, scientists 25 wishes. The victory of romantic love is celebrated
believe that romance has existed in human in Bollywood films. However, most Indians still
brains in all societies since prehistoric3 times. In believe arranged marriages are more likely to
one study, for example, men and women from succeed than love marriages. In one survey of
Europe, Japan, and the Philippines were asked to Indian college students, 76 percent said they
10 fill out a survey to measure their experiences of 30 would marry someone with all the right qualities
passionate love. All three groups said that they even if they weren’t in love with the person.
felt passion with the same extreme intensity. Marriage is considered too important a step to
leave to chance.
But though romantic love may be universal, its
cultural expression is not. To the Fulbe people of
1 An anthropologist studies people, society, and culture.
15 northern Cameroon, men who spend too much 2 The Middle Ages was the period in European history between
time with their wives are insulted4 and looked about 500 a.d. and about 1500 a.d.
down on. Those who fall deeply in love are 3 Prehistoric people and things existed at a time before
information was written down.
thought to have fallen under a dangerous spell. 4 If someone insults you, they say or do something that
For the Fulbe, to be controlled by love is seen is rude or offensive.
20 as shameful.
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 Finding the Right Person Is It All Just Chemicals?
35 Some psychiatrists,5 such as Thomas Lewis from 75 According to other researchers, love may be caused
the University of California, hypothesize that by chemicals in the body. Donatella Marazziti,
romantic love is rooted in experiences of physical a professor at the University of Pisa in Italy, has
closeness in childhood—for example, how we felt studied the biochemistry8 of lovesickness.9 Having
in our mother’s arms. These feelings of comfort been in love twice herself and felt its overwhelming
40 and affection are written on our brain, and as 80 power, Marazziti became interested in exploring
adults, our constant inclination is to find them the similarities between love and obsessive-
again. According to this theory, we love whom we compulsive disorder (OCD).10
love not so much because of the future we hope
to build, but rather because of the past we hope Marazziti examined the blood of 24 people
45 to live again. The person who “feels right” has a who had fallen deeply in love within the past six
certain look, smell, sound, or touch that activates 85 months, and measured their levels of serotonin.
very deep memories. Serotonin is a powerful chemical in the brain
and body that is connected with our moods,
Evolutionary psychologists explain, however, that emotions, and desires. She found that their levels
survival skills are inherent in our choice of a mate. of serotonin were 40 percent lower than normal
50 According to this hypothesis, we are attracted to 90 people—the same results she found from people
people who look healthy—for example, a woman with OCD. Her conclusion was that love and
with a 70 percent waist-to-hip ratio is attractive mental illness may be difficult to tell apart.
because she can likely bear children successfully.
A man with rugged features probably has a Another scientist, anthropologist Helen Fisher, from
55 strong immune system6 and therefore is more Rutgers University, U.S.A., has been looking at love
likely to give his partner healthy children. 95 with the aid of an MRI machine.11 She recruited
subjects who were “madly in love,” and once they
On the other hand, perhaps our choice of a were inside the MRI machine, she showed them
mate is a simple matter of following our noses. two photographs, one neutral, the other of their
Claus Wedekind, a professor at the University of loved one.
60 Lausanne in Switzerland conducted an interesting
experiment with sweaty7 T-shirts. He asked 49 100 What Fisher saw fascinated her. When each subject
women to smell T-shirts previously worn by a looked at his or her loved one, the parts of the
variety of unidentified men. He then asked the brain linked to reward and pleasure “lit up.” Love
women to rate which T-shirts smelled the best “lights up” these areas using a chemical called
65 and which the worst. dopamine. Dopamine creates intense energy,
105 exhilaration, focused attention, and motivation to
He found that women preferred the smell of win rewards. Dopamine levels do eventually drop,
a T-shirt worn by a man who was the most though, and studies around the world confirm that
genetically different from her. This genetic a decrease in passion is the norm.
difference means that it is likely that the man’s
70 immune system possesses something hers does Fisher has suggested that relationships frequently
not. By choosing him as the father of her children, 110 break up after about four years because that’s
she increases the chance that her children will
be healthy. 8 Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes that
occur in living things.
9 A lovesick person experiences overwhelming feelings
5 A psychiatrist is a doctor who treats people with a particular of love.
mental condition or illness. 10 Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental
6 The body’s immune system protects it from diseases of all kinds. illness that involves repeating actions or thinking about
7 Sweat is the salty, colorless liquid that comes through your certain things too much.
skin when you are hot, sick, or afraid.

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 A couple poses for a
portrait a few days
before their wedding in
Delhi, India.

about how long it takes to raise a child through mutual feelings of connection and bonding.
infancy.12 Passion, that wild feeling, turns 125 It is produced when we hug our long-
out to be practical after all. A couple not only term partners or our children. In long-term
needs to bring a child into this world; they also relationships that work, oxytocin is believed
115 need a bond that continues long enough to to be abundant in both partners. According
raise a helpless human infant. to Helen Fisher, couples who want their
130 relationship to last should make an effort to
Maintaining Love keep a close physical relationship. Through
frequent physical contact, they can trigger the
Eventually, all couples find that their passion production of more oxytocin—and in this way
declines over time. For relationships that get feel closer to each other.
120 beyond the initial stage of passion to have
a real chance of lasting, a chemical called 11 An MRI machine allows medical staff to get a picture
oxytocin may be the key. Oxytocin is a of the soft parts inside a patient’s body using a powerful
hormone our body produces that promotes magnetic field.
12 Infancy is the period of your life when you are
a baby or very young child.
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 Reading Comprehension
Multiple Choice.  Choose the best answer for each question.

Gist 1. Another title for this reading could be .

a. Science Can Conquer Passion
b. The Right Way to Choose a Mate
c. Explaining Why We Fall in Love
d. The Case for Arranged Marriage
Detail 2. How do the Fulbe people of Cameroon feel about love?
a. Everyone falls in love in the same way.
b. The men’s wives don’t want them around.
c. It is shameful to be controlled by love.
d. Men can fall in love, but women cannot.
Reference 3. Which choice best expresses the meaning of this theory in line 42?
a. Marriage is too important to leave to chance.
b. Without the approval of family, romantic love rarely succeeds.
c. Romantic love is based on pleasant memories that we try to
find again.
d. Memories of comfort and affection can satisfy our need for
romantic love.
Detail 4. According to evolutionary psychology, why would a woman
choose a man with rugged features?
a. to improve her immune system
b. to have healthier children
c. to protect her from animals and other threats
d. because he is more likely to have a 70 percent
waist-to-hip ratio
Inference 5. Why did Marazziti probably choose to study similarities Critical Thinking  
between love and OCD?
Discussion: Evolutionary
a. She wanted to better understand her own experiences.
psychologists suggest we
b. She had naturally low serotonin levels.
are attracted to healthy
c. Other researchers felt it was an important area to study.
people because they are
d. She suffered from a mental illness.
more likely to have healthy
Detail 6. According to researchers, which chemical is most closely children. Do you think this
related to successful long-term relationships? “survival skills” theory
a. dopamine is still true today? What
b. oxytocin qualities do people look
c. serotonin for in a mate these days?
d. none of the above
Inference 7. What advice would Helen Fisher probably give to Relating: The author
couples who want a long-term relationship? writes that a particular
a. Hug each other often. chemical may be the key
b. Avoid having children. to lasting relationships.
c. Keep your partner’s photo in your wallet. How do you feel about
d. Spend time apart so you appreciate each other relationships relying on a
when you’re together. chemical?
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 Reading Skill
Distinguishing Facts from Theories
Scientific texts often contain a mix of facts and theories. Facts are ideas that
are known to be true, or can be proven. Theories and hypotheses are ideas
that have not been proven to be true or false. Words and phrases that may
indicate a theory include think, believe, hypothesize, may, might, possibly,
likely, suggest, and according to this theory/hypothesis.

A. Scanning. Look back at the reading on pages 27–29. Find and underline

the following information.
1.  Romance has existed in human brains in all societies since
prehistoric times. (lines 6–7)
2.  The cultural expression of love is not universal. (lines 13–14)
3.  Arranged marriages in India are more likely to succeed than love
marriages. (lines 27–28)
4.  Romantic love is rooted in experiences of physical closeness in
childhood. (lines 37–38)
5.  We love whom we love because of the past we hope to live again.
(lines 42–45)
6.  We are attracted to people who look healthy. (lines 50–51)
7.  In one study, women preferred the smell of a T-shirt worn by a man
who was the most genetically different from her. (lines 66–68)
8.  Love is caused by chemicals in the body. (lines 75–76)
9.  Serotonin is a powerful chemical in the brain and body that is
related to our moods, emotions, and desires. (lines 86–88)
10.  Love and mental illness are difficult to tell apart. (lines 91–92)
11.  The reason relationships often break up after four years is that it
takes that long to raise a child through infancy. (lines 109–112)
12.
 All couples find that their passion declines over time.
(lines 118–119)
13.
In long-term relationships that work, oxytocin is abundant in
both partners. (lines 126–128)

B. Fact or Theory.  Which of the statements above are facts and which are
theories? Write F (Fact) or T (Theory) next to each statement. Then circle the
words in the reading that indicate the theories.

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 Vocabulary Practice
A. Matching. Read the information below and match each word in red
with its definition.

The Origins of Valentine’s Day

Although Valentine’s Day may seem like a modern event, its roots go back
over 2,000 years.
Around 270 a.d., Roman Emperor Claudius II, seeking to recruit more soldiers
for his army, prohibited young men from marrying. Valentine was a priest who
performed marriages in secret despite the ban. As the story goes, Valentine was
killed—on February 14—for his defiance of the emperor. When the emperor
Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire in
313 a.d., February 14 was celebrated as a day to remember Saint Valentine.
Over time, it became widely recognized as a day of romance and a
celebration of love. The first Valentine’s Day card was sent in 1415 from
France’s Duke of Orléans to his wife to express the love and desire he felt for
her while he was held prisoner in England. Today, lovers all around the world
exchange cards, chocolates, and gifts as a sign of their love for each other.
S t. Valentine is
1. : behavior showing you are not willing to obey looked upon as
2. : the actions and feelings of people who are in love the guardian
3. : a very strong want or wish saint of lovers.

4. : to select or persuade someone to join an organization

B. Completion. Complete the sentences using the correct form

of words from the box.

abundant  chance  inclination  inherent  mutual  trigger

1. Chocolate may be romantic—it contains

chemicals that cause you to feel like you’re in love.
2. However, chocolate, which may cause feelings of love in some people,
can severe headaches for others.
3. By exchanging gifts, a person in love sometimes discovers that the love
is  , and that his or her feelings are returned.
4. According to a recent scientific study, women with large Usage Use
chins have a greater to cheat in relationships. chance to mean
events that
5. A(n) of certain chemicals in the brain causes the
happen when they
racing heart, blushing, and sweaty palms of someone in love. are not planned or
6. In the natural world, there is an element of controlled.
in winning a mate.

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